<p>And schools complain because of major budget cuts…
As much as I want to say that this this just a group of kids having harmless fun, I can’t shake the feeling that it’s beyond ridiculous. I don’t have anything against Harry Potter or quidditich… but the concept only works as long as you have magic balls and brooms. Now it’s just a bunch of overgrown adolescents running around with brooms stuck in their undersides. </p>
<p>I have nothing against having fun…but it seems as if the initial comedic appeal of telling people that you play quidditch at Harvard would greatly outweigh the actual experience. Why don’t they try club soccer or tennis or handball or… anything that isn’t this?</p>
<p>Quiddich is a rapidly growing and popular collegiate sport. See [Teams</a> | International Quidditch Association](<a href=“http://www.internationalquidditch.org/teams/]Teams”>http://www.internationalquidditch.org/teams/) for a list of member teams of the international quiddich association. I see no reason that club quiddich should not be supported at the same level as other club sports, say rugby (where posts alone can cost in the thousands) or soccer, or baseball or softball, or even table tennis.</p>
<p>I’ve actually played around with the UCLA team once or twice, and I must say the game is a lot of fun, and completely different than any of the other sports mentioned from the many various things a player needs to pay attention to, as there are 3 balls each player needs to concern themselves with, can’t say that about any of the others mentioned.</p>
<p>OK, but this is club funds - not scholarships or athletic recruits, etc. Club grants are, at most colleges, driven by the amount/extent of participation not peceived value or success. If they have the numbers, why should they not get the funding? Who decides worthy vs. not worthy?</p>
<p>Maybe when you show up at Yale on move-in day, you can ask your classmates about it yourself… I noticed you conveniently pulled an article about Harvard’s club instead</p>
<p>I know people who play collegiate quidditch and it is just a fun game. Sure, there’s a silly aspect to it, but there’s not a whole lot of reason to try to get a big orange ball in a hoop high up or to get a little tiny ball in a little tiny hole really far away. Yet people find these things fun and that’s why people do them. I think it’s a far stretch to pick on these kids and say they are just trying too hard to be unique. </p>
<p>For instance, my school is VERY athletic, and it would be very difficult for a non-athlete to get a spot on even a lot of the intramural teams. Quidditch provides an opportunity for many people who’d like to play a sport (or are just big Harry Potter fans) who don’t fit into any of the existing ones on campus. </p>
<p>Given the kind of stupid clubs that get funding at some colleges, I think it’s very reasonable for an organized, albeit somewhat silly sport to get a share of the pie. When I was at Ithaca College, for example, I believe there was a Pancake Club, and I am the secretary of my school’s anime club, and yes, we do get funding (though we are expected to put on some events and raise funds with the money). </p>
<p>I’m also very tired of this notion that once you go to college, or even after you graduate from it, that you need to “grow up.” I don’t get how it can be considered perfectly socially acceptable to go get trashed three or more nights a week, but not to run around with a broomstick and get some exercise. I also don’t see how doing and liking silly things precludes one from being taken seriously as an adult. Turning 18 doesn’t mean one needs to become a no-fun, all-business curmudgeon. My days are split between classes that I work very hard to succeed at, my job, research and other obligations. Who cares if I’d prefer to watch cartoons when I get home instead of doing something more grown up?</p>
<p>You know what would be really silly? A club devoted to Rubik’s Cube solving. Or playing Settlers of Catan. Or playing the video game Super Smash League. Or sponsoring potlucks on our porches. Hey OP, how about investigating schools and reporting back on any that are sponsoring things like this? :D</p>
<p>(Personally, I’d love to see a club that combines potlucks and Settlers of Catan )</p>
<p>Honestly, from whai I see almost every college has Quidditch. Many high schools are startin as well. I just watched a tournament/exhibition with my younger child. It was fun to watch. The kids were having a blast/letting off steam. Not everything has to go toward resume building. There are plenty of other obscure/ridiculous clubs around. How do you propose they determine funding? </p>
<p>Quidditch isn’t that far off from Lacrosse, except they “ride” the brooms vs using them to throw the balls. Every college has some procedure to fund club teams. If the quidditch team meets the requirement, why not. Lacrosse was a club team at my college, should they not fund that? Same with rowing, that was a club team. They have a set budget for these things, it isn’t taking away scholarship money from your child.</p>
<p>From what I hear, quidditch is getting to be quite large and big tournaments are held. My S’s high school just started a club last year, and he loves it. He’s not the most athletic kid, so this was something fun that he could participate in. Is it stupid? Yes. But they have a lot of fun and get exercise. Otherwise, he’d be sitting in front of his computer gathering dust. He looks forward to playing quidditch in college if he can.</p>
<p>Having your kids (especially the boys) run around a field playing a semi-rough game while carrying a broomstick between their legs seems like a good way to cut down your chances of ever being a grandparent some day.</p>
<p>That said, quidditch isn’t any more or less deserving of schools funds than any other minor college sport.</p>
<p>I think it’s very impressive what these kids have done with Quidditch. They took a fictional game, created rules and equipment and leagues, and now play it as seriously as any sport. I see no reason why Quidditch couldn’t eventually become a varsity sport – it’s being played by thousands of kids now, worldwide. The World Cup this year had (according to the website) 100 teams with 2000 athletes. </p>
<p>So I don’t think it’s ridiculous at all. And if universities are going to fund other sports, like handball or fencing or wrestling or soccer or football, why not fund quidditch too?</p>
<p>Quidditch sounds like silly fun to me. They have it at Texas A&M, so it’s not just the Ivies. At Alabama they play a live game of Battleship where kids get in canoes and sink each other in a swimming pool…also silly fun. There’s an awesome video of it on there web site complete with Epic sounding music.</p>
:D</p>
)</p>