AZRD is a great local organization to support! I was looking for something fun to do with friends…read morefor an evening and never got around to going to a bout in the Midwest before I moved out here (the local team there was/is good, never got around to going). Luckily for Phoenix there are 2 great "professional" orgs for roller derby and AZRD is one of them! The space they play in is great - it's a conveniently-located gym close to DTPHX they convert with tape for flat track roller derby. We found it quite interesting that people are on-call at all times around the gym with rolls of different colors of tape in case it comes off during a bout. It's also affordable - no more than $10/15 for an adult, and normally the bouts go for a few hours. You definitely get your money's worth. The only downfall was the night we came they actually ran out of beer (a lot of local brews), and somehow the AZRD team came back with more beer, but the standard cheap stuff. Power to them to sell that. You can tell that the girls really put their heart and soul into roller derby. The night we attended, one longtime skater played in her last bout before moving away and you could tell everyone was tearing up as the bouts ended and she got her final curtain call. While one team was competing, another was out in the stands trying to fundraise for the nationals trip their All-Star team takes. A couple of them were kind to explain how the bouts work, and they had some neat handouts we borrowed to explain the plays, the players, etc. Props to the AZRD for what they do!

The women of AZRD (Arizona Roller Derby) rock, and rock hard! AZRD is a local roller derby…read moreorganization, of about 3 in the state and they are amazing to watch. They are a member of the "Women's Flat Track Derby Association". So if you saw the "Roller girls" series on TV, it's not quite like that as it's all flat - not raised up on the outside. The biggest advantage here is that it's much easier for them to find a space to both practice and perform. There are 4 teams in the league, and they all have great names - and super fun outfits that "match" their name. Example, we love the Surly Gurlies - and they are all pirate costumes. And most of those include fishnets. Did that get anyone's attention? Yea, they have to use a bit of sex to initially get the butts in the seats, but after watching one of their bouts, most folks are ready to go again just for the action. And this isn't like the fake stuff you saw on TV years ago. This is totally real un-choreographed stuff. And if you want to join, as long as you have your own insurance and a pair of skates - you're welcome to join their "Smash Squad" to learn the ropes until you're good enough to be picked up by one of the teams. It's really a great time. Energy is always high and it's a great chance to yell and scream like a fool too. If you want to - not required of course. The only negative has been their announcers. They had some good ones a few times, but often we can't hear what in the heck they are saying. Maybe one day they'll be able to afford a PA system we can understand. Final Bonus - There's always a live band to play between each of their sets. This could be rock, bunk, ska, rockabilly or something else wonderful and amazing. And occasionally loud. There are usually ear plugs available at the door for their indoor bouts. Take them up on it. Trust me.

My grandson plays in a Sereno League. His coach, Devon, plays for a Sereno team and gets paid for…read morecoaching the younger kids. Devon changes practice time, misses practice, and now wants to cancel a tournament that the parents have already paid for. I also have seen very little improvement in my grandson's team. I WOULD NEVER recommend joining a Sereno league team. They charge a lot of money and the kids learn very little. Shame on Sereno!!!!!

If I could give this league a zero I would. We played a team and it was VERY obvious that the…read moreparents paid the ref's to be shady cheaters. It's unfortunate that a simple kids soccer game could turn into a political pay off. The parents were cussing at our kids, yelling at the parents and the ref was making calls to benefit the home team. A kid on our team was throwing the ball in and a kid from the other team went behind him (as he was throwing the ball in) and PUSHED him. It was completely obvious and the ref didn't do anything, that should have been a RED card. The parents should be ashamed that they are raising their kids to be cheaters rather than play the game the right way. I am not a racist person and I am ashamed of my own race because of the way the parents on the other team acted toward our defense, yelling racial slurs. After the f"u@k boy ref was obviously paid off and added 10 minutes to the game, this is when the other team scored and won. Their sorry team scored off a penalty kick and their team was clearly offsides both times. We know our boys played a clean honest game. Karma will come back and bite you in the a** when we play your cheating team again.

i9 Sports has truly been amazing. The kiddos in my family have been a part of the i9 community in…read morevarious sports from soccer to tennis over the course of the last 8-9 years. I would recommend starting your children with a program of their interest to get some entry level experience of their sport of choice. i9 is a warm welcome to introducing sportsmanship, camaraderie, leadership skills and just some pure, whole hearted fun! You get to experience practice/games without the hassle of expensive traveling, die-hard competitiveness and allow you kiddo a fun space to grow and find love in something new!

I love i9! They make things super easy for busy parents because practices are on the same days as…read moregames. Very convenient locations and coaches are great. Kids have fun and there are a lot of extra sports activities for the kids like going to NBA games. Highly recommend!

This club expanded past disappointment to downright incompetent and offensive. Rather than doing…read moreany of the things they proclaim on their website to build up and inspire a beginning player, the clear cut nepotism, favoritism and unprofessional coaching led to my daughter being demoralized, marginalized and feeling really bad about herself. During the post season after being slaughtered all six games on Sunday, the coaches didn't change their strategy, replace utterly ineffective rotations, instead they demanded that the Parents "hide" the scores from the girls. What? Huh? Really? They lost and lost every day with no changes to strategy,. It was heartbreaking watching half of the girls always benched told they could only play when they were winning while the others on the court desperately trying to execute terrible rotations leaving half the court wide open blaming themselves. The coaches buried in their devices and looking like they were still in their jammies did nothing. They say in their propaganda website " Everything we do is built around our core values--integrity, grit, excellence, responsibility, and courage. These values guide how we train, how we communicate, and how we hold each other accountable." Accountability? How does hiding the scores during games accomplish any of that? On the 4th day of the tournament, I had the temerity to have the scoreboard on my personal cell phone. Mommy of the Coaches, yes not a player's parent, marched across the court and demanded that I take a scoreboard app off my phone. When I calmly refused, she began bullying, demeaning and threatening me. I never raised my voice or got out of my chair. At no time during the entire 4 days did I ever shout, act out or even complain to anyone. She marched to her husband, director of AZ Sky and Daddy of the coaches who also marched over and demanded the same, when I again politely refused, he too threatened to have me removed. Holding up the next game he headed to the Ref and Mommy began SCREAMING in front of hundreds of people including my then terrified 12 year old daughter. "You're Going to be Removed!" several times. After going to officials, of course I was not removed. Mommy then began a campaign with the parents that led to me being ostracized, "shoved" "bumped" and blocked from taking pictures of my kid with the team. The final truly disturbing event was one of the coaches in a seething, veiled "compliment" used my daughter to throw shade my way. Hey, insult me all you want but don't use my child to do it. That is disgusting behavior. Ownership never responded to my repeated requests for a meeting. After spending close to $5,000 their utter lack of professionalism and mistreatment of clients is really pathetic. Read their responses to this and other reviews. Prepare yourself for gaslighting and them to blame you and your child for their poor behavior. Choose another club, this one has lost it's way.

Our experience with Sky Volleyball Club was extremely disappointing. After a positive experience in…read moretheir developmental leagues, we had high hopes for our first year of club, but it turned out to be nothing like we expected. From the beginning, there was a complete lack of transparency regarding fees and expectations. Families are informed of the total cost only about two weeks before tryouts, but once the season begins, additional unexpected expenses quickly pile up--hotels, travel, out-of-area tournaments, and more. Be prepared to keep paying because not everything is disclosed upfront. Despite investing nearly $7,000, our daughter was repeatedly left out of rotations while every other player received playing time. At tournaments, she was either benched for entire sets or given only a few points to play--even after scoring. We did not pay this kind of money for our daughter to sit on the sidelines and receive little to no development in practice. There was no explanation, no feedback, and no real effort to improve her skills. As one of the tallest players on the team with clear potential, she should have received coaching to refine her game, but instead, she was ignored. Coach Jordyn provided minimal instruction, showed no investment in her growth, and lacked the energy and engagement expected at the club level. It became clear that unless a player was already highly skilled, they were not a priority. If you are not among the top players at Sky, you will likely be placed on a team just so the club can collect more money, and you won't have a strong coach. The best coaches are assigned to the higher-level teams, while developing players are left with less experienced or disengaged coaches. Our coach was noticeably out of shape, did not motivate the girls, and failed to provide useful feedback for improvement. Mistakes in practice were overlooked, and there was no emphasis on player development. After back-to-back experiences of unfair treatment, I received a text from Dennis, the Operations Manager, questioning why we left a tournament early. I responded respectfully, outlining our concerns, but his response was silence. There was no follow-up, no acknowledgment, and no effort to address the situation. Later, I emailed the club's owners, Jeff and Julia, detailing everything that had happened. A full week passed with no response. When I followed up with a text, Dennis simply said that Jeff had received my email and "believed" he would respond. That was the last communication I received. No call, no email, no apology--just complete indifference. The scheduling was also unreasonable, with late-night practices (7:30PM - 9:45PM on a school night) and excessive travel commitments that were poorly communicated. Families were caught off guard by last-minute expenses, including a nearly $1,000 hotel charge right before Christmas. Sky does not disclose the true cost of participation early enough, leaving parents financially unprepared. If you're considering Sky, think twice. And if you're thinking about putting your daughter on Coach Jordyn's team--don't. The lack of fairness, transparency, and accountability made this experience one we deeply regret. We expected quality coaching, communication, and player development, but instead, we got an organization that prioritizes profit over its athletes.

After bumbling my way through my first year of triathlon, I decided that maybe, just maybe, I could…read moredo a half Ironman. I met with Coach Bettina and shyly explained what I wanted to do and understanding maybe I couldn't do it. Bettina not only assured me I could, but it would be great! She was right! With her training and guidance and her never-ending encouragement and positive energy, I completed my first Half Ironman and Racelab is guiding me to my first Ironman this year. Coach Bettina has designed a training schedule that meets the needs of my busy life with a full-time job and another sport in which I compete. All the other athletes accepted me right away and made me feel comfortable and included. From training at ASU track, to racing in Rocky Point, Mexico, we always have fun while getting faster, stronger and better. This team and coaches all care about each other and Racelab really is my second family.

I have always been fit, but I have never consider myself athletic enough to race, then at the age…read moreof 36 I started running. I ran on my own just copying online stuff and finished my first full marathon good but physical burned out. Then I found Racelab, I called Bettina and despite my off schedule working every weekends during that time, she wrote specific plans for me to complete my fastest full, the Chicago Marathon. Since then, no turning back I have completed 12 marathons, 3 ultras and I'm training to be a triathlete. Let me tell you, training with a group like Racelab is amazing. There are days in your training that you feel high and lows physically and emotionally but with the coaches and members so supportive of each other, the mood changes to being motivated. I always look forward for our group activities whether it is swim, bike or run. I love my Racelab family, they keep me HAPPY!

This is only the beginning of our 2nd season with Hoop Code and is already raving about them to…read morefriends and family! They have truly instilled focus, effort and attitude into my son! In just our first season, my son's ball handling, driving to the basket and shooting have improved tremendously! We look forward to continue my son's love for basketball with Hoop Code! Couldn't think of a better league to help my son get to where he wants to be with the sport! Not to mention all the snazzy, cool Nike merchandise! I also wanted to mention that other league parents and coaches show signs of bad sportsmanship! Hoop Code should not be singled out! While with Hoop Code, we played vs another league where parents and coaches berate the kids on the court! Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. If you tried Hoop Code and didn't like it, then so be it...it's YOUR opinion! In MY opinion, we love Hoop Code! We love the energy, The coaching Staff and the discipline! Try them out! Doesn't hurt! Some may say it's not for them but I feel that most will love it!

I had my son in the Biddi program. It was a joke, I would not recommend it. He was 6 years old…read more Just learning how to play. They skipped over basic basketball skills like dribbling, passing, shooting. They also didn't explain/teach the game at their age level. They did drills and shouted at them. There was very little demonstration or participation by the coaches. The helping coaches just messed around shooting hoops and trying to spin the ball. They were more of a distraction to the kids. When it came to games the coach would be a no show, and only 3 kids would show up. Communication was terrible. It was a complete waste of money and time. It was not fun at all for the kids.