By Dan Karpiel

The Surveyor

The organization formerly known as the Berthoud Youth Athletic Association (BYAA) has rebranded as 5030 Sports. The change was more than a simple re-branding, however, as 5030 Sports has made a number of significant changes and upgrades to its operation.

The new name, 5030, is the elevation of Berthoud, and the 5030 Sports board of directors selected the 5030 moniker in an effort to make the brand easily recognizable. By rebranding as 5030 Sports, the organization, which operates as a non-profit, hopes to eliminate past confusion that it was directly associated with the Berthoud Parks and Rec, which also offers youth sports programs in the town.

According the organization’s website, 5030 Sports’ motto is “our altitude, our home, your game,” and the mission statement reads as follows:

“5030 Sports strives to develop young athletes through encouragement, respect, and competition. While 5030 Sports encourages parents, community, and local schools to be positively involved in our programs, our first priority is the moral and physical fitness of each athlete. At 5030 Sports, athletes are encouraged to take personal responsibility and ownership over their athletic development through self-advocacy with coaches, accountability among teammates, and respectful sportsmanship.”

5030 Sports partnered with Stack Sports to create and develop their new website, 5030sports.com. The new website will allow users to create family accounts to handle program registration and make payments. Furthermore, the website fully integrates the Stack Sports software that allows for coaches to communicate with players and their parents, further streamlining operations and making things easier for all involved.

“While we are continuing to add content to the website, we are very excited about how far we have come in this process in the past year,” said Christine Hiatt, president of 5030 Sports.

Another change 5030 Sports has made is to update their codes of conduct for coaches, players and parents. Hiatt explained the board believes there has become a real problem in high-school and lower-level youth sports with improper and unsportsmanlike conduct toward officials, coaches, and even players.

“5030 Sports believes that the most important lessons learned in youth sports are those that players will take with them into non-sport environments, for example, self-advocacy, hard work, respect, integrity, and exceeding expectations,” Hiatt said. “The codes of conduct are now mandatory in registering for any of our programs.”

The challenge of catering to a growing community is one for which 5030 Sports is prepared and was one of the prompts to rebrand and increase their marketing campaign. The website alone will make things easier for coaches and volunteers to handle the administration process and focus more time and energy on working with the young athletes involved.

Yet embracing modern technology can only take things so far. One significant program 5030 Sports has encountered and will continue to encounter is finding fields and gymnasiums for practices and games.

As Hiatt explained, “Programs in Berthoud, including 5030 Sports, struggle every season to share space and balance availability so that our youth can stay in Berthoud for sports. As it stands, there are multiple times in each season where Berthoud teams have no space available for practice and have to scramble for space in nearby towns or cancel practice. Facility space will continue to be a struggle until additional facilities are developed either privately or through the town.”

5030 Sports places an emphasis on developing athletes who will be ready to compete at higher levels and who are experienced in the competitive environment, but does so in a way that develops the entire individual. According to the 5030 website, “5030 Sports will work with young athletes to promote a “we-first mentality,” where our athletes understand the importance of the “sixth man,” the importance of the player who works hard in practice and leads a team by example, and the importance of the positive support and readiness of each player on the bench.” 

5030 offers programs for youth in grades three through eight in football, baseball, boys basketball and girls volleyball. The organization has pilot programs in girls basketball and soccer and hope to expand their offerings in those sports in the coming year. Registration for fall tackle football is currently open and will remain so through June 1. Further information, including registration, can be found at their website, www.5030sports.com.