The NVL Is Focused To Build Something

I'm sure that at this point the NVL has made it abundantly clear that it will be slow and steady that hopes to win the race.  Just yesterday, I wrote about the lack of a rich talent pool at AVP tournaments, that seemingly feature 2 or 3 main teams that continually advance to Sunday, and there is a definite need to build and develop players at that intermediate stage in their playing career between high school and pro.  

Recently it was released that the NVL will be putting together a beach volleyball academy.  The sound of the name itself strikes me something with the whimsy of Hogwarts with the awesomeness of beach volleyball...but better.  

Sorry Harry, but you're just not pro beach material...NEXT!

This academy will be taking place at Club Med in St. Lucie, Florida and there are plans for 30, that's right three-zero, courts to be built, as well as boarding options.  Before you pack you bags though, be aware that it comes with a hefty price tag:  $43,186 a year with boarding.

It is surely one thing to invest in the juniors programs, and profit off those who are ineligible to collect prize money, but it is another thing to actually develop said players to hopefully one day, stay in the family and play for your tournament to build the sport.  Because it makes no sense to plant the seeds, and water the plants only to have another farmer come along and harvest the crops when they are ready to be picked.  As great as this sounds, there is something that still just doesn't sit right with me.

Parents, you could send your kid to college to party and accrue loads of debt...
Oooor, you could send them here to party, play beach volleyball and accrue loads of debt
Which one gets you more bang for your buck?...That's what I thought. 

I'm guessing the NVL is throwing in the towel on landing a Sean Rosenthal or Brittany Hochevar at one of their events, but at least they have to foresight to land the next Summer Ross when the time comes.  Of course it could all fall apart if they only offer prize money in the form of tuition fee cuts.  The NVL, like any other tour, will have to solve the problem of substantial prize money to draw in the top athletes.  How much of that $43,186 will go toward NVL pro tournaments will be answered down the road, but for now it looks like they are assembling all the pieces into their grand vision.

They have a pipeline to the juniors with USAV, they have been officially sanctioned, they have a crazy expensive resort to be a beach bum, and they've got Mikasa, the ball that no one uses or likes to use.  So yeah it seems to be adding up to something, but I'm not sure if what they are projecting is what I was hoping for them or the sport itself.

As much as the NVL has to work (because the AVP can't be trusted), it just may not work out for them either.  Don't get me wrong, when I first heard of this beach volleyball academy idea, I was ecstatic, and then I saw the price tag.  Growing up I didn't come from money so $2,000-$3,000 a year for club was a lot to me and my family so I can't even imagine who would want to pay 44k for an education at Club Med with volleyball training.

Scenic pictures with obscure filters are a guarantee
in beach volleyball, which is why a youthful mobile app
sponsor would have made more sense

I'm just starting to get the feeling that the NVL is out of touch.  When I saw that they landed a major sponsor recently, and then continue to see that said sponsor is Poloroid, I could only shake my head.  Worse, on their website they describe Poloroid as "the leader in photography".  That's great and all if it is 1974, but here in 2013 the real leader in photography is Instagram.  Besides it would be far more likely for someone to use a camera phone app at a tournament than pulling out a Poloroid.  The digital marketplace is where they can cash in but for some reason they are just taking what they can get.

At this point in the year, we have seen a lot of what both domestic tours wanted to accomplish and we can kind of get a feel for where they are going.  The AVP is still headed to fall off the cliff down the road, where as the NVL is a lot like Forrest Gump.  Ya don't know where he is going, but he is going somewhere, and hopefully when he stops running he doesn't just turn around and instead finds himself at exactly where he (and the group of people following him) wanted to end up.

Hey Forrest...ummm...are we there yet?