Golden Slipper Camp offers a full array of sporting activities. From baseball and basketball, and soccer to skateboarding, campers have no trouble finding interests they love. Or something they've always wanted to try.
Campers may pick most of our land sports as an elective and are placed with other kids in the same age group in a particular time slot. The electives help kids meet other kids from outside their bunks or villages.
Most of these programs offer instruction by a qualified specialist. Kids learn new skills or improve their skills from last summer. And for many of the team sports, they'll learn team strategy. All of these programs offer pure recreation and just plain fun.
Sports on Courts
Gaga
Gaga is a fun game, similar to dodge ball, that is popular with younger children. Played in an octagonal enclosure with a soft sand floor, gaga is an individual sport. Kids hit the ball with their hands and try to hit their opponents below the knees so they're "out."
Golden Slipper Camp has three courts - one in Vogelson Village, one in Kadden Village, and one in Strauss Village. Kids play for sheer recreation and fun.
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport that emphasizes individual skill development, and Golden Slipper Campers may select it as one of their electives. Our coaches lead drills, teaching basketball basics along with team strategy. It's one of our most popular activities, and the courts are almost constantly in use.
Older kids have a chance to compete in 3-on-3, team or intercamp tournaments. We also offer basketball as a competitive sport in our camp-wide Olympics.
Golden Slipper Camp has three regulation basketball courts in the Wolfson Sports Pavilion - an open indoor/outdoor space, with a roof and no walls.
Tennis
Campers may elect tennis as an optional activity and learn or improve their skills with our certified instructor. Kids will learn basic ground strokes and serves to more advanced techniques and strategies in small group lessons. Our focus is on skill development and also on providing kids with exposure to a sport they may never have tried.
Golden Slipper Camp has three tennis courts with a practice wall and lights for night games. We also have an ample supply of rackets and tennis balls.
NEW! - Beach Volleyball
Golden Slipper has always had beach volleyball, but new for 2006 - The Beach! We're creating a 2000 square foot beach, right on Golden Slipper Camp's private lake, complete with a volleyball court. This one will complement the existing court in Kadden Village.
Volleyball is a team sport that emphasizes individual skills, and our instructor helps kids of all ages learn the basics and more advanced skills. We also encourage fun and bare-foot enjoyment on the beach.
Hockey
Campers may elect street hockey as an elective for both instructional and recreational purposes. Kids learn proper stick handling, body positioning, forward and defense strategies, along with basic goal tending. Besides learning good skills, kids have lots of fun.
Our rink is regulation size, complete with boards, goals, and more. We bring the hockey sticks; you bring your own sneaks.
Sports on Wheels
Skateboarding and Inline Skating Park
We created and introduced our skate park in 2004, and in no time at all, it became one of the most popular program areas at Golden Slipper Camp.
Our two experienced riders offer instruction and plenty of safety skills to campers who choose it as an elective. The park itself includes ramps, obstacles, and a smooth surface. We offer skateboards and inline skates, along with all the protective gear kids need: knee pads, elbow pads, wrist guards and helmets.
Mountain Biking
Golden Slipper Campers may choose mountain biking as an elective and learn the basics to the more advanced skills, geared to the age levels of the group. Older and more experienced riders navigate the trails through our Golden Slipper Camp grounds. Younger kids ride on paved trails that wind through camp and that are off limits to vehicular traffic.
We have a fleet of modern mountain bikes, and helmets are a must. Our instructor teaches and emphasizes ways for riders to ensure their safety. Plus it's really fun!
Sports in Fields
Soccer
Soccer is one of the most popular activities for kids across the country, and that is certainly true at Golden Slipper Camp. Kids who choose soccer as one of their electives work with an instructor who teaches all the basic individual skills-trapping, passing, and kicking-along with team strategy. Kids have lots of fun, learning and practicing new skills, and competing in a recreational environment.
Our regulation soccer field with equipment, next to the Wolfson Sports Pavilion, is a beautiful spot at Golden Slipper Camp. Soccer is one of the competitive sports played in our 3-day Olympic competition.
Baseball / Softball
Kids who choose baseball as an elective at Golden Slipper Camp have their very own baseball coach and team for a week. The coach teaches the basics -- catching, throwing, fielding, and hitting -- along with important team strategy. Then the teams have the opportunity to practice their skills in a friendly, competitive environment. Bunks challenge other bunks in games and tournaments that are as exciting to watch as they are to play.
We have two regulation size baseball diamonds with full dirt infields in the Lower Ball Field, along with a batting cage, where campers fine tune their hitting using a pitching machine with varying speeds. We offer all the equipment needed, from gloves to bats to mandatory helmets.
Football
Campers may select football as an elective at Golden Slipper Camp. With an emphasis on fun and recreation over skill development, we offer no formal instruction. Instead we organize friendly games of flag football. We have a full array of equipment, and games are played at the football field, in the Lower Ball Field.
Sports with Targets
Archery
Archery is an individual activity that requires strength, focus, and concentration. Campers who elect archery during their 4-week stay at Golden Slipper Camp learn in a progressive order, starting with safety. After a thorough overview of safety skills, campers learn how to hold a bow, mount an arrow, aim, and then how to shoot and hit a target, using stationary paper targets.
Safety is foremost in our instruction, and the archery target area is supervised, secluded, and protected to prevent accidents.
Riflery
Like archery, riflery is an individual sport that requires focus, agility, and concentration. At Golden Slipper Camp, campers have exposure to air rifles using pellets and learn to appreciate and respect these instruments.
When campers choose riflery as one of their weekly electives, they learn the basics first. After a complete lesson on safety skills and practices, kids learn how to hold an air rifle properly, how to aim, and finally how to shoot. Then kids practice shooting at stationary paper targets, in a supervised and controlled setting.
