Dive into the SportScene
Photo by Sandra Stone By SANDRA STONE When Tim Hatler decided it was time to make a change in his life, he began thinking seriously about an idea that had been nothing more than a thought for several years, and SportScene was born. “I wanted to do this for some time,” said Hatler, “as there’s nothing that covers youth sports.” There’s Sports Illustrated for Kids, but that’s about professional athletes written for a younger audience. SportScene, however, provides youth sports news coverage for and about kids in Kentucky. “We’re trying to cover the entire state,” said Hatler, “from little Johnny who’s playing soccer for the first time to the 19-year-old who won the Junior Bassmaster.” The first issue featured Kentucky Youth Soccer and was put together without an editor. It had a circulation of 64,000, and Hatler said he personally handed out 14,000 copies. The magazine is full color throughout with some pretty hefty advertisers already on board. And Hatler anticipates it will get better with each issue (six each year), especially now that he has an editor, Jan Winter, on staff. “Our second issue that is coming out makes me want to rip the first one up,” said Hatler. “It looks that much better.” The second issue features 17 sports, and according to Hatler, each issue will also feature a sport for disabled or disadvantaged players. The October issue includes a feature on the Elizabethtown Top Soccer program for disabled children. The first two issues were complimentary. After that, there’s a subscription cost of $8 per year for six issues. To date, 2,500 subscriptions have already been requested. It would have been more, said Hatler, “but we messed up and forgot to put the subscription cards in the magazine.” The cards were already printed, said Hatler, but they simply forgot to insert them. He’s not crying much about that mistake, however, as the pages increased from 48 to 64 between the first and second issue, and he looks to have 96 pages in the December issue, complete with 10 to 12 pages of 3-D photos and 3-D glasses with which to view them. The magazine is based in Louisville, but there’s a local connection in the person of Erin Collins. She is the sales contact for the Meade County area, as well as the one to call to request coverage of an event involving youth. “We’re happy to come cover events,” said Collins, and submitted articles and photos are also welcome. “We want every county to be represented for youth’s accomplishments both on and off the field.” The mission of SportScene, said Collins, “is to promote kids being healthy and active and just being kids.” And there will also be articles for parents as well as for the youth. “I’m excited about the project,” said Collins. “This is the only publication of its kind in the nation, and I think it will catch on in surrounding states.” To contact Erin Collins, call (270) 668-3430. For subscriptions or more information about SportScene, log onto www.youthsportscene.com.
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