B
Billy
At the risk of becoming labeled a "gym hopper," it looks like we're going to have to change gyms again after all.
At the gym we started with, DD did preschool classes and then their rec program. We were there for almost two years. However, the rec director had no interest in training girls to move to team until they had done all four levels of rec first. As DD desperately wanted to be on a team, we had her evaluated at a couple of gyms, both of which immediately offered her a spot on their teams (one L2 and one L3). We chose the gym that put her on L2.
We've been very happy with this gym until recently. The problems started last spring. We looked into changing then but were able to work out the problems so we stayed. Now things seem to be getting worse. They lost their best team coach and an excellent assistant coach both in July (both went back to school). They hired a couple of coaches but neither seem to be up to the caliber of the ones we lost. And on top of that, the gym seems to be growing, particularly the beginners classes, and we don't have the space, the coaches, nor the equipment to manage it. It has become chaotic. The last several practices on vault (they only have one vault table), DD has gotten 3-5 vaults and that's it. There are four beams so we often have 3-4 girls on each beam. The girls often practice unsupervised or in a 12:1 ratio. And we may have more team girls added soon due to the demise of a nearby program. The last straw was an assistant coach who keeps dropping the girls she's supposed to be spotting.
So, I'm once again looking into gyms in our area, though every choice is further away than where we are now. Here's the choices:
Gym A
compulsory teams score fairly well at meets
large gym w/ more equipment= more time on said equipment
not very strong optionals team (5 or 6 girls training L7-L8) though they are building the program
(sister gym location has strong optionals through L10 but too far away for us)
one of their coaches is the TOPs state manager
more flexible scheduling (will work with us around church)
DD really liked this gym
Gym B
compulsory teams do not score well at meets
strong optionals program (about 11 L9-L10s)
small gym, less equipment= less time on equipment
“name” owner and h/c w/ strong NCAA backgrounds
scheduling conflict; don't know yet if they are flexible
DD hasn't been here yet but loves the idea of training alongside L10s
Both gyms are the same distance away and I believe both gyms have TOPs programs. I'm trying to compare programs but I just don't know what to do. We could stay where we are (DD would rather not change) but I'm not very happy with things there. I don't want to be "that mom" but I'm worried about my daughter's safety and the quality of her training. Opinions would be great.
At the gym we started with, DD did preschool classes and then their rec program. We were there for almost two years. However, the rec director had no interest in training girls to move to team until they had done all four levels of rec first. As DD desperately wanted to be on a team, we had her evaluated at a couple of gyms, both of which immediately offered her a spot on their teams (one L2 and one L3). We chose the gym that put her on L2.
We've been very happy with this gym until recently. The problems started last spring. We looked into changing then but were able to work out the problems so we stayed. Now things seem to be getting worse. They lost their best team coach and an excellent assistant coach both in July (both went back to school). They hired a couple of coaches but neither seem to be up to the caliber of the ones we lost. And on top of that, the gym seems to be growing, particularly the beginners classes, and we don't have the space, the coaches, nor the equipment to manage it. It has become chaotic. The last several practices on vault (they only have one vault table), DD has gotten 3-5 vaults and that's it. There are four beams so we often have 3-4 girls on each beam. The girls often practice unsupervised or in a 12:1 ratio. And we may have more team girls added soon due to the demise of a nearby program. The last straw was an assistant coach who keeps dropping the girls she's supposed to be spotting.
So, I'm once again looking into gyms in our area, though every choice is further away than where we are now. Here's the choices:
Gym A
compulsory teams score fairly well at meets
large gym w/ more equipment= more time on said equipment
not very strong optionals team (5 or 6 girls training L7-L8) though they are building the program
(sister gym location has strong optionals through L10 but too far away for us)
one of their coaches is the TOPs state manager
more flexible scheduling (will work with us around church)
DD really liked this gym
Gym B
compulsory teams do not score well at meets
strong optionals program (about 11 L9-L10s)
small gym, less equipment= less time on equipment
“name” owner and h/c w/ strong NCAA backgrounds
scheduling conflict; don't know yet if they are flexible
DD hasn't been here yet but loves the idea of training alongside L10s
Both gyms are the same distance away and I believe both gyms have TOPs programs. I'm trying to compare programs but I just don't know what to do. We could stay where we are (DD would rather not change) but I'm not very happy with things there. I don't want to be "that mom" but I'm worried about my daughter's safety and the quality of her training. Opinions would be great.
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