Parents Frustrated Gym Momma

[TagMomof3]

My DD (8) is on a small competitive team and we have had major changes over the past year the team. We got a new head coach last year, she has been great and really added to the excitement and atmosphere in the gym for the girls. She treats them all as individuals and takes the extra time to teach more than just skills and has a lot of gymnastics knowledge.
Our practice schedule over the season last year was unconventional to accommodate a night job the coach had. We made it work and didn't complain. Then beginning of this summer we found out our coach is moving 4 hours away to continue schooling and will only be coaching Fri/Sat/Sun every other weekend. We do have another coach who is very good too, but just had a baby came back early and can't really spot yet. Yes this is temporary and I know will be back to her wonderful coaching self after healing. The gym owner is very knowledgable and has coached many years but had pretty much told us they were retiring. But now is coaching our girls part of the time when our head coach is out of town.
We recently found out we are only attending 4 meets this year not including State or Regionals if we qualify.
My daughter has been on the team since she was 4, she is 8 and will compete in Excel as a Gold possibly platinum this year. She spends 16 hours in the gym each week. I am concerned it's a very light season for the girls this year with only 4 meets? One being Disney World, $$Cha ching! Presented as an optional meet, but no other meet was offered, and if we didn't attend it would be 3 meets for the season. What is an average number of meets other teams go to each season?
When do you start evaluating "red flags" and go to the coach or owner about your concerns? Do you just start looking into a different gym? This is the only gym we have known and I cannot begin to tell you how much this gym and coaches have positively changed my daughter over the past four years. But I am just afraid it's a sinking ship? Thank you!

 

[sce]

Xcel, 16 hrs (sounds high) plus inconsistent coaching. You have red flags.

 

[TagMomof3]

Sce
all our girls do xcel until level 6, which was an option for her this year, but no one moved up to optionals this year from xcel last year.
So how does one go about looking into other gyms, or is this a discussion that needs to be had with the coach/owner?

 

[blueredzone]

Yeah 16 hrs for xcel sounded extremely high to me when I first read the post. I maybe wrong on this. But maybe some gym coach can let us know. If a new gym doesn't use excel that way. Would your dd have to start back at lvl 3? I'm just not familiar with that. I know you cant start 4 until you did lvl 3. Same with 5 and 4. Not sure about optionals

 

[profmom]

In JO, you can do L4 without having done L3, but my understanding is that to get to optionals, a girl would have to score out of L4. 16 hours is high for a typical Xcel program, but if the gym is using Xcel to get kids to JO L6, that is probably at or slightly below the typical number of hours per week for girls preparing for JO optionals. I'd be more concerned about whether the girls are prepared well for JO optionals -- a question that is more important than the number or location of meets. Our JO girls (L8 and above) will do five meets before states, so it's not a crazy small number of meets.

Here are the questions I would be asking.

-- What is the plan for covering coaching during the postpartum coach's recovery period? Who will be coaching the girls at each practice? When is the postpartum coach expecting to be back in the gym fully?

-- What is the long-term plan with the head coach? Will she be staying with the gym?

-- When are the owners retiring and what is their succession plan?

-- What is the concrete plan for transitioning girls from Xcel to optionals? Does the gym have a good track record of doing this in the past, and how have athletes done with managing the transition?

 

[TagMomof3]

-- What is the plan for covering coaching during the postpartum coach's recovery period? Who will be coaching the girls at each practice? When is the postpartum coach expecting to be back in the gym fully?

The post pardon coach is coaching but is not to be hands on for another three weeks. They have had new inexperienced assists who one parent said did not spot properly and her daughter is now injured and no tumbling for 4 weeks. I wasn't there didn't see and only going on hearsay, but it does make a momma concerned.

-- What is the long-term plan with the head coach? Will she be staying with the gym?
The head coach has told us she is committed to commuting and will be returning after finishing her doctorate to coach full time.

-- When are the owners retiring and what is their succession plan?

It has been unclear on the owner's retirement. They have been saying it would be a slow transition the last two years. Then when HC announced the extra schooling and less time in the gym they were stepping back in and coaching during the week while HC is gone. The concern is owner is not very hands on but lots of knowledge.

-- What is the concrete plan for transitioning girls from Xcel to optionals? Does the gym have a good track record of doing this in the past, and how have athletes done with managing the transition?

Plan was stated last year the girls would test into level 6 when they had the skills to compete level 6 when they were confidently. Coach wants them to have a bhs on beam. DD it's still working on bhs on beam without any mats below. She is also not very confident with her robbr on floor.
Two girls transitioned from platinum to level 7 last year testing out of Xcel and both went to state. They were 10 and 11 yrs old and seemed to do well with the transition.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

The amount of hours and how an Xcel program is used varies greatly. Many gyms are using it to skip compulsories (with score outs). So high hours are really not all that uncommon.

Personally I would be happy with 4 meets, plus states and or regionals.

And that is pretty much what we are doing. I try to keep my daughter to not more then one meet a month.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Two girls transitioned from platinum to level 7 last year testing out of Xcel and both went to state. They were 10 and 11 yrs old and seemed to do well with the transition.

Could you clarify. They would of had to score out of at least L4 and L5, at least that is my understanding.

 

[Mrs. Puma]

Not to hijack the post, but my DD did 15 hrs for Xcel Gold at 7(turned 8 in Feb) last year and the plan was to score out of 4/5 at start optionals. We switched gyms and she'll likely be repeating 3, which she did at 6 (turning 7). Pm if you like. You're wise to be asking questions.

 

[Mrs. Puma]

And yes, she would have to do one meet at 4 and one at 5 (and score a 31 for each) then she could go "straight" from Xcel to 6 or 7. They can be done in the same day (I believe they are supposed to be two different sessions) and could be an in-house meet. Like our old HC was going to just bring a judge in I guess. (Unless a kid were 14 or in 9th grade then they can be petitioned in, but that is not the case here!)

 

[UnoMas]

My DD did 14-15 hours in Xcel gold but it was used as a stepping stone to optionals.

 

[TagMomof3]

To test out of L4 and 5 we would just have a testing meet in house with a judge was my understanding. But we haven't gone through it with my DD. we had 3 girls do it last year two went to L7 from 5 and one to L8 from 5 in JO's. We got a new coach and she really changed. Lot of our options.
This year DD will compete her first meet as a gold and then she can do her second as platinum, If her coach and her decide she is confident and ready to compete the platinum skills.

 

[flowerchild]

What is a robbr on floor?

 

[JMACAZ]

Our XP and XD do 16 hours. We are doing 5 meets plus States and Reg.

 

[TagMomof3]

What is a robbr on floor?

Sorry robhsbt is what I meant to type. Round off back hand spring back tuck

 

[TagMomof3]

Thank you all for your input, I am glad to hear our number of meets aren't simple fly off. DD had an amazing practice this evening and I spoke with postpartum coach today. She acknowledged my concerns about all the shuffling and completely understood. Reminded me we have only been on the new schedule three weeks and it will get better. I am still a little concerned but she and you all have eased a lot of those worries. Looking forward to our season and watching all the girls compete!