WAG Is MAG better than WAG?

[dancemom]

It isn't too bad in our region. We go watch a lot, and really, most of the parents are pretty cool. But there are always exceptions to the rules...

I’ve had great experiences with FS and the parents. It’s a good chance to connect with parents that you wouldn’t normally hang out with, mainly since many kids are there alone or in small groups. It's not like the normal big team gang of parents all sequestered together.

 

[dancemom]

”Our family recently saw a boys' meet for the first time, and OH MY GOODNESS was it different from a girls' meet! Everyone, including the judges, was friendly and relaxed.”

*yes- the overall atmosphere is much different!


”Nobody was timing falls or routines.”

*Falls are always timed, but by the judge. He/she will give verbal warnings in 10 second increments. The gymnast has 30 seconds to resume his routine after a fall. The audience wouldn't be able to hear these warnings. The floor routine is timed, starting at the optional levels. Specific deductions are incurred for time over the max (70 seconds). In NCAA, a bell is rung at the 60 second warning and again at the 70 second ”end of routine” time.


”There was no horrid compulsory music. The boys' compulsory routines looked more progressive than the girls': for example, L5, which I believe is around the equivalent of girls' L4, didn't vault over the table or even onto a mat--they just did a front tuck off the springboard. Why do we expect teeny tiny little girls to vault over the table, but not boys?”

*Up through girls Lvl 6, the boys’ comparable skill equivalent is one basic level lower, or lvl 5 WAG= lvl 4 MAG (with no bonus skill). But boys’ routines, level 4-7, have 2-4 optional bonus skills/lvl (other than Vault), each adding +0.5 points to the Starting Value of the routine. These are skills that become compulsory in the next level up. So there are several variations of any routine in the same level.


”Gyms also appear to be much more inclusive on the boys' side. In the L5 session I saw plenty of weak tumbling, horribly bent and separated legs, muscled-up kips, terrible body shapes, and flexed feet. And it was all WONDERFUL. If many of the boys in that session were girls, they would never have been allowed on team in the first place or would already have been driven out of the sport because they didn't have perfect form at age 8 or 9. But they are all getting the chance to learn and progress at their own pace.

*Boys definitely don't have the overall lovely legs/feet/toes that the girl's do, esp. in the younger age groups. But they do incur deductions by the judges for everything that you mentioned above.