Parents Just curious, and a little off-topic

[3rd_time_around]

So anyone out there have another gym that causes trouble and constant drama for your gym? Don't name names or places, but maybe you have a little anecdote or story? And if this is the wrong forum, I won't be offended if you have to take this one down.

I just wonder if other people deal with the things we do, or is it a unique situation we have.

 

[my4buffaloes]

You are definitely not alone, but I won't go into details.

 

[bogwoppit]

Not a problem as long a no names are involved.

 

[Gymmom495]

Ok, I will go here my story is actually a bit different than what you are asking for I was at a gym that WAS the drama.
I am not a person who plays the "my kid is better than your kid" game. So when we came to the gym I at first thought it was the best thing ever, great coaching, great facilities and equipment, the owner was very hands on, and they even had lots of options for fundraising. I really thought I had found our permanent gymnastics home. I slowly met people and stayed friendly with everyone. At the time my 5 year old was on pre-team and could not compete but our gym was hosting a meet so I decided that since I was eventually going to be part of the team I would sign up to be an extra pair of hands. Everyone seemed so nice. It wasn't for a few months that I started noticing parents bad mouthing other children and other parents for petty things. "This or that person is getting privates just so they get better than my child" or they were convinced the coaches were yelling at or ignoring just their child because they had a favorite, and because of that they would group up against not only that child but that parent too.
I have also seen when a very young and extremely talented child is recognized and being up-trained the parents loose their minds complaining about the amount of time down to the exact minute the coaches are spending with each child. This behavior eventually took a toll on the both of us and we ultimately changed gyms. We are now happier, with wonderful parents, gymnasts, and go figure better coaching!!!

 

[sglemon]

Ugh, that stinks! No, I don 't think we have that problem, with other gyms. I think it is pretty normal, to have some unfortunate comments come out of parent mouths and sometimes girls can be down right mean to each other. But, I see that in every sport. You need to grow some thick skin, to deal with the drama in children activities.

 

[Gymmom495]

So true! It's just a shame that people cannot be happy for each other. Yes this is a team sport but they compete as individuals meaning my daughter will never hold another gymnast back or help her to move forward based on her gymnastic ability and the same goes the other way. They excel or are kept down based completely upon their performance and ability. So be happy for those who do well and encourage those who need a little encouragement. I don't understand people being mean. Yes it's good to have thick skin but it's a shame we have to!

 

[cbifoja]

Some of these stories I read on CB about other situations scare me! I feel so fortunate to not be somewhere that has a lot of gym drama, whether intergym or intragym. LOL We have a "rival" gym but it is more in relations to proximity than anything personal. At meets, our girls and their girls are frequently seen giggling around the chalk bucket during bars warm up. I've never had a negative interaction with any of their parents despite the other gym's reputation for being very competitive amongst themselves.

 

[my4buffaloes]

I feel like we are at the best gym anywhere near us. But the parents! I have had parents be outright angry at me and refuse to speak to me because my child won the AA. My dd was not even in the same age group as their children! Thankfully the "drama mamas" left to go to another gym and from what I hear caused problems over there too.

 

[kandkfunk]

All the drama mamas recently left our gym when the head coach left to start her own gym in our area. I foresee a rivalry in our future, that won't necessarily be a healthy or nice one. The three optionals that stayed at our gym are a very close knit group. However, they are being bad mouthed non-stop by the girls and parents that left. They even named a move after one of our girls. If a girl won't throw a skill, then it's called a Suzi (name changed to protect the innocent). Suzi is one of the gymnasts that chose not to leave with the coach. I can only wonder, if they are spending so much time talking about our small team, how can they be focused enough to learn new skills and improve? I hope things change over the summer as we all have time to take a step back from a very emotional situation. It is my sincerest hope that all the girls and parents will treat each other with respect and dignity when our paths do cross again during meet season. I guess only time will tell.

 

[Ingwe]

So anyone out there have another gym that causes trouble and constant drama for your gym? Don't name names or places, but maybe you have a little anecdote or story? And if this is the wrong forum, I won't be offended if you have to take this one down.

I just wonder if other people deal with the things we do, or is it a unique situation we have.

Totally not alone at all. The stories that I could tell................

 

[wandrewsjr]

Have to add that twitter, facebook, et al have added a new dimension to this. What used to just be nasty trash talk in the gym now goes out to everyone.

 

[SignHere]

Yup! And why is it that everyone gets ticked off if a kid scores 38s and says she doesn't belong in the level? My kid sure doesn't, but she was going up against a few kids that were 38 AA at States and everyone around me kept saying the girls shouldn't be competing at that level! The funny thing is, it was their first year at the level! They are just really great!