WAG Meet Ideas in Chicago Area

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Peachy88

Proud Parent
Would anyone be willing to share with me any meets that they know of in the Chicago/Peoria/Rockford/Iowa City area that typically have some smaller gyms that compete JO, but are still well run? Our head coach is open to meet ideas and it would be nice to go some to some where the big gyms are not there sweeping the podium.
 
For the Chicago area:

I really like Hawaiian Pineapple Classic put on by Buffalo Grove Gymnastics Center. The only issue is that it is usually held the weekend right before Christmas, which isn't always the best time for a meet.

Next is Leenda's Island Adventure, which is usually held in the beginning of January. Yes, you are going to see some top gyms there, but the meet tries to have a decent amount of age groups so that more kids can place. Medals are always cool-looking, trophies to all the AA around placers. T-shirt and gymnast gift are included in the entry fee and most of the gifts have been pretty unique and the girls love them.

St. Valentine's Classic by Gymnastics Spot is another - held the first weekend of February. No bigger gyms there. Our favorite part was they had a photographer there that shot them on bars, floor and beam. They didn't have it this year, because of the Safe Sport and not having a waiver ready in time. Hopefully they will bring it back next year. The venue is huge with lots of seating. Good vendors, too.
 
I’ve heard the Bravo Classic is pretty good and there is a St Jude benefit meet, I believe both are in January in the Chicago suburbs. And the BIG Classic is in February, I think.
 
The boys went to St. Valentines and I couldn't figure out why the girls did go because it seemed like a good fit. Thanks for the info!
 
I’ve heard the Bravo Classic is pretty good and there is a St Jude benefit meet, I believe both are in January in the Chicago suburbs. And the BIG Classic is in February, I think.

2gymmies is correct - Bravo Classic is very well run and not too many top JO gyms there. They did change the location this year to a hotel ballroom, so seating was a bit crazy, but you could still see pretty well. A friend of ours did BIG this year, and told me that this year, they only gave out awards for places 1-3, even with like 20 girls in the age group.
 
A couple other meets in the Chicago area that would fit your criteria are: Make A Wish held by Ultimate Gymnastics of Gurnee, King Aurthur held by Excalibur gymnastics, and Kinetic classic held by Gym Kinetics.
 
I like the Ultimate Wish Classic, Hawaiian Pineapple, and Midwest Open (smallest of the group).

I have also attended (as a parent) the following: St. Jude, Bravo Classic, BIG Classic, IGI Chicago Style, St. Valentine Classic, Legacy Elite Winter Classic, Leenda's Island Adventure and the IL Judge's Cup.

All have pros/cons, and all have a mix of gyms. Happy to provide more details regarding specific meets, so feel free to ask questions. I agree with @kmc that Bravo Classic is very crowded for spectators (hotel ballroom); St. Jude (also mentioned above) was one of my least favorites this year because the venue was freezing cold with odd seating, and I wasn't a huge fan of the format which included a very lengthy presentation after warm-up but before competition began; BIG Classic is quite small and honestly nothing too special (was held in a public park district building last year); haven't been to St. Valentine Classic in two years so no real opinion (although a friend complained it felt very long -- awards especially -- this year).

Again, feel free to reply or message me if you are looking for more info.
 
I agree with all of the above, but would also suggest maybe taking a 2nd look at Chicago Style. It’s a big (huge) meet, but it’s also pretty awesome. Lots of smaller gyms attend, they place out 50%+, good vendors and all gymnasts get a Leo. Parking and entry are pricey tho, but it’s overall a good local option.
 
We’ve been to Bravo, St. Jude, IL Judges Cup and BIG of the ones mentioned. From a parent perspective-
Bravo was well run, and the seating wasn’t crowded, although it may be because we had a late session. My kid really liked St.Jude- the venue is nice, the seating gets full but there is a lot of space to walk around or stand if you want to which I appreciate. The top 3 all around get cool snow globes, which the kids love. Judges Cup was in a nice big venue and ran well. BIG changed venues and was held in Burbonnais this year. (Same venue as Judges Cup) They did only give out top 3 for all events and all around in groups of 18-20ish, which is unusual for meets in the area.
Most of the other meets we go to are more south than the area you mentioned, but you can message me if you want any other ideas!
 
Oh, that's right.... the St Jude snow globes are very cool. Legacy Elite Winter Classic does snow globes too (top 3 AA I think). Wish Classic, Hawaiian Pineapple and IGI Chicago Style all give away leotards as the gymnast gift, which is nice; and as someone else mentioned Leenda's Island Adventure often has cool gifts too (2 yrs ago it was a selfie-stick, which was super fun for the girls). Lots of good choices. You will be able to see the meet/session/age group sizes for most of these meets by checking out mymeetscores, as well as which gyms attended. One thing that I'm learning is that many of the "big" gyms have mixed results at the lower levels, and that super talented, high scoring girls come from all over. Just had IL L6 state meet this past weekend and the top 10 scores (all 38+) came from 7 different gyms; So I wouldn't rule out an otherwise good meet just bc some "big" gyms attend too.
 
As far as Iowa City — it might depend on your levels / timing.

Iowa generally has compulsory meets in the fall (sept - early dec) and optional in the winter (Jan - march).
 
As far as Iowa City — it might depend on your levels / timing.

Iowa generally has compulsory meets in the fall (sept - early dec) and optional in the winter (Jan - march).

Winter Wonderland meet (hosted by Iowa Gym-Nest in mid-February) actually has both compulsory and optional sessions (and XCel). It is true that most Iowa gyms are done with compulsory season after compulsory States (mid-Dec) though. This year there was only one session for all compulsory levels together, and upper optionals (L8-9-10) also were in one session.
But it definitely fits the "typically have some smaller gyms that compete JO, but are still well run" description. Nice venue too.

And I believe it is the only optional meet in Iowa City area. Iowa Gym-Nest also hosts compulsory meet (Flip for Food) in November. Different venue (also nice) and well run meet.
 
King Arthur - one of my favorite meets. Really well run and great venue.
St. Jude - great cause, pretty big meet. Lots of teams both small and big.
Judge's Cup - smaller teams, good venue.
Horton Invite - great venue, really well run. Small and large teams (but mostly small).
I-Power Classic - girls get a Leo that they wear at the meet. Breast cancer awareness meet. Really fun.
Heart of Illinois - small teams mainly. Really fun meet - 1st place get tiara's
St. Valentine's - really big venue. small and big teams. really well run.

I can think of a lot more! Just let me know if you need more suggestions.
 
King Arthur - one of my favorite meets. Really well run and great venue.
St. Jude - great cause, pretty big meet. Lots of teams both small and big.
Judge's Cup - smaller teams, good venue.
Horton Invite - great venue, really well run. Small and large teams (but mostly small).
I-Power Classic - girls get a Leo that they wear at the meet. Breast cancer awareness meet. Really fun.
Heart of Illinois - small teams mainly. Really fun meet - 1st place get tiara's
St. Valentine's - really big venue. small and big teams. really well run.

I can think of a lot more! Just let me know if you need more suggestions.

I may be wrong, but isn't Judge's Cup just for 'in-state' (not out-of-state) gyms? At least in our state, I never saw an out-of-state gym competing at our Judge's Cup.
 

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