No practice for a month because gym is moving.

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Muddlethru

Proud Parent
Since the lease at my daughter's gym expired, the gym owners have been renting space month to month for over 5 years now. Well the building owner leased the space to another company and gave our gym notice they had to leave the place in April. I am not sure exactly when the owner of the building gave them notice (rumor has it that they knew about it last year) or any other specifics. But our gym notified us on a Monday that there will only be two days of gym that week and no gym the following week because we will be moving. Another week went by and the gym had not opened yet. Finally, we get an email saying the gym will hold practice at one of the parent's recreational gyms. They would be holding practice 2 hours a day for maybe 3 days. The recreational gym is literally a little over a 1,000 sq. ft. with one bar set, one high beam and two other low beams, no vault and the floor is smaller that my daughter's bedroom. It is for toddlers and maybe a step above a My Gym. This went on for another week. So, so far this month, my daughter has had 6 hours of make-shift practice and she will be a Level 9. There is no definite date when our gym will open for regular practice. In the meantime, one of the parents inquired about what they are going to do with tuition for that month. The HC/owner indicated they were going to still charge the same tuition but MAYBE offer camp days. ( BTW, the parent owner of the recreational gym said she did not know what to do when the owners asked her to use her gym and did not offer to pay for the use.)

1) To those gym owners that have moved locations, how did you handle the move? Were you closed for a month? How about tuition? Should I pay the $400/month tuition for less than 10 hours practice?

2) My daughter is going from Level 8 to Level 9, am I justified in worrying about her success in next year's season with the summer being almost half over and hardly had any time practice, learning the new skills?

I am so frustrated. I think our gym did not want to pay for an extra month at the old location while they were also paying rent already at the new location. I know the legal process in kicking out a tenant is pretty lengthy. My husband said he could legally stall keeping them in the gym a whole year. In addition, they only gave the team two days notice and merely informed the gymnasts not the parents. I saw some parents at the store who recognized me and said they came to the gym and it was empty. They tried calling no one returned their calls. There was no sign on the doors. I know our coaches who are the owners are very poor at organization and planning, but this was truly ridiculous. Don't they care about their business or they just do not know how to run one?
 
Hmm. Just a parent here... At the level your dd is, I would be looking for another gym to temporarily train, and I would not be paying tuition for hours the coaches are not prepared to coach. It is different if my dd is injured. I understand paying tuition for that but if the gym is not prepared to coach properly, then they should not be charging tuition.

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B
Hmm. Just a parent here... At the level your dd is, I would be looking for another gym to temporarily train, and I would not be paying tuition for hours the coaches are not prepared to coach. It is different if my dd is injured. I understand paying tuition for that but if the gym is not prepared to coach properly, then they should not be charging tuition.

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I did consider that. I ran into two problems. First, because our current gym was only providing last minute information, it was hard to plan ahead. They told us the gym would be closed for 1 1/2 weeks. Sunday evening before the gym was expected to open, we get an email, it is not ready and will be closed another week. A week went by and again we were told the Sunday night before the gym is still not ready and that we will be practicing limited hours at a recreational gym. And again this week same scenario. Second, I called the gyms in our surrounding area and because of the lack of gyms in our area, a couple said they could not take her because they do not have anyone in her level and the rest (because they are franchises and rival gyms so to speak) would not let her practice with their team unless she joined their team.:(
 
Call your head coach, tell them you are very concerned and tell them you have tried to find training for dd, then tell them the answers you got. See what they say.

Frankly I would expect the hc to find training for her at the level she is. Or the hc should arrange to take the team train in another gym, that happens all over the place.

Gyms here would take her. The attitudes of those other gyms are very odd. We really do not see those kinds of attitudes here, my kids have trained at other gyms in summer lots.
 
No advice other than what's been offered (which sounds like good advice to me), but I too would be pretty ticked if this happened at our gym!
 
I would choose to go to a new gym for good. No business should treat their clients like this. They need to have a parents meeting and lay all the cards on the table. For your DD's sake you need to move her to a gym that will train her not give you the run around.
 
^^^^

Completely agree, find another gym, this situation really shouldn't be happening.

Have you even seen the new premises?

What is holding you back from moving on?
 
"Call your head coach, tell them you are very concerned and tell them you have tried to find training for dd, then tell them the answers you got. See what they say."

Frankly I would expect the hc to find training for her at the level she is. Or the hc should arrange to take the team train in another gym, that happens all over the place.

Oh gosh, Bog, where do I start. Our coaches vehemently resents it when girls leave our gym. They take it so personally and then get vindictive. They refuse to be around the girls who have left and would never ever take thm back. So, since about two years ago we lost over half our team and then lost more the following year, our former gymnasts are all over the gyms in our area. So, our gym owner would never even think about practicing in those gyms, plus they may have to pay rent. I think it is pride and not wanting to pay rent.

"Gyms here would take her. The attitudes of those other gyms are very odd. We really do not see those kinds of attitudes here, my kids have trained at other gyms in summer lots."


I also did not understand why the gms would not allow my daughter to practice with their team. I've called many gyms in the past, out of our area/state, really good gyms, gyms with national team members and not so great gyms, and they all we're open to letting her practice with them while we were vacationing. I wonder if while on vacation, gyms are more receptive to letting a gymnast practice with their team. There are 3 gyms in our area that are a franchise and owned by one person who is I think more of a business person. So the coaches have to get his approval to do things. Ugh.

FYI to the other posters. Your advice to move, switch gyms is sound. We are seriously looking for another gym. We stuck it out at this gym because it was only 3 miles away. Now that they are moving further, it opens other doors. Also, I don't know what the future holds. I sometimes think it is better to deal with the devils you know than the devils you do not know, plus my daughter has been doing quite well despite all the problems. But that big decision has to be made soon.
 
I am really sorry that your daughter is going through this! I have to ask-is it possible the gym is going out of business and is not really reopening? From the outside looking in, this is what it sounds like. Under no circumstances would I give them another dime until I had some straight answers that I believed! There is a lot that goes into the jump from L8 to L9 skill-wise and conditioning-wise...it seems like there is no plan in place for your daughter. :(
 
Perhaps the other gyms won't let your daughter come in because they know how her coaches would react and don't want to deal with disorganised owners who have poor communication skills and childish reactions. I would be looking for another gym if I was in your situation.
 
Wow. That would not be amusing at all. Our gym is moving as well, but we got letters, talks from the HC/owner, and the move will be completed over Labor day weekend, with the new facility opening a day or two later. We're all excited and thrilled about the move though, and have been told we can go check out the new facility whenever we want. I would not pay another dime either, until I was 100% sure you'll have a gym to go back to, especially at your DD's level. The whole thing sounds really shady to me.
 
I can't imagine the gym doesn't have business interruption insurance as part of their policy. I would absolutely not pay $400 for 6 hours of training and would be looking for another gym.
 
I have to wonder if the gym is having major financial issues. I would call and try and talk with the HC or owner to get a timeline or answer about what your dd is supposed to do while the gym is nonexistant. If they don't give you a reasonable answer then I would walk away(quickly).
 
There is a new gym. We've seen it. They started digging the pits (potentially without permits since it would take too long to get the proper permit in that area). I don't think the owners are shady (though because the way they conduct business one would suspect as much). I think they are just not good business people-very unorganized. I think their passion is gymnastics and the business part falls by the wayside. It is such a source of frustration. It is their moddus operandi to just "wing it". And you may be right pineapple, they hesitate taking my daughter in for summer practice without the commitment of team because of how the owners may handle the situation. I thank everyone for their insight. I needed to vent.

To bog, the new gym and new coach (if you recall our conversation) did not work out. My daughter would be the only L9 with 5 kids L6 and under. The new coach in town says the owners would not let her take on just one optional gymnast. So off to the drawing board. May need to drive further for a good gym! Just can't help making my other kids sacrifice for one child.
 
ACK, this is all really too bad, your DD has a ton of talent and her coach is not setting her up well for the season at all. AT this point I would be doing some serious searching for a new gym.

I really feel for you, this just isn't fair on your or your dd.

Feel free to whine and vent as much as you want.
 
If you can't find open gym for her somewhere or a local camp, maybe collegiate camp; consider it vacation and find somewhere for her to keep up Strength and Conditioning. A gym might work.

Many CrossFit gyms might let her come in and work out and do her own thing. More expensive than a globogym but more like a real gym with better toys besides probably some sort of Bar structure that is similar to a single rail.

Heck, Byers Gymnastics, one of the top gyms in the Nations in JO, where Mas Watanabe coaches, sends their upper levels to a CF gym nearby (where the owners brother and son work and have connections) for S&C work. Basically the same stuff any collegiate team is doing.

Do that and see if there is an Open Gym she can drop into during the week and you are set till this all rolls over. Possibly easier and cheaper than sending her to camp.
 
Camp could be a good alternative if you can afford it (and don't already have camp planned -- although you could go to 2). Just something to make sure she's getting some sort of training while you figure out what to do next. Sounds like a very frustrating situation.
 

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