The upper level boys are very hard working (when directed), and mine in particular is trying to be a leader (he's your typical first born serious type), and working to continue the level of training/conditioning he was taught this summer.
Our L10 is extremely talented but not driven at all anymore; this is likely his last year without more experienced guidance to help him find his spark - which as a mom of a burnt out DD, I know is hard for his parents, but may turn out the best for him. The 2 8s are talented but not brilliant, and there is a very talented 10 year old L7 who was training with them but is now back with the younger group mostly. Practices have lost a lot of their efficiency and conditioning is much easier than they did all summer (this is per said perfectionistic 15 year old) - there just seems no long term plan in place (OK there IS no long term plan in place except "I don't want to close the boys program and am working on finding a (cheap) experienced coach"). I realize this may just be a reality of life....
Honestly, the situation is fine for the majority of the boys as they are preadolescent, level 4-6. The talented ones will pick stuff up, the hard working ones will slowly gain, and they do seem to have fun, which of course at that point is THE point....
Older DS has no routines yet other than pommel and vault (although they aren't vaulting much right now, so I don't know if he's gotten to try to land his laid out Tsuk at all...I THINK he can land a basic tucked Tsuk, but he spent some time trying to master his FHS-FT first, then traded that for the safer landing on the Tsuk, and was doing it piked/laid out all summer in the pit...) If I take what he tells me at face value (I don't watch practice really much at all - I think I've been in the gym 10 minutes the last 3 months). ALL HE'S DOING ON FLOOR RIGHT NOW IS TRYING TO GET HIS DOUBLE BACK LANDED....which I know is exciting, but I figure there may be more he should be working? (he did mention a split to press Japanese handstand and he sort of has FLO FLO half...he's twist challenged...also a side somi?) I mentionned on another thread that his HB looks like "a whole mess of giants and a flyaway..." I realize there are some transitional skills from front to back, I think a FH to HS start, and he wants the flyaway to double back, but my understanding is he's just throwing stuff together right now...Pbars and rings are equally vague...and with fewer hours and less direction, he's worried he won't get the skills he still needs in time.
I know all this because the young coach asked them to write out what they wanted their routines to be and we had to watch a bunch of L8 routines, try to figure out requirements without the book - which apparently the gym has lost - and turn it in. DS is severely dyslexic and dysgraphic, so he had me do the writing (and try to help spell). He competed L7 after L5 and didn't really have his HB until regionals...and had a great time, placed frequently on other events (and all around cuz he's so old....), so although he is a perfectionist, he also usually has a good attitude about doing his best and enjoying the process.
I think he got excited about really doing well this summer, with such good coaching, and now doesn't want to compete if he can't live up to the standards he was shooting for. I also know that a lot of the stuff he's working on could be saved for L9 and up, but he is already a freshman in high school and with the age change would be considered a 17 year old next year for JO....and really, he's mentionned to me that with the gym not willing/able to hang on to the coach who really could take the boys far, he's not sure he should put the time into gym that it takes to keep competing at this level. He really needs the 5 days a week both because he has been moving so fast there is lots for him to learn, and because with school and his music, he needs to be able to leave early occaisionally, miss a day occaisionally, etc in order to do well with those things, which will matter in the long run...whereas his double back will not.
There will be no college gymnastics for this team without dedicated, experienced coaching...there's one boy who did future stars this year (trained all spring and summer with the experienced coach) whose parents are very good at negotiating to get him what he needs (NOT A CRITICISM), but the other talented kids in the lower levels are a bit stuck. That's ok as long as everyone realizes and admits it, IMHO...
It does sound like there are teams that make low hours work for boys - although it clearly is not ideal. NO one responded that it was terribly unsafe to do - which you often hear at upper levels for girls, so that makes me feel better. DS has had many aches and pains, a sprained knee, wrist pain, some shin and forearm splints, a strained calf muscle, and terrible rips, but thankfully no serious gym injuries...if he gets injured it better not be his hands/wrists/arms - as he has serious music stuff to compete this year LOL! (yes, that's a joke - even his violin teacher says he shouldn't quit gym just yet for music - but we do hide his bloody palms and popping wrists from her).
