Parents Anyone competing this weekend?

[catesmom]

Things Look Brighter after a Little Sleep

Well after a good night sleep and some taking with friends, Cates attitude is a lot better today. I am so glad that she is feeling better about the meet and the season in general. Cate repeated Level 6 this year and it was good for her. It has been a solid year working on form and artistry and her routines have really shown the work. I was just hoping that a bad end to the meet wouldn't sour the whole experience.

As for the rules about moving up. The rule at our gym has always been 2 35+ AA scores or two years a a level. As parents we always thought it was fair, easy to understand and quantifiable. Then two years ago they changed the rules for 1 girl who moved though level 6 after competing one meet as a 6 and she didn't score a 35 at that meet. This was a talented little 9 year old and she did have that perfect little tumbling/flexible body. So be it, she moved up and the rest of us followed the rules. The level 7's moved up without their giants, and all but one got them before competition. Well after a second year at 7, mostly due to injuries, that one still doesn't have her giants. This may be one of the major reasons hey are saying what they are saying.

I know after two years at 6 Cate is getting bored. She does work ahead at practices, and all her other events are strong. On floor she has her layout, her half, her front hanspring pike, and is perfecting her full. On beam she has her BWO BWO, her cartwheel back, and is working on her baclkwalkover flipflop, and her switch series. Her vault is strong as shown at states, so it's all about the bars. I think we will try working with some other coaches at open gyms to see if there is some help out there. I want her to have her giants prior to competition, I just want things to be a little more predictable. The move up rules I stated are actually printed in the gym handbook.

I love our gym and our coaches. I think it's a great enviornment to learn gymnastics. But just like the good school my kids go to, occasionally a child needs a little extra help in one class. Does that make sense? It's hard where we live because we only have 1 gym. When we were in St. Louis there were 6 or 7 within a half hour of where we lived. Cate will be 13 this year so our goals are definately somewhat lower than some of you with younger kids. She wants to get to level 10 and her dream is to compete in college.If she continues to love the sport and stays healthy I hope she can get there.

 

[gymjourneymom]

Good Luck to your dd Can't wait to hear all about it

Thanks for the 'good luck wishes'....it worked! DD took 3rd AA on Sunday AA score 36.6! Her highest AA score this season. She was so happy Tied for 1st on vault & 1st on floor. She had a big wobble on the beam after her full turn, but stayed on & got 9.15 and took 3rd. Still can't figure out what happened on bars though...she got an 8.55 took 4th. The routine looked good, but all the bars scores seemed lower than usual. But as we always say ...it was 1 meet, 1 day...next time it will be different! She had a good time...that's what matters most! Sectionals are a month away...please send her good luck for that one too

 

[kristilyn73]

Wow, that is a high qualifying score for state. Why so high? I'm sorry your daughter didn't make it this year. Even if you don't get any medals (my little dd got skunked two years in a row), it's always fun to wear the T-shirt.

Maybe the through the roof scores at our session had something to do with the teams we were competing against (Twin City Twisters, Rising Stars, Classic, Flips). I have no idea who the "power gyms" are in Minnesota. If these gyms are those that regularly produce your state champs and regional teams, I guess it would make sense that they score well.

We'll see what happens at state. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hoping the kids can leave the sport on a high note.

You got the Power gyms right! LOL. Did you see the 9.90 floor routine?

Thanks for the words of enouragement. Gym Law Mom you got it right, she fought to the very last routine!

DD was actually thrilled with her score, She did pull off a 8th place on Beam! She was happy bringing home one medal! LOL And this year we have brought home at least 1 medal in 1/2 the meets. that is a major step up from last year. We had a good year. We made the right decision to stay in L7 another year. time to go onto to L8.

 

[Livinatthegym]

You got the Power gyms right! LOL. Did you see the 9.90 floor routine?

Just missed it, but the other level 7 mom, who was just a littler earlier than we were, caught it. Too bad. I'd love to see what a 9.9 looks like.

 

[Tumblequeensmom]

Debi... I think Cate did a fantastic job at her state meet... ESPECIALLY considering she just got over the flu! I'm glad I didn't see the posts until this morning, and that she's feeling better about everything now... I've seen her videos and she is AWESOME!

Re: the coach yelling at the girls.... we had the same thing happen at our gym the first practice after a recent meet. Same situation, he had been at the meet for all Levels 4 through 8 and I'm sure he was exhausted, however, he was BRUTAL... he told the girls that "they embarass him at the meets", etc. Of course none of us parents knew about this until the girls told us. He DID apologize to the girls the next night. I think some of his thoughts get lost in translation. The owners/coahces are chinese and sometimes things don't come out quite the way they intend, but it was still hurtful for the girls. Hopefully your coach has apologized to them by now.

But Rules are Rules.. .and they shouldn't be skirted around if those rules are blantantly stated. Then the owners wonder why they have problems with parents in the gym? At DD's previous gym, the requirements to move up were similar... they had to have had 2 35's AA in order to progress. I like KNOWING what they have to have to move up. At her new gym, the coaches tell us "they move them up when they're ready"... well... what constitutes being "ready?" We'd all like to know what skills they have to have, or what minimum scores they need to have.

DD recently turned 13 and is a Level 5. We KNOW she'll never be a Level 10, but she likes to think she could become one before graduating from high school. I'd be thrilled if she got to Level 8. She's been working really hard on her middle splits - about 2 inches to go! And her shoulder flexibility...

She did score much better at her most recent meet... finally got a 9.125 on her bars and won first place for bars (that's with a ripped grip too!) Her new grips will be here tomorrow... her State compettition isn't til the first week of May, so hopefully she'll have time to break them in!

Well I've rambled much too long here... tell Cate that we ALL think she did a fantastic job, and she should move to Level 7! Her skills are fantastic!

-L

 

[kristilyn73]

Just missed it, but the other level 7 mom, who was just a littler earlier than we were, caught it. Too bad. I'd love to see what a 9.9 looks like.

I didnt see the actual routine either. I post the scores for our gyms website, I noticed the score when I as pulling information. My DD has competed against the pumpkin that got the score before, and actually has rotated with her. She says she is really nice and supportive. I would have loved to see the routine!