Parents Changing gyms: what surprised you at new place?

[Gymmommy71]

New gym does not have a booster club. At old gym, we paid hundreds of dollars (maybe >$1,000) up front for meet fees and coaching fees (travel, meals, etc.) before the season started. At the new gym we are charged meet fees as the kids are entered in meets - so $100-$150 here and there. No additional fees for travel, food, etc. With no booster club, communication is also much better because it's coming directly from the gym.

This sounds like my dream gym for my child provided the training is good and the coaches nice. So jealous...

 

[Deleted member 18037]

This sounds like my dream gym for my child provided the training is good and the coaches nice. So jealous...

This is our gym too. Pay as you go. Coaches fees split between competing gymnasts. You can't make a meet-you don't go or pay . No booster club, no mandatory meet attendance. Works for us.

 

[gymmomx2]

1. They gym doesn't smell --> first thing I noticed Old gym was very stinky, I thought all gyms smelled like that!
2. Coaches are not demeaning
3. Lots of drills. Drilling skills months/years before they need to compete them. Lots of hands on spotting.
4. Uptraining throughout the year. Kind of weird how little they focus on routines and yet it all works out. Complete opposite of old gym where routines were done ad nauseam for the entire competitive season
5. No fundraising. No volunteer hours
6. No favoritism based on performance - effort is praised a lot though

We love the current gym...I can't predict the future but I don't foresee ever leaving unless something dramatic happens.

 

[gymmomx2]

This is our gym too. Pay as you go. Coaches fees split between competing gymnasts. You can't make a meet-you don't go or pay . No booster club, no mandatory meet attendance. Works for us.

No mandatory meet attendance...I can't imagine. Is there minimum attendance expectations? I think it's different for us in Canada because we typically don't compete a lot (4-5 times max each year) so every meet is mandatory (barring illness, injury, family emergency).

 

[Deleted member 18037]

No mandatory meet attendance...I can't imagine. Is there minimum attendance expectations? I think it's different for us in Canada because we typically don't compete a lot (4-5 times max each year) so every meet is mandatory (barring illness, injury, family emergency).

Nope. Most of us do most of the meets but it acceptable and OK to say no. We usually have a meet or 2 we can't make. And I have to say just about all our kids miss at least one a season. We are expected to make states and regionals if we qualify.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

1. They gym doesn't smell --> first thing I noticed Old gym was very stinky, I thought all gyms smelled like that!

That's funny because we have only been at 2, gyms. To me they both smelled.

To my daughter who started at the first gym at 2 in Mommy and me. She HATED the smell of her current gym the first month there. Mommy it stinks......

Now it's just gym and neither of us thinks it smells.

 

[Mommyo2az]

I was surprised how not one minute on the floor is wasted.

This was the biggest change I noticed in our switch. No idle time for hair braiding or hand clapping games [emoji23]

Other things :
1. Not smelly and has AC!
2. 1 optionals coach vs whoever they could pull from Rec
3. Move ups based on skills, not favoritism or whatever the policy of the month was
4. Cost. Far more than old gym, but soooo worth it

 

[acam1103]

The lack of yelling! My kids were only rec at the old gym but coaches were always yelling at the team kids. And I remember having coaches like that many moons ago when I was a gymnast. At their new gym where they are on team there is really no yelling at all. It's quite nice!

 

[tortuga]

At the gym we're trying out, the team parents mill around the team door and chat! They talk to each other and greet each other warmly. Or maybe they are the clique? At (soon to be?) old gym, last year was LONELY. The year before was better, but the different moveups changed our group.

I need to ask about AC! old gym has it, possible new gym is in an older building so might not.

 

[Flicfliclay]

We just did a gym change this past week!
My daughter is happy and said that she's been told how to fix certain things that were never mentioned to her at old gym!
More coaches
Bigger team with very sweet girls
Better/ more equipment
All around better environment

The part I'm getting used to is that I knew more st parents and was familiar with everything.
Now I know really nobody and nobody has really even tried to talk to me. I'm so used to going up to newbies and striking up conversation and welcoming them in. Other than that all has been great!

 

[twin2gymmie]

First practice at new gym and my DD loved it. All the gym kids were friendly and welcoming to her. And the up skilling is the best.

 

[AWOL]

How different the team coach was between try outs and when she moved to the new gym.
All friendly, smiley and quiet at the try out and totally different when the daughter got to the new gym

 

[MILgymFAM]

How different the team coach was between try outs and when she moved to the new gym.
All friendly, smiley and quiet at the try out and totally different when the daughter got to the new gym

My ODD does privates with a team's HC and she is really nice and easy going, but my DD says she is different- harsher- with her own team.

 

[raenndrops]

My ODD does privates with a team's HC and she is really nice and easy going, but my DD says she is different- harsher- with her own team.

Years ago, our gym had to close down for a week unexpectantly (they were informed on Monday morning that the "lighting replacement" that was to be done over the weekend had hit a snag and wouldn't be finished for another week). OG and YG had a big meet coming up. I called the gym where we do open gym and asked their HC ("State Compulsory Coach of the Year" that she was) if there was any way I could get the girls into the gym for a private lesson or something. I explained the situation and she offered to have them come to a practice for FREE. OG had to practice with a group a level down from where she was, but since they were up training her skills, it worked for us. YG was able to practice with a group that was just moving up to her level, which also worked for us.
The coaches, whom we had seen at open gyms before, were downright tough on their girls.
On the way home, OG commented that it was no wonder their girls had great form - on skills that they already had, if one girl messed up, they ALL had to go back to the drills for the skill. On skills they were up training, they did 3 stations of drills before they got to the station where they were spotted on the skill. They had to PASS each station to move on. She was glad that wasn't her gym. Me too. I couldn't afford it, lol.

That same gym had very stringent move up requirements too:
100% of the skills for the new level by April 1 (for September competition season) or June 1 (for January competition season).
--> This meant the skills were all competition ready by those dates.
36.00+ at States (or average for the season if unable to compete States)
To go to L7 instead of L6: Solid Giants (working pirouettes), Layout flyaway (working flyaway 1/2), BWO-BHS on competition beam (with BHS-BHS on high padded beam), RO-BT or CW-BT dismount (working back layout), FHS and a Twisting Vault on competition matting (working flipping vaults to the pit), and on floor they had to have a Full (also had to be working FT-FP or better).

So different from our gym where you have to have the USAG requirements by the time you compete.

 

[amiandjim]

Years ago, our gym had to close down for a week unexpectantly (they were informed on Monday morning that the "lighting replacement" that was to be done over the weekend had hit a snag and wouldn't be finished for another week). OG and YG had a big meet coming up. I called the gym where we do open gym and asked their HC ("State Compulsory Coach of the Year" that she was) if there was any way I could get the girls into the gym for a private lesson or something. I explained the situation and she offered to have them come to a practice for FREE. OG had to practice with a group a level down from where she was, but since they were up training her skills, it worked for us. YG was able to practice with a group that was just moving up to her level, which also worked for us.
The coaches, whom we had seen at open gyms before, were downright tough on their girls.
On the way home, OG commented that it was no wonder their girls had great form - on skills that they already had, if one girl messed up, they ALL had to go back to the drills for the skill. On skills they were up training, they did 3 stations of drills before they got to the station where they were spotted on the skill. They had to PASS each station to move on. She was glad that wasn't her gym. Me too. I couldn't afford it, lol.

That same gym had very stringent move up requirements too:
100% of the skills for the new level by April 1 (for September competition season) or June 1 (for January competition season).
--> This meant the skills were all competition ready by those dates.
36.00+ at States (or average for the season if unable to compete States)
To go to L7 instead of L6: Solid Giants (working pirouettes), Layout flyaway (working flyaway 1/2), BWO-BHS on competition beam (with BHS-BHS on high padded beam), RO-BT or CW-BT dismount (working back layout), FHS and a Twisting Vault on competition matting (working flipping vaults to the pit), and on floor they had to have a Full (also had to be working FT-FP or better).

So different from our gym where you have to have the USAG requirements by the time you compete.

If you hadn't said September competition season (we usually start in Dec), I would have sworn you were at our gym. When DD started there last year, there were days she literally never got past the pullover in her bar routine...each move had to be "perfect" before they could move on. And in floor, for example, the HC takes turns watching a specific girl and if she "messes up," they all move a spot and start over. Tough, but it works!

 

[raenndrops]

If you hadn't said September competition season (we usually start in Dec), I would have sworn you were at our gym. When DD started there last year, there were days she literally never got past the pullover in her bar routine...each move had to be "perfect" before they could move on. And in floor, for example, the HC takes turns watching a specific girl and if she "messes up," they all move a spot and start over. Tough, but it works!

Lol. They no longer start in September. The state went to only having one "season" so meets don't begin until mid-October… but last I knew, they still had the same cut-off deadline for getting skills and moving up. And they still do it the same way. Yes, it works… but they also have some really talented girls who retire at the age of 10-11 because their bodies can't physically handle the stress (ankles, knees, backs).

 

[amiandjim]

Lol. They no longer start in September. The state went to only having one "season" so meets don't begin until mid-October… but last I knew, they still had the same cut-off deadline for getting skills and moving up. And they still do it the same way. Yes, it works… but they also have some really talented girls who retire at the age of 10-11 because their bodies can't physically handle the stress (ankles, knees, backs).

I'm just gonna hope it's not actually our gym...lol. DD is still compulsory and I don't know about the requirements for optionals. They did move her entire team up and I know they don't all have the skills so probably not us.

 

[jenjean70]

New gym does not have a booster club. At old gym, we paid hundreds of dollars (maybe >$1,000) up front for meet fees and coaching fees (travel, meals, etc.) before the season started. At the new gym we are charged meet fees as the kids are entered in meets - so $100-$150 here and there. No additional fees for travel, food, etc. With no booster club, communication is also much better because it's coming directly from the gym.

That's AWESOME! We pay almost 2 grand before meet season and that doesn't include post season which could be another grand- AND that doesn't take into account what we pay to get him to meets!