Parents How to find out how your gym ranks?

[ashyflashy]

Is there a website or a forum that discusses reviews or feedback on gyms in my area? I am interested to know how my gym ranks to the others in the area. Like a Zagats for gymnastics,,, lol

Thanks!

 

[purpleleomom]

I'm interested to know too, but somehow I doubt this is something discussed openly.

 

[bookworm]

What kind of "ranking" are you looking for? There's a gym for everyone but it all depends on what you're looking for...strong optional program vs elite vs rec vs excell....they're all out there. Look on my meet scores or your state website to see how your gym did against others in the area...

 

[iwannacoach]

That's an interesting thought. I've always wished that there was a list, by city or area, of each clubs track history. Something that could easily show the extent that club anonymous had trained kids at a certain level. You know, a gym can truthfully say they train level 10's as long as they have one or two every three or four years, even if they barely score above a 31.50 AA.

That's not to say the above is an example of a bad gym. While you may not want to move your L10 or elite bound kid to that program, it may be the ideal setting for L7 and L8 kids, and offer a reasonable L9 program for those who want to have more than gymnastics and don't care if they spend 4 years not caring so much about getting past regional competition.

Some sleuthing can be done through mymeetscores to get an idea of what number kids at a certain level they have trained, but it takes a lot of work to get past the outer skin and see what they really have done with those kids.

 

[ashyflashy]

I guess I need more knowledge about the gymnastics training. What's the difference between elite, recreational, etc.?? Clearly I new to this all. Any help would be appreciated. I need a competitive gymnastics 101 lesson

 

[MaryA]

Rec=just for fun. No competitions.

Elite= shooting for National team and even possibly Olympics. Training many many hours from an early age, progressing very quickly. Entire family eats, sleeps, and breathes gymnastics.

Most people who post on this site are involved with competitive gymnastics, but not elite (though there are a handful of those and their posts are always fascinating... it's a whole different world). There are different programs for competitive gymnastics (YMCA, USAIGC, others I am forgetting at the moment) but the most common is USAG. Gyms may have pre-team and potentially levels 1-10, though many gyms choose not to start competing till level 3 or 4 and some teams don't have the upper levels. Starting with level 4, you have to "score out" of each level to progress to the next, according to USAG rules, but gyms themselves often have their own stricter rules about move-ups. Some kids compete one level per year. Some repeat levels. Some "score out" of a level with one meet and move quickly to the next level. Some of that depends on the gymnast and how fast she gains and perfects skills. Some of that depends on the gym and what they expect before they move a kid to the next level (they might need to get a certain score, or they might need to have all of the skills for the next level, or whatever).

If I had a young kid just getting started with rec gymnastics, I'd probably visit the gyms closest to me, talk to the Rec coach, watch a practice, and choose the one that I got the best vibe from. If my daughter was already in competitive gymnastics and I could see her sticking with it for a good while, I would do the same things but I would also look more closely at the qualifications of the coaches, what level the gym goes up through, and how those girls are doing at competitions.

There's WAY more to it than that, but that's the Cliff Notes version. (Do Cliff Notes still exist?) And that's girls' gymnastics. If you want to know about boys' gymnastics, someone else will have to answer because I know it's really different.

 

[purpleleomom]

Mymeetscores just tells me scores. Is that enough? From reading CB, it seems high scores at the lower levels might indicate some holding back/repeating levels to boost scores. Are lower scores bad? What would scores from 31-35 tell you about a gym?

 

[txgymfan]

Scores don't tell the whole story. The best way to evaluate a gym is to watch a practice and watch the team during a meet also talk to the parents of other gymnasts. The unfortunate part of watching is the very real fear of being recognized. If you observe a rival gym's practice then people will talk and you could find yourself being kicked out of your current gym.

 

[purpleleomom]

Do people actually get kicked out of rec? I'm starting to think I should shop around for preteam (after some comments I received in a recent post I made). I sent my daughter to camp at a rival gym a few weeks ago. It was my only childcare option that day. She also wore her gym's t-shirt and most likely told everyone where she takes classes. No telling if word has gotten back around.

 

[2G1B]

IMO it would be crazy for a gym do to that over rec. (I do think it is kind of crazy to do it over team; but rec would be totally insane IMO.)

 

[gracyomalley]

Scores vary by team, region, and kid...what you can get from mymeetscores is the basic number of kids that have competed in certain levels from certain teams over the last few years. Not all scores/meets are listed there and the athletes "top all around" isn't really that - its a combo of many meets so only a basic idea....that being said an athlete that is always scoring 37 on mymeetscores at each level is probably very good and one that is always (through the levels) listed at 32.5....pretty average.

Visiting gyms is important, as is meeting with coaches, and having your kid do trial practices. Any decent coach will be fine with that, and if you are seriously worried you'll be "kicked out of the present gym" for looking into options, then I'd leave anyway!!! This is your kid, and your money....as long as you are polite and honest, they should treat you with respect.

In our area there are 4 options (within a 3 hour drive)....one with great preschool programs and very scary/poorly trained optional level athletes who take years to even score out of levels, much less succeed. That can be easily seen with one practice IF you have watched other teams and know what to look for - form, strength, consistancy....etc. You can also get a vibe from the way the coaching staff interacts with the kids. One gym is simply too tiny (only a couple optionals, no 10s in years, etc....). The other 2 both have experienced coaches with track records of getting kids to college scholarships, reasonable success at meets, etc. One is larger, with a bigger compulsory group and more older gymnasts, one smaller, more optionals at younger ages, no boys team (can be a positive or negative)....depends what your kid is striving for and socially where they fit. Both could get a kid to college level, both have track records of lots of 9-10s (for our area, lots being different here, of course). Both head coaches competed at the Elite level themselves, although there are no Elites here (one kid was offered it but quit instead...)

At the rec level - just find one that seems fun and start out - you can easily change then...

 

[Natasha]

If you are looking for Rec, find out who teaches the rec programs at the gym you are interested in. Gyms with top notch team athletes may or may not have good rec programs. Rec teachers can vary at gyms- you may have a head team coach teaching rec or you may have high school students with little gymnastics experience teaching or you could have a mix of the above.

 

[ashyflashy]

Just wanted to thank you all for your input. I did my research & found the perfect gym for her. She was evaluated at a more competitive gym & was placed on there Level 3 Team. She is excelling and is so happy! So glad I sticked with my gut & changed gyms. Thanks ladies!

 

[flipflopsalto]

I just made a similar post. Glad you found a great fit!