Parents JO to Xcel

[sportsmommy]

My dd is new to xcel. I have been asking questions about how the program works. I think i have an idea now on rules and stuff. But what i really want to know is how it worked for your dds. Especially from parents whose dd went dd for another reason besides time commitments. Right now my dd is loving it. There have been a few minor issues but nothing to worry about. I am curious how the change effected your dd. Positive or negative. What issues they might have faced if any? I am not looking for advice. I am just wondering.

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[tricieworld]

Xcel helped boost my daughter's confidence level. She had an ok level 3 season and then went to Bronze and became state champion. She is now training for the new level 4 and I can tell that she is more confident in her performance and more dedicated to training. I love the xcel program!

 

[UnoMas]

My older DD did a season of xcel gold in between JO 5 and 6. She really loved having her own routines and it took the pressure off some back tumbling issues. She had a great year and then went back to JO. She may end up switching back to JO, who knows.

My younger DD went to xcel after competing L4 as a 6/7 year old. She struggles with details on dance moves and the xcel program has been wonderful for her because she is able to show off her strengths. She won her very first gold medal this year! She will be staying in xcel, it is the place for her!

Tiny DD is also in xcel this year after doing a year of JO L2. She has trouble with the details of dance moves too but is very strong. So she will be able to do her great bars stuff in xcel without worrying about the tiny details of the compulsory routines. I think she will have a great year...we'll see!

The best thing is the ability to show off strengths, and the ability to progress on each individual event...some can be stronger and some weaker. This is much harder to pull off in JO where everything seems to need to develop more evenly.

Good luck to your DD!

 

[JMACAZ]

My DD was on a "fast track" to compete L4 last year but did not have some of the skills needed. She decided to switch over to XCel. She competed Bronze and had a great season (tied for 1st on bars and 2nd on beam at the State Meet) Qualified for Regionals and was 2nd on bars. She loved being able to create her own routines that emphasized her strengths. She is training silver now. I also liked the fewer hours and less $$. She was asked to join the L3 team this year but declined. XCel is better suited to her personality-natural talent but not the Type A driven personality. Now my other younger DD is a perfectionist and constantly practicing so will compete JO L2 this year. Hope this helps.

 

[sportsmommy]

It really sounds like my dd is going to like xcel. The orginal plan was for to go back to jo but if it goes as well as i think, she may stay in xcel. She is practicing with the optionals. I was afraid she wouldnt be taken as serious. So far that hadnt happened too much. At your dds gym, are they separated?

I also would like to know what the scoring is like. The talk in the gym has been that xcel is scored easier. From what have been gathering thats not the case. So what is your opinions?
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[gymgal]

It really sounds like my dd is going to like xcel. The orginal plan was for to go back to jo but if it goes as well as i think, she may stay in xcel. She is practicing with the optionals. I was afraid she wouldnt be taken as serious. So far that hadnt happened too much. At your dds gym, are they separated?

I also would like to know what the scoring is like. The talk in the gym has been that xcel is scored easier. From what have been gathering thats not the case. So what is your opinions?
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Xcel varies so much depending on where you live that you can't form generalizations for scoring. We live in a state with tough scoring across the board -JO and Xcel. The judges will take off full deductions for skills not performed according to the rules. they are not more forgiving of Xcel levels. But I have seen in other states where they are more forgiving of things like slightly bend knees or elbows, little step on landing, etc. like I said, it really just depends on where you live. As for how Xcel is treated, that varies by gym. some gyms combine their programs and have the girls train together, others keep them separate. Some view it as a stepping stone to optionals for girls who need more time, others use it as a side program for those they feel won't make it in JO.

 

[JMACAZ]

The plan for my DD is to switch over to JO at the optionals level. But that is a LONG way off As far as practices, my DD (training silver) is grouped with the upper level XCels-gold/plat. This can be both good and bad. She does the first 2 hours of that practice. At her long practice on Sat (3 hours) they are grouped with L3 and L4. Sometimes they have their own coach sometimes not. It is summer and there are only 3-4 of them. As for scoring the coaches have told us that it is easier in XCel. During her first season my DD received pretty consistent scores for her routines unless there was cause for a major deduction. I will have a better idea when my 6 yr old starts competing JO this season.

 

[raenndrops]

It really sounds like my dd is going to like xcel. The orginal plan was for to go back to jo but if it goes as well as i think, she may stay in xcel. She is practicing with the optionals. I was afraid she wouldnt be taken as serious. So far that hadnt happened too much. At your dds gym, are they separated?

I also would like to know what the scoring is like. The talk in the gym has been that xcel is scored easier. From what have been gathering thats not the case. So what is your opinions?
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At our gym, the Xcels practice with the rest of the Optionals. Older gymmie made the switch to Xcel after realizing that quitting altogether was not what she needed after a tough JO Level 6 year (fell on her head/ face in Warm Ups for a meet doing her back tuck) then missed qualifying for Y Nationals by 0.4 (with an uncharacteristic fall on her front tuck).
When she came back, she found that Xcel Gold was perfect for her. She competed last year without her front or back tucks... however, this year, she will have at least one of them in for each meet.
As for the scoring, they have to be a little more lenient since they are OPTIONAL routines and they don't know what the girl INTENDED to do. As long as it is not a special requirement, the judges might believe the girl meant to do whatever it is that looks a little funny... and they can only take off minimally for those things. Of course, a step on a landing is a step on a landing - so you can't get away with saying she meant to do that unless it was an obvious step-out to a finish.
Good luck.

 

[IreneKa]

DD competed Xcel bronze last year. She just had her first JO L2 meet this past weekend. I'd say the scoring was about the same. L2 floor routine is easier than her last year's bronze routine, but, as was said above, it's compulsory, so you are expected to do everything perfectly. She scored about the same as last year (9.25, her best last year was 9.35). The bars routine is more difficult this year, more elements, so more opportunities for deduction, and again she scored almost the same (9.1, best last year was 9.2).

 

[AlexsGymmyMom]

My DD competed 2 seasons of xcel platinum rather than JO level 6. She really had a confidence boost with the program. She could add skills as she gained them and play up her strengths. She had her best season ever last year with her first 36 and almost a 37. Placed well at states and had a virtually stress free season.