Parents Peeling off the high bar

[SupportingHerDreams]

My 9.5yr old level 5 peeled off (with one hand) the high bar in her competition yesterday on the tap swing right before her dismount. She was able to save and land a good fly away. Since then I have googled peeling off and read some scary things.

I’d like to hear some experienced thoughts on this. How often does this happen? What causes it? How do you avoid it? Is it as dangerous as I’ve read?

I’m just trying to learn more. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences!

 

[gym_dad32608]

Multi-year L10/elite training here, it happens, not all the time, but frequently enough that it is not a rare occurrence. Why? many reasons, fatigue, unfamiliar equipment, a new skill, grip failure, freak accidents. It mostly occurs in practice (I can think of only a handful of times I have seen it in competition). The majority of peels are more on the scary side and just might lead to soreness, sprains, etc, I think the worst outcome is the mental fear that develops for good reason. But, I can also attest to the possible dangerous outcomes. Mine ended up with a concussion, broken nose, internal brain bleeding, and several days in the hospital. When they start throwing release skills and hi/lo transitions, stuff gets real and it's really when you realize you are no longer in the cute compulsory or lower-level optional stage, it really is "big girl" gymnastics. They can get seriously hurt with some of these skills and unfortunately, sometimes it happens.

 

[SupportingHerDreams]

Multi-year L10/elite training here, it happens, not all the time, but frequently enough that it is not a rare occurrence. Why? many reasons, fatigue, unfamiliar equipment, a new skill, grip failure, freak accidents. It mostly occurs in practice (I can think of only a handful of times I have seen it in competition). The majority of peels are more on the scary side and just might lead to soreness, sprains, etc, I think the worst outcome is the mental fear that develops for good reason. But, I can also attest to the possible dangerous outcomes. Mine ended up with a concussion, broken nose, internal brain bleeding, and several days in the hospital. When they start throwing release skills and hi/lo transitions, stuff gets real and it's really when you realize you are no longer in the cute compulsory or lower-level optional stage, it really is "big girl" gymnastics. They can get seriously hurt with some of these skills and unfortunately, sometimes it happens.

I appreciate your response and sharing your experience.
I just don’t understand why people have to talk down to parents with less experience. I understand there is a difference between compulsory and high level optionals but terms like “cute” and “big girl gymnastics” just seem unnecessary. I hope if my daughter makes it to “big girl gymnastics” I remember what it’s like to be way down here in “cute” compulsories and don’t talk down to parents like this.

 

[JBS]

My 9.5yr old level 5 peeled off

It happens more in L4/5 than any other level. Small hands… counter swings… poor technique are the three main reasons I would look at in those levels.

The athletes fly off the bar a ton when learning new skills at an upper level… but this is totally different than just a straight peel.



Here is a good video. Keep in mind that the wrists will automatically start to rotate around the bar if the athlete swings high enough. This height is lower for smaller athletes.

Typically we ask our most talented athletes on bars to swing smaller at the compulsory levels. We also spot under the bar at meets for compulsories as the get amped up at meets and swing bigger than they are able.

 

[gym_dad32608]

I appreciate your response and sharing your experience.
I just don’t understand why people have to talk down to parents with less experience. I understand there is a difference between compulsory and high level optionals but terms like “cute” and “big girl gymnastics” just seem unnecessary. I hope if my daughter makes it to “big girl gymnastics” I remember what it’s like to be way down here in “cute” compulsories and don’t talk down to parents like this.

Okay, me thinks you are being a bit oversensitive. I am in no way talking down to you. I am relating my own experience. As I look back at how I viewed things when my daughter was at that age/level and where she is now. Back then it was all fun and easy, I did see it as cute with little fear that she would hurt herself based on the skills she was doing. When she started doing the higher level skills, along with her friends and teammates that she came up with, I really did have a bit of an epiphany that she was no longer doing back tucks and cartwheels or whatever, but was doing things that I saw elites and college gymnasts doing. Things that if something went bad she could really get hurt. So ya, I said to myself, she is doing big girl skills now. I am sorry you took that as talking down to you when I was only trying to tell you how I felt as a parent going through what you are just starting. Geez.

 

[JBS]

Is it as dangerous as I’ve read?

An unexpected peel… yes… 100%. A peel on the counter swing (back swing) like would happen in a L4/5 compulsory routine can stall them in the air. They will basically drop out of the sky in the position that they stalled in.

Maloney style transitions are also known for peels… however… the athletes (and coaches) are typically at a more experienced level and coach and perform with the fact that a peel can happen and we need to know what to do in case it does.

I peeled in high bars back in the day (actually snapped a grip). I ended up going straight up and sideways… I bicycle peddled through the air. Luckily I landed on my ribs on the cable and it flipped me to my feet.

 

[SupportingHerDreams]

An unexpected peel… yes… 100%. A peel on the counter swing (back swing) like would happen in a L4/5 compulsory routine can stall them in the air. They will basically drop out of the sky in the position that they stalled in.

Maloney style transitions are also known for peels… however… the athletes (and coaches) are typically at a more experienced level and coach and perform with the fact that a peel can happen and we need to know what to do in case it does.

I peeled in high bars back in the day (actually snapped a grip). I end up going straight up and sideways… I bicycle peddled through the air. Luckily I landed on my ribs on the cable and it flipped me to my feet.

Thank you for sharing!! I really appreciate reading your thoughts.

 

[gymgal]

Yes, the risk of injury is real on that skill and it likely happens more often than people realize in practice, though I have only seen it a handful of times in competition. It the main reason I cringe when I don't see a coach between the bars at those levels. We knew a gymnast who fractured a couple of vertebrae after peeling in a counter swing and landed on the low bar in practice. Coach wasn't spotting. Not saying a coach can prevent all injury but they are more likely to help the gymnast come out of it more safely. Some think it's overdo but I sure was relieved that dd's coaches believed in spotting bars for safety reasons.

as for gymdad's post. I did not read "talking down" into it. I read it as - you are now getting into the realm where these skills become scary for a parent to think about and watch and it only gets worse from here. And he's right. You develop a certain amount of desensitization to it all but there are some skills that you will find you can never watch. From L8 on, I couldn't watch dd's beam routines at meets. That was just too scary for me. I would record them and if all went ok, I would watch it back. I know other parents who felt similar on bars.

 

[GymnastMomX2]

I also didn't read gymdads post as talking down to you, but as for anything written on the internet it can be easily misinterpreted.

My daughter has had several scary peels. She peeled off on a free-hip handstand on the high bar during a meet and it was terrifying to watch, she somehow did a flip and landed on her back without any injury, her coach was standing right there but was unable to do anything it happened so fast. She also peeled off the bar just warming up tap swings on the back-swing, landed on her head/neck and was out for ~8weeks with a concussion. The most recent one was when she was doing a toe-hand and only one hand peeled, and she dislocated her other shoulder. I definitely hold my breath watching bars.

 

[Katie]

I peeled off the bar one of the first times I jumped to high bar. I flipped halfway and landed on my neck. My chest hurt for a month! I think I might have cracked a rib but I never got an X-ray so I’m not sure

 

[CoachPow]

Over the years, I've told kids that letting go of the bar might be one of the hardest things they do in gymnastics. It involves everything from your gripped fingers to your tapped and pointed toes. Speed, body shape, spatial awareness, angle of the wrists, and timing must all be right. Peeling can be a consequence of a mistake in one of these areas, or even just a loss of focus.

I was never a gymnast myself, but I quickly learned that nearly every gnarly injury and spectacular spotter save came after a peel (Or round-offs into beam dismounts) We spot on bars more than any other event during meets. I'll gladly watch a thousand perfect releases or dismounts go by just to be there for the one that peels.

 

[raenndrops]

One year, we were at a meet, and I noticed that a LOT of the optional level girls were peeling off the high bar (and a few off the low bar???). When our girls got to the bars, I was nervous. One of our L6s did peel ... one hand ... on her clear hip circle, but pulled around and got the other hand back on to do her flyaway. She ripped, so right after, she ran to the bathroom to wash her hand. She got credit for the B skill and her personal best of the season to that point (2nd meet, lol).

 

[gympoppop]

This is common enough and dangerous enough that I think it should be mandatory for coaches to “stand in” during meets. I’ve seen girls saved from serious injuries by attentive coaches that were in the proper position. My understanding is that this is mandatory in MAG so I’m not sure why WAG hasn’t required.