WAG Reasonable time to get a meet schedule. VENT!

[munchkin3]

So this year we have several travel meets and we are so excited to go. We are also trying to make all the needed plans including flights, and hotels. All of these meets are large meets with over 1000 participants and have been run for several years already.....We need to fly to all of them.....
The more professional meets already have their schedules out even though they are 2 months out. However the nearest one still does not have a clear schedule. I am hoping it will be up soon since it is a month away and flights need to be booked/changed.......
What really ticks me off is this strange issue where the parents must just sit and wait (and shut up). We cant expect the host gym to get their s*** together....nooooooo, that would be gymnastics taboo!!! Imagine demanding a reasonable time to plan a trip that costs $1000+ and take my kid out of school....maybe ask for additional days off from work all so my kid can be there the entire duration of a meet?.......Nevermind that I paid the host gym 4 months ago, my hard earned Dollar..made their registration deadline (which was over a month ago) .AFTER paying thousands for training and USAG membership.....
How can gyms be so inconsiderate of us parents.....if it wasn't for us, we would not be buying into this expensive sport.....Why is there not a deadline for larger meets to get their schedules together????
Phew!!!! I feel much better..........thanks!

 

[flippin out]

There is a lot that goes into planning sessions for the large meets, but I would expect that a meet schedule be released within 2 weeks of the registration deadline. I don't think that that is too much to ask

 

[2G1B]

Yeah, between my 3 kids we are doing several big meets this year. Two in January already have their schedules out, one in February has theirs out. Waiting for one more in February to figure out if I need a hotel (this one isn't quite as far - a few hours drive, so unless we are first thing in the morning or on two different days, I'll skip the hotel). When it is a meet that is likely to require flights for most people coming, AND the registration deadline is months before the meet, it is reasonable for them to have the schedule out in time to get a good price on a flight. The reason most smaller meets have to wait so long (at least partly) is because they don't know how many entrants they will have until a few weeks out. For state, you are still waiting to find out who is going to qualify. These meets don't have that.

 

[Deleted member 14190]

I hear ya, I am waiting for a meet schedule for our travel meet that is in 5 weeks!

 

[gymdog]

Lately we usually get at least the day that each level will be from the big meets a few months ahead of time, that seems like a good trend because it at least lets people make travel plans even if they haven't worked everything out with the venue/registration enough yet to get an exact time.

 

[skschlag]

LOL. We have a big one in Florida in February, and we are just booking for the entire weekend. We will leave wed night or thurs morning and stay thru Monday. It is the only way we have foudn for it to work and to save money!

 

[munchkin3]

I hear ya, I am waiting for a meet schedule for our travel meet that is in 5 weeks!

We are less than a month out. What we were initially told as a competition day is not longer the day.......and the host gym could care less.......we are meager peons to them.....

 

[Deleted member 17723]

I know it takes time for schedules to be made, but I don't even have times for next weekends meet yet. Not that it really matters to me lol, as I'm not competing, but our last schedule came out the week of!

 

[Ali'sMom]

I'm right there with you!
Waiting. Waiting. Waiting.

 

[cadybearsmommy]

It's frustrating for us too, but I guess I'm kind of used to it, b/c we most often don't see a meet schedule until two weeks before the meet around here! However while we do have long drives to some meets, we don't do any that require a flight that would be very frustrating as airline prices tend to go up more and more the closer it gets!

 

[Deleted member 18037]

If you have a cut off to have your fees in (you take my money quick enough), the schedule should follow shortly there after.

Really you need to assume you need the whole weekend And I hate hate hate that. So many times well we have to RSVP, no, unless you are OK with last minute. I'm used to it now, but I will never be OK with it.

Of course my favorite was the meet they changed the weekend. WTF smack head.

 

[flippin out]

Of course my favorite was the meet they changed the weekend. WTF smack head.

They changed the weekend that the meet was held......after accepting registration fees????? WTH! They better have offered full refund

 

[Deleted member 18037]

They changed the weekend that the meet was held......after accepting registration fees????? WTH! They better have offered full refund

Yep, lots of hoop needed to be jumped through, she needed the meet to qualify for states

 

[Deleted member 18037]

They changed the weekend that the meet was held......after accepting registration fees????? WTH! They better have offered full refund

Yep, lots of hoop needed to be jumped through, she needed the meet to qualify for states

 

[ShesAMonkey]

Our big travel meet last year didn't have the schedule out until 10 days before the meet! So infuriating. It was enough to make our coaches say that they will never go to that meet again. Too bad, because I think in a few years it will be a nice meet. But our coach was practically begging for the schedule and they just weren't finished with it.

We're currently waiting on a schedule for a meet across the country from us that is in 6 weeks. Waiting, waiting, waiting....

 

[gymmiemom]

It is so frustrating! I'm waiting on one that's in January to release their schedule. I need to get days requested off from work! It drives me crazy when those big destination meets take forever to get the schedules out. They know that people are coming from all over the country. I'm going to push to go back to the destination meet we went to a few years ago next year. They were so organized and on top it!

 

[munchkin3]

Yep, I'm glad I'm not alone in my frustration. Hopefully we will get the final details this weekend and I can see if I need to change any flights. Honestly, I hope we never go to this meet again......I have not heard great things......

 

[duyetanh]

LOL. We have a big one in Florida in February, and we are just booking for the entire weekend. We will leave wed night or thurs morning and stay thru Monday. It is the only way we have foudn for it to work and to save money!

We did that for one in March because it was just cheaper than waiting it out, because the prices go up...

 

[duyetanh]

Two yrs ago we got our schedule for a mini travel meet the week before!
Needless to say, that was the last time the coaches selected that meet as an option...

 

[NMNorskie]

This is the only negative experience we've had so far in gymnastics. The lack of basic organization boggles me. Communications are late, schedules are changed on a week's notice...and it seems to be an industry-wide thing, not just one gym. My husband and I both have jobs where schedules are fixed months in advanced, and can't be changed (unless we want to be unemployed, and we don't). If we ever had to pull our poor kid out of gymnastics, it probably wouldn't be financial. It would be because we can't move heaven and earth on a week's notice (and then move it back when they change it again).