Scared of bars :(

[gymnastjess]

At the start of the yr one of my team mates went on the low bar in the pit she said it was a bit shaky so my coach went on to check, it didn't shake when my coach went on so my coach thought it was fine. I went on it and it wasn't clipped in right on the side and it came undone and one side of the bar dropped and i fell into the pit, i just wanted to cry right then and there, there were so many people in the gym plus im overweight and people started laughing because they thought i broke the bar now i still go on bars but i dont go in the middle of the bar because thats were the bounce is and a little girl once said look it looks like she is going to break the bar because it was going down a bit (don't all bars do this?) anyway it made me feel bad so now i go on the side :/ and even so i wont even try to jump from low bar to high bar because im scared that when i jump from the low bar it will break the low bar and when i catch the high bar my force and weight will break the high bar. my gyms bars aren't old at least i dont think so anyway but our HC is replacing a tramp ect. so if bars needed replacing im sure he would replace but im just scared?

 

[gymnastjess]

a side note my gym opened in 99 so i dont think equipment can be very old can it?

 

[livelifetumble8dx]

this happened to my coach and a level ten at my gym before. except for her, the thingies ( sorry for my lack good gymnastics vocab! ) that kept the bars into the ground, came out and the bars came tumbling down while she was doing giants..kinda similar? but really, the bars WONT break, theyre meant to hold A LOT of weight and they are very strong. maybe have youre coach lift you up and put you in the middle and let you swing on it just to see? i mean, you said it was over a pit. whats the worst that you could happen? i'm sure they were just surprised that it broke. i mean i would be surprised too!

 

[Deleted member D3987]

gymastjess...get back up on that horse and RIDE!

 

[cher062]

That type of thing can happen to anyone when the equipment isn't secured correctly. Don't worry what other may or may not be thinking unless you are in their heads or they tell you what they are thinking about you and your gym skills you really don't know and are making assumptions about others that really may be unfounded.

As far as the bar goes you have to take a deep gulp and get right back up there. I think every gymnast has that "fear" event. My DD's is Beam and doing any tumbling that needs the connections. She never had a big fall doing it but for what ever reason it makes her nervous but she still gets up there and gives it her best shot.

Don't worry about that bar breaking. I can't say i've ever seen that happen. but I have seen it bend and I think it supposed to do that. In meets I've seen some girls that were overweight and they did great.

If the coaches, owners etc thought the equipment was unsafe for you they wouldn't let you use it. Remember you said it wasn't clipped in right when your accident happened. So get right up there in the middle and try again something small first. Check the equipment first have the coaches show you what a properly set up bars looks like so you can see the issues that may not be set right before you go.

good luck

 

[Tumblequeensmom]

Jess.. the bar will NOT break, it's supposed to flex!!! I just wanted to add the same thing happened w/my DD on strap bar. She was working on giants, and one side wasn't secured. Fortunately, when the darn thing collapsed, she was on the downswing and she just kind of rode it down to the floor. Thank goodness!!! Get back up there on those bars!

 

[nicci1999]

Same thing happened once to me on beam, you just gotta get back up and do it again, it was by no fault of your own, and yes, the bars DO flex, a lot. Look at how much they flex when the girls do giants!! You are NOT going to break anything, equipment gets loose just from being used constantly.

 

[gymnast88]

This happened to me once when I was 8! Trust me it will not break, it was not your vault when it did, it just was not tight enough.

 

[gymnut1]

top gymnasts bend the bars alot don't worry about that.
See world champion Beth in action in Rotterdam winning her title.

YouTube - Beth Tweddle UB World EF

get back on and have some fun!!!
Ask your coach how to check the bars are tight and correctly fitted. you will do everyone a favour by checking before you use and make you feel more secure.