WAG Summer schedules - parents got angry

[rjb123]

I am praying for a 8 am start time! I would love for DD to get there early, get it done and have afternoons for non gym fun. She had mornings last year and it was awesome!
The reality is that schedules are complicated, you can't please everyone, and as a parent in this sport, you just generally have to "suck it up" and deal with it when it comes to schedules. Hopefully these parents will figure that out soon!

 

[htimcj]

8 am is better than 6:30! I would revolt at 6:30. 8 gives you most of the day. AS for the complaining, someone will always complain so I would just state that is the only way it works for the gym and leave it at that.

 

[my4buffaloes]

We have 8 am starts and I like it. I don't like my kids sleep schedules getting all messed up over the summer and we really try to keep things the same all year long. It just works better for my family. It is the 2 hour practices that I would have a problem with LOL.

 

[gymmomof1]

Dd has been 8:30-12:30 M-F in the summer for a few years now and while it stinks getting up early she is free to enjoy the rest of the day. The first year was rough and she was little and very tired but she is use to it now and likes it. I like it too because it frees up the rest of the day and I don't have to stop what I'm doing to take her.

 

[cbifoja]

Like others, I would eat a raw egg to have a summer schedule already! We typically have 9AM start times which feel pretty early during the summer but help keep my DD and I from heading in our natural state of being nocturnal animals.

6AM.... justifiable homicide right there. LOL

I know we parents really try to help one another out during the summer with driving. Each team seems to be lucky enough to have either SAHMs or teacher moms. I frequently bring a car load of gymmies to the gym.

We also offer a summer camp and a lot of our little team kids make that a part of their day either before or after practice. So it's possible to have someone bring your kid up at 9AM, have them practice until 1 and then bounce them over to camp until you pick them up at 5.

I'd definitely talk to some other moms about sharing the driving burden.

 

[JMACAZ]

Sounds reasonable to me. I have overlapping issues in my house LOL. DD Xcel goes m,tu,thurs 10-2 and DD L3 goes t,th,fri 12-4. They will be able to hang out at camp on tues/thurs which I am very thankful for. On Wed we will go to summer movies There is another L3 practice group that goes 7-11-glad DD is not in that one!!

 

[Becauseisaid]

You know what happens when you try to please everyone? You end up with your team girls coming Monday 8a-11a, Wed 2p-4pm, and Friday 5p-8p.

Man I hated the year of that summer schedule. LOL!

 

[skschlag]

You know what happens when you try to please everyone? You end up with your team girls coming Monday 8a-11a, Wed 2p-4pm, and Friday 5p-8p.

Man I hated the year of that summer schedule. LOL!

UGH! That is awful!

OUr coach tried to please parents one year, and it became a matter of "favorites". Everyone thought someone else was his "favorite. " Much better to just set the schedule, and figure it out from there. We are a 2 parent workign family, but honestly, I prefer the mornings to the evenings. Mainly because I work in the same city the gym is in, but we live in a different one. I hate staying in town all..day...long.... So, if gym is while I am at work, it gets it done, keeps me from sitting and watching all the time (really) and allows us some fun family evenings. Silver linings....always there

 

[gymisforeveryone]

Thank you everyone! I hope you all were my gymnast's parents lol.

Actually when I sent the schedule I explained why they'll be training that early (big group and needs the whole gym). And they are not the only group to practice in the morning. Most of the groups have 9am start time at least once a week. I also mentioned carpooling and send the parents a list of all the 20 gymnasts and parent's phone numbers and emails. Almost all the gymnasts live within 15 km of the gym and most of them have at least one gymnast neighbor practicing at the same time. So it CAN'T be that hard for one parent to get his/her car full of gymnasts and drive to the gym maybe one week of the summer and then it's somebody else's turn. Did I mention the girls also have 3 weeks off during summer?

Today my older girls also started to complain about THEIR summer schedule which is 12.15-14.15. I was so full of that complaining of everyone that I said them they better adjust because they are in team and they are committed to it. They asked if they are required to come every day and I said yes if they don't have a good reason. They also asked why couldn't their practices be in the morning lol. They are 12-13 years old so they can come by bus or by bike.

I hope the parents would understand that for us as coaches the summer is the ONLY time of the year we can have a normal working times 8am-4pm like everyone else. The parent's don't see we work in the gym 3-9pm every day and can for example NEVER meet our friends or family during the week...

 

[emorymom]

No, it's not that bad, Yes, I would hate it. But the little girls can sleep in their leos and eat breakfast in the car.

 

[dynamicduo]

I wish we had mornings!! We don't have our schedule yet, but last year it was 4-8 3x a week and 2-5 1x a week! I like to have my evenings free…but I don't complain about the schedule, it is what it is! (although I might grumble under my breath for a min or so! lol)

 

[raenndrops]

Our summer schedule has always been the same as our school year schedule - 5:30-8pm M, T, R. We are "off" in July. There is Nationals the first week of July.
We then have 2 weeks of Rec camp where team girls can be "Jr. Counselors" and even work out on the "extra" event. Those run M-F 5-7 and the team girls can come none, some, or all of those days.
The last week of July may (or may not) be team camp. It was successful last year as EVERYONE was learning new routines, but HC isn't sure if we are having it this year.

Not sure if the "new" gym is air conditioned, but I sure hope so... if not, at least there are more outlets in this one for fans

 

[PalmTree]

Don't change your schedule!! The parents will STILL not be happy, PLUS then they will try to get every little thing changed. As for the parent who made the comment about getting girls to quit, I would just politely ask her if her daughter will be continuing on team or not. She will either shut up or quit. Either way is good.

And as you mentioned, coaches work afternoons/evenings EVERY DAY for 9 months out of the year!! And sometimes mornings too! And weekends!! So to hear parents complain about morning practice for THREE MONTHS just sets me off.

Whew…gotta calm down now.

 

[emilykatherine]

Our summer schedule has always been the same as our school year schedule - 5:30-8pm M, T, R. We are "off" in July. There is Nationals the first week of July.
We then have 2 weeks of Rec camp where team girls can be "Jr. Counselors" and even work out on the "extra" event. Those run M-F 5-7 and the team girls can come none, some, or all of those days.
The last week of July may (or may not) be team camp. It was successful last year as EVERYONE was learning new routines, but HC isn't sure if we are having it this year.

Not sure if the "new" gym is air conditioned, but I sure hope so... if not, at least there are more outlets in this one for fans

We do team camp.... It's not like camp it's more like coming more hours every single day, and it's also when the new team kids start. An at the end of the week we have a sleepover and go to the pool the next day

 

[raenndrops]

We do team camp.... It's not like camp it's more like coming more hours every single day, and it's also when the new team kids start. An at the end of the week we have a sleepover and go to the pool the next day

I wish. Our team camp was L3 came in to learn Floor and Bars for 2 hours one day and Beam and Vault for 2 hours another day. The next week, it was alternating days ... so M-W and then T-R. L4/5 came in on the opposite days to L3. They were 530-730pm.
L6/7 Came in from 3-5pm for 2 hours one day to choreograph their floor routines and another day for Beam. The next week, they alternated days. Xcel came in the opposite days from L6/7. The Xcels and L6+ were allowed to stay and work on whatever the Compulsories were not working on (so they could technically stay 4-1/2 hours, 2 days a week.
The Friday of the first week was an open practice anyone could come to and work on their routines.
Everyone was required to attend one Floor day and one Beam day (minimum), but it was the same $50 whether you came 2 days or 5 days.

Since our gym is located inside a school building, we can't have overnights... but are trying to see if we could have one (or separate ones for the L3, L4/5, L6+/Xcel) at the YMCA - complete with roller skating, swimming, and movies.

 

[gymgymgymnast08]

Since our gym is located inside a school building, we can't have overnights... but are trying to see if we could have one (or separate ones for the L3, L4/5, L6+/Xcel) at the YMCA - complete with roller skating, swimming, and movies.

Sorry to get OT but we had so much trouble trying to have a sleepover at the YMCA. We never got to have it but I guess it depends on the YMCA. I hope your YMCA is a nicer than mine.

I hated when we had early practice during the summer because then I couldn't do much the night before but all the younger girls loved it because they had more time to do stuff during the day. I just took naps after practice

 

[raenndrops]

Sorry to get OT but we had so much trouble trying to have a sleepover at the YMCA. We never got to have it but I guess it depends on the YMCA. I hope your YMCA is a nicer than mine.

I hated when we had early practice during the summer because then I couldn't do much the night before but all the younger girls loved it because they had more time to do stuff during the day. I just took naps after practice

We are a YMCA gymnastics team. Plus, a couple of the gym moms work for the Y. I know that other groups have done it at our Y before, so we are trying to get one (or more) arranged. LOL, if it ever DOES happen, I get to be a chaperone for EVERY group of gymnasts. Our team is too big to do all at once, but by breaking it down, we would only need a max of 2 lifeguards and 1 other STAFF member. We prefer a breakdown by level so the new girls can get to know their teammates, but we could also do it by age... I just know that would drive a couple of the younger Optionals CRAZY, lol.

 

[JessSyd]

As a parent, the only thing I really want in a holiday training schedule is a reasonable amount of advanced warning to let me plan the holidays and childcare around it. I do have a favourite start time (9am year 'round) but in summer there's a definite plus to an 8am start, and afternoon training can be quite horrible. And the opposite is true in winter when it's quite nice to start in the afternoons and let the gym get a few hours sun before sending the kids in to strip down to their leos.

The amount of juggling needed for a two hour session would be a bit annoying though unless the children are very young. Logistics just seem easier with a three hour minimum for school holiday training.

Very jealous of gyms with airconditioning, evaporative cooling or even really good design. A/C is seen as too expensive here, evap doesn't work because of the humidity, and the gym is just a big poorly ventilated shed with nothing to stop the sun from turning it into an oven. At my daughter's gym all they can really do is cancel training once the mercury starts heading towards the mid 40s.