beamer
Proud Parent
So. There are these friends of friends. I do not know them well, only through casual conversation at a couple social events over the years.
Their little daughter (maybe she is 7 or 8) has been competing at my DD's old gym for the past couple years. She is one of those little phenoms: a tiny bundle of muscle, natural ability and competitive attitude. She has been in the top three to five for all-around at states the past couple years. And this is while training at more of a "rec" gym, with roughly half the hours that are considered standard through the levels.
Here are the problems. 1) The gym she is currently at is adequate for compulsory-level gymnastics, but its uber-talented gymnasts tend to fall off the map (podium?) at the optional levels when a combination of factors kick in -- fewer training hours, no pits, not as much equipment, etc. 2) The coaches and parents at old gym create a culture of scaring people away from the better gyms through a variety of tactics. The most common is citing the high number of practice hours it takes for the area's better gyms to have success at meets, even though these training hours (from my Chalkbucket reading!) are fairly standard, country-wide.
I have had experience with this little girl's gym and with our current gym, which is one of two top gyms in our area and a 10-minute longer drive for this family. The coaching at current gym is excellent. The facility is excellent. The gymnastics teams are excellent. There is another really great gym suitable for this kid, but it would be an hour drive for this family.
Should I say something or just wait for her parents to become -- on their own -- more educated about their talented daughter's sport? My experience (at the old gym) is that most parents fall for the scare tactics.
Their little daughter (maybe she is 7 or 8) has been competing at my DD's old gym for the past couple years. She is one of those little phenoms: a tiny bundle of muscle, natural ability and competitive attitude. She has been in the top three to five for all-around at states the past couple years. And this is while training at more of a "rec" gym, with roughly half the hours that are considered standard through the levels.
Here are the problems. 1) The gym she is currently at is adequate for compulsory-level gymnastics, but its uber-talented gymnasts tend to fall off the map (podium?) at the optional levels when a combination of factors kick in -- fewer training hours, no pits, not as much equipment, etc. 2) The coaches and parents at old gym create a culture of scaring people away from the better gyms through a variety of tactics. The most common is citing the high number of practice hours it takes for the area's better gyms to have success at meets, even though these training hours (from my Chalkbucket reading!) are fairly standard, country-wide.
I have had experience with this little girl's gym and with our current gym, which is one of two top gyms in our area and a 10-minute longer drive for this family. The coaching at current gym is excellent. The facility is excellent. The gymnastics teams are excellent. There is another really great gym suitable for this kid, but it would be an hour drive for this family.
Should I say something or just wait for her parents to become -- on their own -- more educated about their talented daughter's sport? My experience (at the old gym) is that most parents fall for the scare tactics.