Parents Vent, Daughter's floor routine is driving me Crazy!

[txgymfan]

Even college gymnasts have to pay out of pocket for their floor routines. At least that's what the local college choreographer told me, and all the college gymnasts I know that I've asked.

Really? I haven't heard of this. It makes sense for college club gymnastics but I don't see why it's not included in team costs. Bookworm, has this been your expirence too?

This forum teaches me something new all the time.

 

[Pineapple_Lump]

Really? I haven't heard of this. It makes sense for college club gymnastics but I don't see why it's not included in team costs. Bookworm, has this been your expirence too?

This forum teaches me something new all the time.

Perhaps this is the case for gymnasts that the school has absolutely zero intention of putting in the floor line up. If you are not competing floor, then spending time designing a routine for which will not benefit the school is a waste of their time.

 

[3rd_time_around]

By the way, if the recent college graduate coach who worked with your daughter was herself a college gymnast, that's possibly a really good thing. They learn a lot about effective choreography that enables minimal deductions. We've had a few former club athletes return now and then to help out with coaching, and it's always been a positive -- in my daughter's case, the timely intervention of a college athlete prevented her coach from picking a nice but very overused piece of floor music.

Being a college gymnast does not always translate to being able to coach or choreograph. Each level floor routine must contain several requirements, time limits, skill limits, dance up to competitive level, etc. Unless the former college gymnast is up to date on all that plus is a great choreographer, they won't be able to put together a good routine. I've known several wonderful former college gymnasts who just can't coach.

 

[3rd_time_around]

Really? I haven't heard of this. It makes sense for college club gymnastics but I don't see why it's not included in team costs. Bookworm, has this been your expirence too?

This forum teaches me something new all the time.

It has to do with NCAA rules about money and perks, etc.

 

[3rd_time_around]

Perhaps this is the case for gymnasts that the school has absolutely zero intention of putting in the floor line up. If you are not competing floor, then spending time designing a routine for which will not benefit the school is a waste of their time.

No, its about those pesky rules about NCAA athletes and money and gifts or something. Trust me, I am good friends with several former D1 gymnasts, and they paid for their floor routines. Before my dd's gym had an assigned choreographer, a lot of the optionals would hire the local university's choreographer when he was in town to do the college routines. He was awesome, and he didn't charge the JO girls as much as he charged the college girls. I know because I was contracting to use him for my dd when we were told that we had an assigned choreographer for that year.

 

[txgymfan]

I believe you but that's weird and I don't like it.

 

[mommyof1]

No, its about those pesky rules about NCAA athletes and money and gifts or something. Trust me, I am good friends with several former D1 gymnasts, and they paid for their floor routines.

Okay, that is seriously messed up. The school can pay for their coaching, their leotards, their books, their tuition, their tutoring, but not the choreography for the routines that they will compete on behalf of the school? Do the football players have to pay the person who designs their plays?

 

[NY Dad]

It's my winter colors, you like?

Yes, it's very fancy and a huge departure for you. I just need to get used to it.

I don't know the final cost because given some mental blocks

At first I thought you were saying you couldn't remember the cost b/c you were blocking it.

I can't contribute much to the conversation. I am finding this very surprising and interesting. (Then again I was surprised to hear that the cost of classes doesn't include the optional routines.) My dd is also taking dance (she's in rec - there aren't enough hours in a day). They learn stuff and then they have a performance. Yes, I've got to pay to watch it, and whatever she's wearing for the performance but not for the choreography (even of she's doing a solo dance). Maybe if she were on a team/competing we would be paying for that too.

Also, the costs seem to range much more drastically than the cost of the actual classes.

 

[Seeker]

Do gymnasts (or their parents ) have to pay extra for someone to create their optional routines?

Yes. A lot of $$$.

 

[notthatmom]

Spinning off the college gymnastics topic, are collegiate gymnasts required to pay for the travel/lodging that comes with collegiate gymnastics?
And also, are different team expenses covered for those who have scholarships compared to those who do not?

Just something I've always wondered.

 

[JumpingBean]

I can't contribute much to the conversation. I am finding this very surprising and interesting. (Then again I was surprised to hear that the cost of classes doesn't include the optional routines.) My dd is also taking dance (she's in rec - there aren't enough hours in a day). They learn stuff and then they have a performance. Yes, I've got to pay to watch it, and whatever she's wearing for the performance but not for the choreography (even of she's doing a solo dance). Maybe if she were on a team/competing we would be paying for that too.

In dance, only the routines for recitals are included. Everything else is extra. If you are in a comp group dance you don't necessarily pay for the choreo, but if it's a trio/duo/solo, then you pay, and it can be a lot of money as well.

 

[Natasha]

Spinning off the college gymnastics topic, are collegiate gymnasts required to pay for the travel/lodging that comes with collegiate gymnastics?
And also, are different team expenses covered for those who have scholarships compared to those who do not?

Just something I've always wondered.

D1 schools pay for everything- travel, lodging, snacks, comp leos, practice leos, warm ups, grips, tape, academic tutors, on-site physical therapy, etc. for all the team members. This is part of the reason there is a limit to walk on spots and some schools have fewer walk on spots than others. We have been told there is no distinguishing between Scholarship and walk on gymnasts other than the tuition package. I am not certain how D2 and D3 teams are handled as far as what is covered.

 

[MILgymFAM]

D1 schools pay for everything- travel, lodging, snacks, comp leos, practice leos, warm ups, grips, tape, academic tutors, on-site physical therapy, etc. for all the team members. This is part of the reason there is a limit to walk on spots and some schools have fewer walk on spots than others. We have been told there is no distinguishing between Scholarship and walk on gymnasts other than the tuition package. I am not certain how D2 and D3 teams are handled as far as what is covered.

So they cover all that, but not choreography? Odd.

 

[3rd_time_around]

Okay, that is seriously messed up. The school can pay for their coaching, their leotards, their books, their tuition, their tutoring, but not the choreography for the routines that they will compete on behalf of the school? Do the football players have to pay the person who designs their plays?

You know that the leotards are property of the school, and they don't get to keep them. The school orders sizes, and they just have to fit in whatever sizes are there. That's why there's a lot of "fall out" sometimes. [emoji23] The choreography is personal, and if a school can pay more collectively because they are well-funded, it gives their girls an advantage over less-funded schools. I think that was the reasoning, it levels the field, i.e: you get what you pay for.

 

[txgymfan]

That would almost make sense if the athletes had a say in their choreographer but I'm betting they don't. I'm guessing they don't have much say in their music either. Then again, so much of NCAA is messed up.

Voluntary workouts are not voluntary either.

 

[duyetanh]

You know that the leotards are property of the school, and they don't get to keep them. The school orders sizes, and they just have to fit in whatever sizes are there. That's why there's a lot of "fall out" sometimes. [emoji23] The choreography is personal, and if a school can pay more collectively because they are well-funded, it gives their girls an advantage over less-funded schools. I think that was the reasoning, it levels the field, i.e: you get what you pay for.

That is bizarre. I went to a div 1 school that is very prominent in ncaa gymnastics today, and the gymnasts all got to keep their Leo's and team warmups. Same with us for the swimming. When did all this change? Not being sparky at all...just curious!

 

[Jenny]

You know that the leotards are property of the school, and they don't get to keep them. The school orders sizes, and they just have to fit in whatever sizes are there. That's why there's a lot of "fall out" sometimes. [emoji23] The choreography is personal, and if a school can pay more collectively because they are well-funded, it gives their girls an advantage over less-funded schools. I think that was the reasoning, it levels the field, i.e: you get what you pay for.

No, its about those pesky rules about NCAA athletes and money and gifts or something. Trust me, I am good friends with several former D1 gymnasts, and they paid for their floor routines. Before my dd's gym had an assigned choreographer, a lot of the optionals would hire the local university's choreographer when he was in town to do the college routines. He was awesome, and he didn't charge the JO girls as much as he charged the college girls. I know because I was contracting to use him for my dd when we were told that we had an assigned choreographer for that year.

It has to do with NCAA rules about money and perks, etc.

This is definitely not true across the board. My friends dd is in her third year competing for a D1 school and has never had to pay for choreography or music.

Also making the gymnasts pay wouldn't level the playing field, gymnasts from richer families would be able to afford a better choreographer. Perhaps it was an old rule when your friends were in college but doesn't exist now.

 

[e'smum]

Do gymnasts (or their parents ) have to pay extra for someone to create their optional routines?

yes. for floor. my dd made up her own beam routine.
for level 6 we payed $200 for choreographer from outside the gym. she is fantastic! we got super lucky and grabbed her up before anyone else did. she's a former div 1 gymnast plus she made a bid for the olympics. our floor routines are top notch. she also cleaned up the level 7 routines - this is their 2nd year using them. we are unique in that she will come in on most tuesdays to work with the girls on floor. assuming the gym pays her for this. she had to make a change to the beginning of my dd's routine b/c she fell out of it once and she just couldn't get it down clean enough. we are soooo lucky to have this. the $200 included being taught the routine and a follow up a few weeks later to clean it up. we will use this routine again in level 7 with harder tumbling added in.

now for our level 8's on up, the cost is $600. this includes *3* choreographers. they come in and teach the routine and then video one of them doing the routine. they come back and do a clean up too, i think. i know one of them had trouble learning the routine so they had to come back for her. not sure if all the girls got that. then, and i really like this, they send a video of the routine (i'm guessing at the 1st meet) to them and it's shown to a judge who critiques it and the girls get that info back and can fix things in the routine. they keep this routine for a couple of years.

music for us was $75. i think that's normal. also, my dd was asked to write down skills in the routine she wanted and the music and that list went to the choreographer.

before, our coaches made up the routines. i like this better even though it's pricey. my dd's routine is beautiful and fits her personality perfectly. now if she can only clean it up!

 

[Moxiegrl83]

We have a couple options. My DD bought another gymnasts routine when she got a new one, I think it was around $75. That was for L7. For L8, she had a choreographer touch up her L7 routine, and add another tumbling pass. That was around $150. A brand new routine from start to finish is around $300. The choreographer comes for a weekend, and anyone that needs or wants a new routine or touch up is booked.