All-Star ..

[amy1k]

I didn't know y'all had to sign a contract :(. Thankfully at cp's gym we don't have to :)

"Contracts" for youth sports are more like agreements. They can't be enforced...although, I wish they could sometimes. It's just an agreement that this is what's laid out for the season and this is what you'll pay for it. *shrug* The word could be interchangeable with "tryout packet."

 

[catlady]

I would feel differently about this situation if she were asking these questions prior to her signing the agreement, or maybe even a few days after with signing remorse but, ten months later and the month before the event? This sounds more like, "The bills from traveling January and February are rolling in and I'm tired of writing checks" syndrome, it hits our house every year about this time . :eek::confused::oops:

 

[gofriars610]

alright I did some googling (actually just googled "paid bids will be invested into the gym") and it wasn't that hard to figure out what gym it was.

My issue I have with this strategy is that EPs award paid bids to send Gym Y's Senior Team X to Worlds, not to pay for Gym Y's new tumble track and cheese mats.

 

[quitthedrama]

I would feel differently about this situation if she were asking these questions prior to her signing the agreement, or maybe even a few days after with signing remorse but, ten months later and the month before the event? This sounds more like, "The bills from traveling January and February are rolling in and I'm tired of writing checks" syndrome, it hits our house every year about this time . :eek::confused::oops:

Only quoting you as a jumping off point. I guess I saw it from a totally different point of view. She had already done the math in her head before she posted here. If what she posted is accurate, the gym is charging $25,000 JUST for coaches' travel expenses. That is unacceptable and the gym is completely taking advantage of their customers. I don't think she minded writing checks, but we all like to spend our money wisely and not get taken advantage of. Sorry if I'm putting words in your mouth OP!! I would have questioned the gym directly, but I really think she was just coming here to get feedback to see what her "cheer-mom-pissed-off meter" should be, and didn't expect her gym name to be put in print.

 

[amy1k]

I said this before, but we did have parents freak out about Summit fees this year. Most of them relaxed once the numbers were laid out for them (the numbers seem reasonable to me). But one or two are still in an uproar. Like, maybe they thought the Summit was free?? Weird, because those same athletes went last year. I think, during this stressful part of the season, it's easy to act as if these costs are a surprise. When you've been attending comps for weeks on end, maybe you're bank account would like a break. I get it. I don't get freaking out. But I think, as a parent of a child on a team, it's reasonable to expect the other parents to be planning on covering their portion of he expenses (obviously life happens and things come up). Our first Summit season, I HAD planned...and then I was hit with a massive tax bill...but I figured it out. The case with our parent who has two children on the team (yeah, I'm sure that sucks, but not my problem), she should probably stop talking about the cruise and trip to Hawaii that she has scheduled for her family. It makes me a little less sympathetic that she can't deal with an increase of $65 from last season (only one team attending, so fewer to pay).

 

[cupieqt]

Only quoting you as a jumping off point. I guess I saw it from a totally different point of view. She had already done the math in her head before she posted here. If what she posted is accurate, the gym is charging $25,000 JUST for coaches' travel expenses. That is unacceptable and the gym is completely taking advantage of their customers. I don't think she minded writing checks, but we all like to spend our money wisely and not get taken advantage of. Sorry if I'm putting words in your mouth OP!! I would have questioned the gym directly, but I really think she was just coming here to get feedback to see what her "cheer-mom-pissed-off meter" should be, and didn't expect her gym name to be put in print.

I think we should call this the "Pissmometer" [emoji13]

On a scale of 1 to table flipping, how mad should she be about this? I think (going off the assumption she didn't know about the amount before she signed on the dotted line) this is about a 7. Just because that kind of money is a deal breaker for me. I'd have to walk away.


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[catlady]

Only quoting you as a jumping off point. I guess I saw it from a totally different point of view. She had already done the math in her head before she posted here. If what she posted is accurate, the gym is charging $25,000 JUST for coaches' travel expenses. That is unacceptable and the gym is completely taking advantage of their customers. I don't think she minded writing checks, but we all like to spend our money wisely and not get taken advantage of. Sorry if I'm putting words in your mouth OP!! I would have questioned the gym directly, but I really think she was just coming here to get feedback to see what her "cheer-mom-pissed-off meter" should be, and didn't expect her gym name to be put in print.

I don't disagree that the amount sounded extremely high. She, however, seemed shocked to have to pay coaches expenses and wasn't sure if the practice rental was $500 per athlete or for entire team. The impression I got from her is they were requiring an amount but, not giving specifics as to how it was being spent. I get her wanting to know but, I would ask the gym for clarification first before inquiring about other gyms which may do their financials very differently. I would love to see the actual packet and wording.

 

[crazzyeyesassypants]

I said this before, but we did have parents freak out about Summit fees this year. Most of them relaxed once the numbers were laid out for them (the numbers seem reasonable to me). But one or two are still in an uproar. Like, maybe they thought the Summit was free?? Weird, because those same athletes went last year. I think, during this stressful part of the season, it's easy to act as if these costs are a surprise. When you've been attending comps for weeks on end, maybe you're bank account would like a break. I get it. I don't get freaking out. But I think, as a parent of a child on a team, it's reasonable to expect the other parents to be planning on covering their portion of he expenses (obviously life happens and things come up). Our first Summit season, I HAD planned...and then I was hit with a massive tax bill...but I figured it out. The case with our parent who has two children on the team (yeah, I'm sure that sucks, but not my problem), she should probably stop talking about the cruise and trip to Hawaii that she has scheduled for her family. It makes me a little less sympathetic that she can't deal with an increase of $65 from last season (only one team attending, so fewer to pay).

Was is mandatory for all the athletes in the team to attend The Summit? When we had our first parent team meeting we were told that we would only attend the Summit if we got a paid bid, then we were also told that it was not mandatory for our girls to go, they said they will get someone to fill in if someone didn't want to attend. We are a pretty large gym(example we have 5 level 1 teams, from Tiny to Senior) so I know they wouldn't have a hard time finding an athlete to attend the Summit on a paid bid at our gym.
Lol about her Hawaii trip maybe this mama has seen how stack some teams at the Summit are and now she doesn't want to spend $$$ to go against that, I know I would rather go to Hawaii then blow thousands of dollars to go the Summit to lose to a stacked team. :(


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[amy1k]

Was is mandatory for all the athletes in the team to attend The Summit? When we had our first parent team meeting we were told that we would only attend the Summit if we got a paid bid, then we were also told that it was not mandatory for our girls to go, they said they will get someone to fill in if someone didn't want to attend. We are a pretty large gym(example we have 5 level 1 teams, from Tiny to Senior) so I know they wouldn't have a hard time finding an athlete to attend the Summit on a paid bid at our gym.
Lol about her Hawaii trip maybe this mama has seen how stack some teams at the Summit are and now she doesn't want to spend $$$ to go against that, I know I would rather go to Hawaii then blow thousands of dollars to go the Summit to lose to a stacked team. :(


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You're generous in your assessment. Lol! Her kids were the first to wear new Summit bows to practice after getting a bid, so she must have been in agreement. It was the Summit fees that were the problem. As far as I know, she was also one of the first to book travel. I've been trying to put my finger on it...but based on the two mamas complaining, my guess is that it has to do with practice wear. They've been inseparable of late, and one of them started a cheer-wear business this year. I'd guess that they had a plan to sell practice wear to the team and were surprised when it was ordered elsewhere.

On the subject of packets and fees, I really appreciate the gyms that publish their tryout packets. I like being an informed consumer. Every season at this time, I start looking for packets of local gyms so I can see if I'm still getting a good value for my child's cheer experience or if I need to reevaluate our decision. I wish they were all so detailed as the one I previously mentioned...my child's current gym also makes financial commitment clear. There's another that I've read that was so confusing that I just put it away. I don't understand that at all. Parents need to know, clearly, what they are getting into. I would also scoff at a situation like the OP is in, maybe she can find a better value for her child next year. While cheer is a for-profit organization, the profit should probably not be expressed as coach fees or whatever.

 

[crazzyeyesassypants]

You're generous in your assessment. Lol! Her kids were the first to wear new Summit bows to practice after getting a bid, so she must have been in agreement. It was the Summit fees that were the problem. As far as I know, she was also one of the first to book travel. I've been trying to put my finger on it...but based on the two mamas complaining, my guess is that it has to do with practice wear. They've been inseparable of late, and one of them started a cheer-wear business this year. I'd guess that they had a plan to sell practice wear to the team and were surprised when it was ordered elsewhere.

On the subject of packets and fees, I really appreciate the gyms that publish their tryout packets. I like being an informed consumer. Every season at this time, I start looking for packets of local gyms so I can see if I'm still getting a good value for my child's cheer experience or if I need to reevaluate our decision. I wish they were all so detailed as the one I previously mentioned...my child's current gym also makes financial commitment clear. There's another that I've read that was so confusing that I just put it away. I don't understand that at all. Parents need to know, clearly, what they are getting into. I would also scoff at a situation like the OP is in, maybe she can find a better value for her child next year. While cheer is a for-profit organization, the profit should probably not be expressed as coach fees or whatever.

My goodness, so it's all about practice wear! Good gracious this mamas really get me going sometimes... I was all felling sorry for her but I'll take her Hawaii trip of her hands still ;)


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[amy1k]

My goodness, so it's all about practice wear! Good gracious this mamas really get me going sometimes... I was all felling sorry for her but I'll take her Hawaii trip of her hands still ;)


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Who knows. Lol! She did get our fees lowered, though. They were getting a larger package from Illusive and now they are getting a small one. It's fine either way, but I don't like the idea of a pushy mama throwing a fit and getting her way. I'm also really uncomfortable with moms starting businesses in hopes of profiting off their child's teammates (I'm SURE there are times when it works out beautifully!) and prefer the gym ordering from outside sources. Maybe I'll feel differently when her business is a year or two old.

 

[catlady]

In fairness to the OP and the gym, she has removed all of her comments. I may be assuming too much, however, I am thinking someone has clarified the expenses.

 

[cheermomof4]

"Contracts" for youth sports are more like agreements. They can't be enforced...although, I wish they could sometimes. It's just an agreement that this is what's laid out for the season and this is what you'll pay for it. *shrug* The word could be interchangeable with "tryout packet."

ok that makes me feel better- there is a local gym that makes parents sign actual contracts and the owner will take the parents to court if they leave the program.

 

[amy1k]

ok that makes me feel better- there is a local gym that makes parents sign actual contracts and the owner will take the parents to court if they leave the program.

Dang. Has it actually ever happened? We've signed "contracts" for baseball as well. I don't know if you're familiar with baseball stuff, but my sons have played for Diamond Sports teams. Typically the contracts aren't legally binding and I would think that court costs would easily eclipse the amount lost by a organization when a kid changes his mind. We've definitely had cheer kids drop out mid-season. My daughter was at Natural Venom previously and we had kids drop out mid-season there as well. I've never heard of a gym taking parents to court...it seems counterintuitive.

We have to sign every page of our tryout packet. I imagine it's for when parents freak out about something and claim they've not been informed.

Eta: I keep wanting to add something about the time I was threatened with a lawsuit. That's NOT a good way to handle customers who disagree with you. Lol!

 

[quitthedrama]

I know we have other Love parents on the board so if it really was outlandish like the OP suggested, I would have thought we would have seen more input from them. She also mentioned that this is not the first time the gym had gone to worlds. I don't know much about Extreme but I know Love has been to world's in the past (obvi).

I have no knowledge of either gym, but I am almost certain that the Cheer Tyme gym owners were on my flight to Worlds last year. I paid for the cheap seats and they were sitting behind me lol.