All-Star Friendly Reminder As We Enter "that Season"

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Dec 14, 2009
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Sharing this from my FB page. Apologies to those coaches that are friends on that page as well for seeing it again.

I haven't posted one of these in a long time. May as well put it out here now since we are officially in "that" season

Finish strong. This year is not over yet. There are still routines to clean and improve, competitions to attend and compete, and hopefully top three placements to attain. Throwing in the towel already and focusing on next years possibilities is an unnecessary distraction. It is unfair to your teammates and coaches and is rooted in selfishness, not a sincere desire to advance. You need to be all in this year to this team you are on now.

Tryouts are always ongoing. Coming to a set day of tryouts is merely acknowledging to a gym that you want to potentially return. Whether you realize it or not, your athlete has been trying out ever since they walked in the door. No reputable coach puts an athlete on a team based on skill alone. This is why many gyms have team adjustments over the summer so they can observe not just the skills but the critical intangibles that make a team successful. They consider things like attitude, attendance, being coach-able, work ethic, discipline, conditioning, being flexible about where they are and what they do in a routine, chemistry with other teammates, how the competed this year - do they stress out, can they handle pressure of being at large competitions, how do they act when things don't go as expected either for themselves or for the team. I am confident that the above constitutes 95 percent of what is considered. Only 5 percent is what skills are able to presented at tryouts. So why freak out over the 5 percent? A BHS does not make you a Level 2. A Tuck does not make you a Level 3. A Full does not make you a Level 5. All it does is crack open the window to that possibility. That is it. Nothing more. So RELAX!

Now if you expect that performing a skill alone qualifies you for a certain placement then logic dictates that loss of that skill should disqualify you from that placement. if you get it (team placement)) cause you got it (skill) then you should lose it (team placement) if we can't use it (skill). Right? Most coaches and programs do not do this, choosing to give you every chance to get a skill back even if it means the team taking a hit. So please be careful what you ask for and are expecting. It sometimes goes the other way.

The way score sheets and judging are set up, the most successful teams throughout the course of a season are those that are typically the oldest in both age and experience in their division AND those that max out at the top of every area of the scoresheet from the first day of practice. Being the youngest on a team is not always the badge of honor you think it is. Being the weak link on a strong team often puts your athlete playing an entire year of trying to catch up to athletes that will also keep progressing themselves. Therefore they rarely catch up. You want your athlete to have a great year, not one in which they realize they are always at the bottom of the skill set abilities on a team.That makes for a miserable year.

In addition strong teams are often compromised of cohort groups or core groups that have been together for years. You just add in to the team when people leave, age out, etc. Coaches know this and try to set up several groups in their gyms so that these athletes can mature and grow together. What you may think of as "the babies" may actually a part of a core group of athletes that will actually be a Worlds team or a Summit winning team one day for your gym. Be careful that in your rush to be on the perceived better higher skill level team, you may end up giving your spot up on the team that will go farther than any other team in your gym. Patience is a virtue.

Every coach in every gym in the world has athletes that miraculously gain new skills in the immediate weeks leading up to tryouts. They suddenly are always at open gym. They haven't been to tumbling classes all year because they were too busy but now here they are every week. They start taking private lessons.
They try to be the last person to leave the gym because if they don't get that skill, or if they don't move up a level or two mom or dad won't let them cheer next year. Only to lose them again in the weeks after tryouts when the pressure is gone. We want to eliminate false positives during this tryout season.

Proper progressions take time, training and patience. It should not be how fast you can rush thru levels, but how well have you mastered a level before you move on. Yes there are always a few athletes that seem to get everything super fast or without really trying. Those are also the same athletes that struggle the most if they lose something trying to getting it back. You can not rush good technique and progressions. Safety should always be a critical component of your training. I would rather see a gorgeous back walkover switch leg with full splits than a janky BHS. A perfect BHS than a busted Tuck any day of the week. Also understand that what you are able to do in tumble class is often way different than what you are able to execute perfectly in the heat of competition. Train higher skills safely but compete perfected skills only.

Don't put too much pressure on your athlete. It is one thing to gently push and encourage. Quite another thing to put hard absolutes out there, especially when your athlete is young. This can often lead to mental blocks and them having a severe dislike for this sport. Eliminate phrases that include "do it or else" if you get your ______ I will buy you _______" , "______ got her_______, you don't want her to pass you do you" or "if you don't make_______ team you wont be cheering next year." If you do you are creating a toxic mindset that you do not want to deal with later.

This year is not over yet. Finish strong. Trust your coaches to put together the best teams possible in the future. Stop stressing out. Enjoy and love this sport we do.
 
I agree with everything on here - so well said.
However, it's a 2 way street. It frustrates me every year around this time when gyms start pushing tryouts, coaches advertise daily for open private spots "to get those skills for tryouts", every other day there are emails and facebook posts talking about tryouts. Just as athletes should remain focused on this year and give 100% commitment to their team, gym staff need to do the same. Current athletes only need to know when tryouts will be. If gyms want to advertise to an outside market I understand, but if they expect their athletes to remain committed and focused for the rest of the season, they need to give their athletes the same respect.
 
I agree with everything on here - so well said.
However, it's a 2 way street. It frustrates me every year around this time when gyms start pushing tryouts, coaches advertise daily for open private spots "to get those skills for tryouts", every other day there are emails and facebook posts talking about tryouts. Just as athletes should remain focused on this year and give 100% commitment to their team, gym staff need to do the same. Current athletes only need to know when tryouts will be. If gyms want to advertise to an outside market I understand, but if they expect their athletes to remain committed and focused for the rest of the season, they need to give their athletes the same respect.

I agree. Take care of who you already have first. The others are so unpredictable that it makes no sense to put so much emphasis on them.

We are strange in that fact in that we don't push our product out there. Our advertisement is word of mouth. Tryouts doesn't even go up on our website until like two or three weeks before actual tryouts. Which is not seen as good by most in the industry but then again our retention of athletes is higher than most any other club around here with many athletes over 5 years in the program and quite a few have been here 8-10 years. Our private lessons spots are open first for our gym members, then for athletes that cheer on school teams that train with us. so we rarely have open spots for other gym members. Which is probably our number one complaint....nobody is available for private lessons. Classes stay filled so there often is not room there well. That only leaves open gyms and we cut that down to one because we needed the other spots for more team and classes.
 
Yes folks.

Before you pack the gym to "get those skills" for tryouts (school or otherwise) just know that:

1. Your whole season is a tryout, really.

2. Coaches know who is really just getting the skills for right NOW but probably won't be throwing them in September. Or heck, July.

3. Just because you "got it" doesn't mean it is good enough to be competed.

Like, you just hit your double the first time two weeks before tryouts. That does not punch your ticket to a Worlds team.

Maybe you got put on J4 with your new double or R5 again. Coaches aren't trying to be mean. They aren't playing favorites.

They don't want to set you up for failure by putting you on a team you aren't ready for.
 
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