All-Star Gym Hopping

[gofriars610]

That's different! Cheer is not nearly as expensive as college!! Some of these kids are trying to hold spots at more than one location and that I believe is not right. I don't care if you shop until you drop, just don't string your team along!

I mean, tuition at some state schools hovers around 7,000 a year...that's equitable to a level 5 team.

 

[CheerMomNTx]

I mean, tuition at some state schools hovers around 7,000 a year...that's equitable to a level 5 team.

Well my kids housing will be that amount for the year :(

 

[The Sixth]

That's different! Cheer is not nearly as expensive as college!! Some of these kids are trying to hold spots at more than one location and that I believe is not right. I don't care if you shop until you drop, just don't string your team along!

Perhaps a better analogy would be college athletes and the recruiting process that happens.

I do agree, at some point an athlete does need to commit, but that decision can be controlled by the potential gym(s) as well.

 

[CheerMomNTx]

Perhaps a better analogy would be college athletes and the recruiting process that happens.

I do agree, at some point an athlete does need to commit, but that decision can be controlled by the potential gym(s) as well.

Yeah but once the kid commits, it's very hard to get out of if he/she changes their mind. Yes and I agree with your last point!

 

[cheercurl]

I have no problem with people changing gyms. Even multiple times. Where I find the issue is when one child will try out at 3 or 4 gyms and publicly proclaim that they will be making a decision based upon which team each gym places them on.

Thats not moving for a better fit or culture. Thats position shopping. And it hurts the kids at each of those 3 or 4 gyms who have worked their whole lives for a spot but are edged out by someone who isn't even going to take it! Sure the spot will get passed down but then those kids know they weren't considered good enough to begin with. All so that one child (and the parents who support that child) can feel good about getting 4 spots and picking the best one.

When will gym owners realize that this type of family will probably do the same thing again next year?

I guess that is a little distasteful but at most gyms talent trumps...crazy. Owners/Gyms take on these kids/parents because numbers is what grows a business. Small gyms or even medium gyms don't have the luxury of turning down athletes. I suppose there are some exceptions to the rule...like serious crazy mom or athlete with a known past but even then, most gym's will take them. Mega gym's have a much easier time fielding teams at an appropriate level because of the large number of athletes....and they can afford to turn down "crazy". ;)

Small and medium gyms have no choice but to take some athletes who don't necessarily have every or even most skills needed for the next level. Team A needs a back spot for their level 4 team but there is not a single athlete left in the gym who has even a bhs and can back spot. What do you do? You pull a kid up from a lower level or cross them. OR: That is how level 3 gym shopper finds themselves on a level 5 team with no full or jumps to back. That athlete must have had some of the skills Team A was looking for....or it's not a "win" for anyone.

I guess the moral of this saga is: Don't judge. Gym owners are smart people they know the deal and recognize the shopper's and hopper's. Don't judge the athlete, maybe it is her last time opportunity to go to World's. That athlete also knows the deal...she will most likely be on a level 5 team that will not be all that competitive at the National level because a "Mega Gym" would never place her on a world's team with out the appropriate skills. Who am I to judge an athlete with particular goals?

Just my thoughts on the subject...

 

[coach12]

i know trying out at different gyms is your choice, but i hate the ones that tryout at a gym, join the gym, practice with the team, then when other gyms have their tryouts, go and tryout. and if they get a better offer they end up leaving. it stinks & it's rude. you just wasted a spot and the first gym's time. the way i look at it the fair way to do it would be to go and visit all the gyms you are interested in and see what they have to offer and then make your choice.

 

[seein_starz]

I've been a competitive cheerleader for 12 years. In that time, I've been to 4 gyms. My first gym I left because I was treated poorly, I'm not bad mouthing them, it just wasn't the experience I was looking for. My second gym I had to leave because they shut down, which was a shame because I loved it there. My third gym I left before anehiem nationals because I had injured my knee and wasn't able to walk and my coach insisted I competed even though I couldn't walk. I'm now at my fourth gym, I love it and I've really improved since I've been there, it still has its issues but so does every gym. That's not gym hopping. I know a true gym hopper, she's been in cheer for 3 years and been to 8 different gyms in 3 years.

 

[BlockHead]

Not sure if we are considered "gym hoppers," but my daughter was in her 3rd allstar cheer season at the same gym. She was only 8 this summer when we pulled her out after they had just learned their choreo. She was not enjoying it one bit anymore. I think because she had aged out of minis and was now in youth that it was much more cut throat. She came home from practice and was crying and throwing up. She ended up eating 3 meals in 5 days after that practice. To me, that would make me a bad mother to continue taking her there. She told me several reasons as to why she did not like going anymore. And parents are not allowed to stay at practice, so I had no idea what was going on at the gym when I would leave her there. I spoke with her coach, and he seemed to want to try to fix the situation. At this point, I was done. I took her out. It was explained to me in GREAT DETAIL that the squad would suffer because they would have to change their choreo, but I didn't care anymore.

After 2 months, my CP begged me to let her return to cheer. We actually found a gym willing to take her 3 weeks ago. It is much, much smaller (2 teams instead of 13). Honestly, you can tell by looking at her new squad that they will probably never place first in any competition. But I really don't care. My CP doesn't care either. She loves to cheer and perform on stage with her teammates. I am hoping that this gym will fulfill what she wants to get out of cheer.

Who knows? Maybe one day we will return to a larger gym again. But right now I am happy that we hopped on over to this smaller one. :)

 

[OneIntenseMama]

Just to clarify, in the Butler household it's not called gym hopping, it's called state hopping. Course, we're lunatics so it's all good.

We're right there with you (except only one state over) :)

 

[retiredl5cheer]

As a coach, I completely respect the right to shop and choose the gym that is right for you. I also understand that people come and go during the summer. I do NOT respect a parent that chooses to pull their child mid-season to go to another gym, barring extreme circumstances. Having to fill in a new flyer or a new base one week before competition because a kid "just wasn't happy" is ridiculous. You finish what you started and make a change the next year.

 

[CheerBank]

As a coach, I completely respect the right to shop and choose the gym that is right for you. I also understand that people come and go during the summer. I do NOT respect a parent that chooses to pull their child mid-season to go to another gym, barring extreme circumstances. Having to fill in a new flyer or a new base one week before competition because a kid "just wasn't happy" is ridiculous. You finish what you started and make a change the next year.

Playing devil's advocate as a parent: how about if a child "just wasn't happy" because a coach was verbally abusive toward them and was slowly but surely destroying their self esteem? And they still loved cheer and were able to find a spot - and their self-esteem and happiness - at another gym? I am all for committment and finishing what you started, but not at the expense of a child's mental health.

 

[retiredl5cheer]

Playing devil's advocate as a parent: how about if a child "just wasn't happy" because a coach was verbally abusive toward them and was slowly but surely destroying their self esteem? And they still loved cheer and were able to find a spot - and their self-esteem and happiness - at another gym? I am all for committment and finishing what you started, but not at the expense of a child's mental health.

That's what I meant by extreme circumstances. I would think you would know earlier than mid-season that the gym practiced a coaching style that you didn't like though. ETA: I would expect a parent to take coaching styles into account during the gym shopping period.

Most of the "just wasn't happy" cases are really "my child wasn't flying" or "my child wants to try soccer."

 

[thecheerbarbie]

I changed to the Stingray Allstars this year, and considering I'd been at my old gym for 2 seasons and didn't win ONE competition, I feel as if it was a logical decision.

 

[quietmom]

Cheer is not cheap. At the end of the day, the parents and athletes are consumers. If they do not like the product being sold (the program and team and their results), they have a right to take their business elsewhere (a new gym). Being an educated consumer is not a bad thing. I question those who view it negatively.

 

[garretttt]

I changed to the Stingray Allstars this year, and considering I'd been at my old gym for 2 seasons and didn't win ONE competition, I feel as if it was a logical decision.

SAME! I've been cheering for 7 years amd have never won a nationals. Didn't win this year either but ill take 2nd at NCA and cheersport any day. Plus my team went through more this year than what a lot of teams go through. We replaced over 20 kids in the season and never competed the same roster for more than 1 comp.