All-Star Tryouts And Financial Agreements

[amy1k]

My daughter's gym charges $35 for a month of evaluation clinics. At the final clinic in May, a $250 payment towards the season fees is due. Teams aren't formed until the end of July, so I suppose you'd be out quite a bit of money if you decided that you were unhappy with your team placement. Our athletes spend the two months after evaluations in level specific stunt and tumbling classes.


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[MomOf2ThatsMe]

Do you pay the gym fee for that month, though?


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For the month we tryout?

Usually, our season doesn't run into April. Our tryouts are always in April, and we do not pay a gym fee that month. We are going to Baltimore this weekend, so we did pay some gym fees for April since they had practice.

 

[Pebbles49]

Agree with this to an extent... most gyms (at least in my experience) aren't just a tryout though. Its a month long process.

If I'm going to coach your kid 2 nights a week for 3 - 4 weeks, and then I'm going to spend an entire sleepless weekend of my life to decide what team they're best on, shouldn't that be compensated? I've just worked 16 + hours minimum for your child, but they're just trying it out, so I shouldn't be paid? That would be like going to the shoe store, and telling the sales person you want to wear the shoes for a month before you decide you want to purchase them. You may change your mind, they may not match your outfit, they may give you blisters. You want to be able to back out a month later and not have to pay for what you've already used. They would look at you like you're all sorts of crazy.

I guess I am stuck on why would anybody coach children 2 nights a week for that duration of time without asking for payment... What you are providing is a service and/or clinics, which you should charge for those clinics? Why would any gym disguise a service and/or clinics as tryouts? In my thinking, tryout should be 1 time only...participants come in show their best stuff and then comeback to find out where they place in your organization and then given a little time to decide if you agree to the terms presented...nice, if not, move on to the next gym and pay to tryout somewhere else... Yes, a shoe store will look at you, like you crazy if asked to wear the merchandise without paying once leaving the store:eek:... but we are making an error in clarification - when you purchase shoes you are making a transaction and this is not a service...Tryouts at my daughter's gym is in early May and the 1st week, they provide the expected participants an opportunity to go to Tryout Clinics, they have about 5 0r 6 clinics, which you are charged $25 for each session, and in these clinics the participants are taught the dances, motions, stunts and given tumbling classes... There is a clear distinction to a service (tryout clinics) and tryout ... There is a flat fee of $40.00 for tryout and the actual tryout last 20 minutes and this year they included a second day to evaluate stunting and then the third day-team placement, which takes all but 30 minutes, the participants are called in by levels and the coaches for those prospective teams will call out their team roster, somewhat like a draft pick,,, the draft pick is good for those who make those coveted teams, but last year, I felt so bad for those who did not get called, but all these things happened without a contract! So, when you show up in June and pay for June, that is when a semi-contract comes into existence...and actually, it is in July when you find out about competition schedule, cheer camp payment, etc and first payment for competitions fee:cheering:

 

[dawgshow]

For the month we tryout?

Usually, our season doesn't run into April. Our tryouts are always in April, and we do not pay a gym fee that month. We are going to Baltimore this weekend, so we did pay some gym fees for April since they had practice.

I'm just stuck on the fact that a business would offer services and not ask for payment. However, I'm getting the idea that our gym does tryouts differently than many on this thread.


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[azmom]

After many parents questioned the policy about signing the financial agreement before trying out they have clarified or changed the arrangement.

It is now a try out fee of $55. Once you are placed you have between 1 week (for level 4 & 5) 3 weeks for (level 1,2,3) to decide if you want to continue. However if you go to the team practices you will be charged for May. If you decide not to continue within the time frame your done and not charged for more. If you wait to long then you are on the hook for more. It seems fair. I am ok with this.

 

[amy1k]

I guess it's just a variance of how gyms do business. We don't have a tryout at all. Everyone makes a team. The beginning of the season is a chance for athletes to solidify skills and for coaches to evaluate athletes for team placement. Is everyone happy when teams are formed? Of course not. But placements tend to be pretty fair.


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[cheerKT]

$325?! Yikes, and I thought $120 was high. Ours was a yearly one too and I think we got a family discount but I can't remember.

Fees? For high school sports? Public schools? What is this madness?

Ours were free to participate in. For cheerleading you had to pay for camp and practice clothes but there were plenty of fund raising opportunities. If you were absolutely unable to come up with the money a couple team members were usually partially funded by the rollover money from the previous year in the cheer account. But I was also recently informed that a school district near us had yearly "book fees" for the rental of their school books and that blew my mind too.

My free education really was free, haha. College was of course a different story.

 

[Pebbles49]

Capitalism would suggest that businesses have the freedom to charge what they wish and customers have the freedom to go somewhere else. I don't see how capitalism is being violated here. Please point out the laws that are being broken.

Capitalism = Free Market Society, yes it suggest that businesses have the freedom to charge what they wish and customer have the freedom to go somewhere else. However, Capitalism and the free market is being violated based on the things I have read in this thread... based on the things I read, people are told they are given an opportunity to tryout, but when they come in to tryout, they are then tied into contracts for long term services - this goes against the US Antitrust Laws - If what I am reading is correct. U.S. Antitrust Laws protects buyers, with the Antitrust Laws they encourage businesses to compete fairly, they promote market competition, which provide consumers with the best products and services at reasonable prices. The U.S. Antitrust Laws set rules that make certain the practices that are occurring in All-Stars gyms are known to be illegal because forcing contracts on consumers do not promote more vigorous competition and limits the consumers choices, which in essence, what you have is an attempt at a monopoly, which as we all know is illegal in a capitalistic society.:eek:

 

[MomOf2ThatsMe]

I'm just stuck on the fact that a business would offer services and not ask for payment. However, I'm getting the idea that our gym does tryouts differently than many on this thread.


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Ours are a walk-in evaluation, not a multi-day/hours long thing, or clinic/camp based. I would say the vast majority of our athletes beyond a level 1 are homegrown, and the level 1's are level 1. We rarely have athletes walk in "competition ready" due to having cheered somewhere else, or gymnastics. Our coaches are already very familiar with each athlete in the building, and their capabilities, thus I don't think the whole process is necessary for our specific gym.

 

[BuegeSmalls]

Fees? For high school sports? Public schools? What is this madness?

Ours were free to participate in. For cheerleading you had to pay for camp and practice clothes but there were plenty of fund raising opportunities. If you were absolutely unable to come up with the money a couple team members were usually partially funded by the rollover money from the previous year in the cheer account. But I was also recently informed that a school district near us had yearly "book fees" for the rental of their school books and that blew my mind too.

My free education really was free, haha. College was of course a different story.

Yep lol. Besides that for cheer we had to pay for practice clothes and team apparel, choreography, trip to nationals, nationals apparel, shoes, bow, spandex and probably some other stuff I can't remember. But you had TONS of chances to fund raise everything. Summer car washes typically paid for your practice & team apparel, hosted a clinic for our youth cheer team which usually went to the cost of choreography, we hosted a competition and held a father daughter dance that covered the cost of nationals, we sold wreaths and that money usually went to nationals apparel. I think the cheer account paid for all comp fees, bus fees and stuff like that. We had a "cheer board" which was made up of the coaches and then all the parents had to vote on president, VP, treasure and secretary and they did a great job running all the events and stuff.

 

[ErinS]

Fees? For high school sports? Public schools? What is this madness?

Ours were free to participate in. For cheerleading you had to pay for camp and practice clothes but there were plenty of fund raising opportunities. If you were absolutely unable to come up with the money a couple team members were usually partially funded by the rollover money from the previous year in the cheer account. But I was also recently informed that a school district near us had yearly "book fees" for the rental of their school books and that blew my mind too.

My free education really was free, haha. College was of course a different story.

Richland 2 has had fees when I was a student there. My mom teachers at an elem school there but I don't know if they kids pay anything other than a technology fee. They do have fees in high school as well as senior fees. If you can't afford it, you provide documentation and you don't pay.


Since Richland 1 isn't a pay to play district they can't force anyone to pay to participate. The district covers the cost. For instance when my sister was pulled from the gym my mom refused to give money to for cheerleading the school district cut them a check until something happened and my mom wouldn't let her go at all.

Since this is the case I've never understood why the "poor" schools in that district never utilized training this way.


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[wallflower]

What do you charge if someone starts the squad late ? CP 1st year of cheer wasn't intended, she was tumbling and the coach asked us several times over to join . I always said "no" . About, 3 months after tryouts I caved and said yes, but they wanted us to back pay for the earlier 3 months when we didn't join (abt $600) . I agreed to 1/2 that much (the half that went toward comp. fees. They hadn't gone to any yet). I explained I wasn't going to pay for a service I didn't received . CP had been doing tumbling classes that I paid for, during that time . The owners agreed and I did make them write how they waved it in the contract . Anyway, just wondering what polices other gyms have if someone joins after try outs . Also, polices if someone leaves (moving, illness, break or just wants to leave) or is removed /kicked off .

 

[dawgshow]

@wallflower when someone joins late here the only back fees they pay are any missed comp/activity fees and the yearly admin fee. If they leave early, no fees are refunded. We pay comp fees in installments so if you've made those they stay with the gym.


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[azmom]

If you were a member already and you decided to quit and left for a few months and then decided to come back you have to pay all the back fees and tuition (too many people were "quitting" for the summer and then coming back). If brand new then it is prorated.

 

[cheernerd5678]

What do you charge if someone starts the squad late ? CP 1st year of cheer wasn't intended, she was tumbling and the coach asked us several times over to join . I always said "no" . About, 3 months after tryouts I caved and said yes, but they wanted us to back pay for the earlier 3 months when we didn't join (abt $600) . I agreed to 1/2 that much (the half that went toward comp. fees. They hadn't gone to any yet). I explained I wasn't going to pay for a service I didn't received . CP had been doing tumbling classes that I paid for, during that time . The owners agreed and I did make them write how they waved it in the contract . Anyway, just wondering what polices other gyms have if someone joins after try outs . Also, polices if someone leaves (moving, illness, break or just wants to leave) or is removed /kicked off .

I'm pretty sure here they pay everything, the handbook says if you join late you'll still pay the same amount just divided over the months you're there. So if you show up 3 months late the $600 you owe will be divided over the rest of the season. This is because we have all inclusive tuition, you don't have to pay separate comp fees the only thing not included is uniform.


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