To SPOT or NOT????

[gymjourneymom]

Please don't take my post the wrong way...SAFETY is always job #1. (Didn't that used to be used in a Ford commercial???). Coaches standing by in case of a misshap is one thing...it's a given for safety reasons. Hands on spotting during meet warm up also fine, different equipment to get used to, etc. But hands on spotting to get a gymnasts to compete a skill in a meet during competetion? To me, that means the gymmie doesn't have the skill yet & should scratch that event until they "own" the skill. Are you really doing a level "whatever" skill if the coach has both hands on you & is "helping you over"? I guess it's the amount & type of spotting you're referring to, that needs to be clarified. I don't feel a gymmie should be competing at a certain level, if she needs hands on spotting"help"during actual competition just to complete the skill. She needs to scratch that event....go back to her own "familar/ comfortable" gym & get the skill there(with spotting)....until she can do it without spotting....then she can take it on the road(without hands on spoting)

[Kayleigh]

No, I totally gotcha. The thing with that one teammate is she was in level 5 for three years, won bars at states last year, got 2'd on beam, etc. It would've been kind of rediculous to keep her there again. She moved up to level 6, and had a rough time again. She's novice now, though, and it's working out lovely for her. She doesn't need spots anymore.

[gymjourneymom]

That's great your teammate was able to work thru her issues...I give her a lot of credit for sticking with it, I can imagine how stressed she was...she obviously had the skill & talent to perform so well at states Always nice to hear a success story

[gymmomntc2e6]

my dd, L3, had needed a spot on her mill circle - to get up to top of bar when she fell back. She is still struggling w/ the skill, but she can pull herself up to upright again w/o spot now.

I understand the point of can't do it - don't compete. But at the same time I would hate for her to have been held back due to a struggle w/ one skill when she can do everything else for her level.

[Gymnasticsgirl521]

I say in warm up it is not a bad thing to help with confidence but during the routine the gymnast shouldn't be getting a spot. Now on bar dismounts and vault for saftey sake yes they should be there just in case.

I know my dd likes a little spot to get the confidence as she says she likes to know she didn't loose it. Mind you she is 4 and well skills tend to be lost some where in the gym all the time and she has to find them. Prime example her back hip she can do it all the time if her first one is spotted. If she is not spotted the first time well she has a mental block and that skill is gone some where hiding in the gym waiting for her to find it again.

[Kayleigh]

Quote:
Originally Posted by gymjourneymom That's great your teammate was able to work thru her issues...I give her a lot of credit for sticking with it, I can imagine how stressed she was...she obviously had the skill & talent to perform so well at states Always nice to hear a success story

Definately! She qualified for sectionals at prep too, which she most likely wouldn't have done at 6. We were all so excited for her.

She was definately frustrated for a while. It's good she can look at the bright side of things.

[cccam]

there are three types of coaches at my gym:

type #1:
the coach who just screams at you if you don't do it. [well not at me, but at this poor girl named svetlana, poor girl should've never come up to level 6 but that story's for another day.]

anyway, type #2:
the one who even though you've been doing this skill consistently and CAN most certaintly do it by yourself, she always has to stick her hand in their to spot. it gets annoying. and i only get that coach at the mock meets we have. OH JOY!

type #3:
the one who knows you are extremely scared of doing it by yourself, even though you are perfectly capable of doing it, says she will spot you, and then takes her hand away at the last second and does not spot. i personally like this coach because she proves it to her and me that i really can do it without a spot.

[Geoffrey Taucer]

Spotting during a meet is something I avoid if at all possible, but I believe there are situations that warrant it. It all depends on the skill, on the kid, and on the meet.

I would not have a kid do a routine with anything that they they are not capable of doing without a spot. I might, depending on the kid and on the skill, allow them to compete a skill they only have with 80% consistency -- and I'd stand there ready to spot if necessary.

Also, sometimes mental issues come into play; for example, I had one girl who all of a sudden freaked out on back tumbling. Never crashed or anything, just was suddenly terrified of connecting a roundoff to a backhandspring. Because that skill is so essential, we did not take it out of her routine. Which meant a coach had to stand there on the floor so she'd do it.

Now, this is all for run-of-the-mill meets. For something like the state meet, I would not allow a kid to compete a skill they could not do without a spot. Period. For bars or beam I might stand there ready to catch if necessary, but that's it. The only exception is flyaways, and variants thereof, for which I ALWAYS stand there. This is more a result of doing so many meets under the boys' code than anything else -- with boys, a coach is REQUIRED to be standing right there for the whole routine.

Vault for me is the same as bar dismounts -- the boys code requires there to be a coach standing there, and I don't see any harm in it, so I do the same for girls.

[tumblerK]

My teammates would get spot in meets occasionally, but that was a mixture of inability and fear. The coaches always said that if you didn't have all your skills you can't compete, but with a tiny team they really need everybody to compete. Then when my old coach left and a whole new batch of coaches come in I didn't like most of them and didn't trust them and decided to get brave rather than have them spot. Now when the old coach comes for a visit I don't like her spotting me even when things are going really crummy. (ex. beam BWO)

[gymnasticsbabie]

okay i'm sorry some of these replies are crazy. I can somewhat agree with the fact that lower level gymnast shouldnt "need" a spot (even though i firmly believe that when your learning any skill you should get a spot) but just TRUST me. when your daughter/you get to a high level and start doing doubles, yurchencos, paks, ect. she will want that spot. I don't care who you are or how good you are, i think its always better to learn it with a spot so you don't learn the wrong technique. for example: my coach always spots my yurchenco fulls. he literally throws my chest into the flip to speed up my rotation so i "set the flip in motion" before twisting. if he didn't spot me, i would basically be a.)dead, b.) in the hospital with 2 broken ankles, c.) in serious pain from landing short, or d.) i would have developed a mental block and probably never have gone for it again.

Let me give you another example if you still don't believe me. MY coach was spotting me on hindorfs. and they were going really well. And i could basically do it. so one day he was like what the heck try it by yourself. and i was like i don't know i'm not sure i'm ready. BUT i did it anyways because i can't say no to my coach (i'll probably get kicked out, ps: this is the gym i just left). So i go for it and because i hadn't gotten the "feel" for it i went straight up... and then straight down on the bar...shins first. i was practically in a kneeling position on the bar. ummm can i just tell you i have giant scars down my legs and people at my school think i got surgery on them?

and the reason i get spot at meets is the floor sometimes is harder/different. and lastly my coach has saved my life plenty of times while spotting me. I don't take the whole "not spotting" thing lightly. its kind of a big deal when you could possibly die on your skills.

and no, its not just me that coaches have saved, so please don't just assume that its only me who's appreciates a spot.