WAG How common is this? Is it sandbagging ?

[Peasmama]

In JO, when several girls on a team compete one or so L4 & L5 meets in the fall to score out. Then skip L6 and compete L7 in the Spring. So our L4s, who are used to placing well, are lucky to get a 4th or 5th place. They are competing against girls with L7 skills. On one hand, I do understand that when you want to score out, you have to do it someplace. I just wish it wasn't a blowout in my kid's age group.
I mean, if you are scoring out, those meets probably don't mean anything to you because you are really working at a higher level. So why not do it at an in-house meet or something? Why throw off the placements of the girls that really do care about that meet, their current level, and their placement at meets at their current (accurate) level?
I've just been wondering about this for a long time. I never asked because once I get started, I talk a lot, see?

 

[HoldThePhone]

It seems to me or gym has the girls do this at a home meet, but they also may not always be among the top scorers because they spend very little time learning routines and whatnot. Skills are pretty solid of course but routines are hit or miss for some of them. I don't know if I would even be able to tell at a meet if a girl not from our gym was only there to score out.

 

[SurpriseGymMom]

I've only ever seen scoring out of a level at in-house meets with no other gyms competing. This is only our second year competing so it's possible it has been done other ways before but this is how both our gym and the rival gym does it (I have a friend with a DD at the other gym who scored out of a level this year)

 

[Committed]

We don't do in-house meets. DDs gym does host a few meets, but it's never just our girls.

Anyway, those girls could compete the entire season at L4 or L5, and "wreck" the placements all season long. Instead, they do 1-2 meets at that level and spend more time training for the next level.

I'd much rather those girls move on!!

 

[Peasmama]

We don't do in-house meets. DDs gym does host a few meets, but it's never just our girls.

Anyway, those girls could compete the entire season at L4 or L5, and "wreck" the placements all season long. Instead, they do 1-2 meets at that level and spend more time training for the next level.

I'd much rather those girls move on!!

Good point!

 

[profmom]

Not all gyms do in-house meets, especially if there's a conveniently scheduled meet they can just compete close by. DD's gym has only done an in-house meet twice as far as I can remember, and it's been just the last few years, since we moved back the timing of our home meet to later in the season. The girls scoring out really are just there to get the score, not to win, even though they generally end up doing very well.

 

[wallinbl]

There's a gym here that has their upcoming level 7's do the last meet or two of the fall season at level 4 (old level 5) and then do state level 4 as well (they're essentially repeating L4 while prepping for L7). They love to tout their placement at state, which I'm sure compels some that don't know better. The rest of us just roll our eyes and move on.

 

[2G1B]

As the others said, 1) not all gyms do in house meets and 2) sometimes the girls scoring out might not score high because they don't take time to perfect the routines. My dd was supposed to score out of 5 this season, just 1 meet (we now have to wait and see what happens as she broke her leg skiing). We don't do in house meets, so it was going to be a normal meet. And she wasn't spending a ton of time working routines, rather has been spending her time working skills. I can assure you now, with her leg set back, she definitely won't have the routines perfected if she still manages a meet. So we will just be hoping for scores not high placement.

 

[RAMS]

My dd scored out of level 4 and 5. Level 4 was done at a regular meet and level 5 at an inhouse meet. As others have said her routines were not perfected because the goal was to score out not perfect compulsory routines. For the most part our gym brings in a judge to score out girls.

 

[Deleted member 14190]

In JO, when several girls on a team compete one or so L4 & L5 meets in the fall to score out. Then skip L6 and compete L7 in the Spring. So our L4s, who are used to placing well, are lucky to get a 4th or 5th place. They are competing against girls with L7 skills. On one hand, I do understand that when you want to score out, you have to do it someplace. I just wish it wasn't a blowout in my kid's age group.
I mean, if you are scoring out, those meets probably don't mean anything to you because you are really working at a higher level. So why not do it at an in-house meet or something? Why throw off the placements of the girls that really do care about that meet, their current level, and their placement at meets at their current (accurate) level?
I've just been wondering about this for a long time. I never asked because once I get started, I talk a lot, see?

=
because doing well always means something....

 

[Peasmama]

=
because doing well always means something....

Indeed!
I appreciate all the thoughtful responses. I can always count on the Chalkbucket community to offer perspectives I haven't considered