Practice Cancelled because of Heat?

[vagymmomma]

Just curious what the policy is at other gyms to cancel practice because of excessive heat. We don't have air conditioning at DD's gym, so it's mighty hot inside. Practice was cancelled today with temps over 100, but it's been in the high 90s for the last few weeks with no cancellation. And it's the first time in 4 years on team that they've cancelled. Do most gyms have A/C? What's your policy on cancellation due to heat?

 

[shelovestoflip]

I simply cannot imagine a gym with no AC!! Is that the norm in your area? Here all the large gyms have AC. I feel like for what we pay, AC should be part of the package! My daughter drips with sweat standing still so it wouldn't work for her to be in a hot gym!

Even with AC, they send constant emails reminding us to pack water bottles and the girls can refill there (or use the water fountain) and they have ice pops every day (the cheap kind in the plastic tubes) So I feel like they are trying to be on top of it.

Sorry, that doesn't answer your question! We don't need a heat policy since they have the AC! But I do know when it snows and schools are cancelled they still wait to cancel practice because by the end of the day, the roads are often better! Last winter practice was only cancelled once due to snow.

And right about now, a blizzard sounds pretty good!!

 

[gymgal]

I think it depends on how it feels in the gym. 90's and 100's can feel very different depending on the day (sun beating on the roof, humidity, how many days it has been like this). I think it is best to err on the safe side with this - not just for the gymnast (who may only be there a few hours) but for the coaches who are there all day. We have a/c in ours but in heat waves like we're having now with several consecutive days of 100* weather, it's tough to keep it cool. It's barely manageable and that's with the a/c running. There have been times when the a/c is working so hard that it just shuts down. When that happens, our practices are cancelled for the afternoon. Usually it's manageable in the mornings though. Girls who miss can make it up in the mornings.

 

[gymnast695]

My gym does not have AC either (it's awful!!!) and the owner closes if it's over 98 degrees in the gym, which has happened many times. However, when it's in the 90's in the gym we don't accomplish much just because we do more sitting in front of fans with water then working out.

 

[Quadqueen]

My daughter's gym in MA does not have AC either. Her practices were cancelled yesterday and today due to the heat, which I understand completely. She was there on Wednesday when the temp was probably around 90. I would be annoyed, however, if no makeups were offered, like often happens in the winter when a snowstorm closes the gym. This time, though, the coach said we will have makeups the first week of school in September, which is normally an off week.

 

[MaryA]

DD's practice was shortened tonight due to heat. The new gym that's opening soon has AC. Hmmmm....

 

[gymcoach26]

At work with our AC blasting

 

[gymmomntc2e6]

no AC in the main gym @ DD's gym, but there is in the preschool/parent waiting area. I think practice may have been cancelled once last year for heat. in the summer most of the team girls practice in the morning to avoid a long practice in the heat.There is a large misting fan & several other fans as well. lots & lots of water breaks. the rec classes are generally an hour so it isn't as bad for them but still lots of water. never had anyone grt sick from the heat.

 

[10.0]

No policy. We have never cancelled and right now ours is broken. It is miserable. Most gyms do have AC unless they are in the colder states, although ours had big fans for years. It has been unreasonably hot is some states in the last few days and maybe it is just what your owner decided was safe or maybe there was a problem and someone got ill. Just check and see if you can make up. If your gym is anything like ours working in a metal building in 100 degree plus heat is not good.

 

[gymmom14]

No ac here either and man it is sweltering hot in dd gym. By the end of practice yesterday the entire team looked drained! My car said 104 on the way to pick her up. Last night we got an email that practice for today was shortened and then the team was going to a local water park. They had a blast!

 

[sophgymnast]

My friends gym doesn't have A/C, but she said if it's 100 or over, practice is cancelled.
Here's a helpful tip that may help out the gyms with no A/C:
Put buckets of ice or cold water in front of fans. A fan alone only moves the warm air around and doesn't really cool anyone down. With the buckets of ice or cold water placed in front of the fans, it actually cools the temperature of the air.
(Sorry if that's a little off topic)

 

[gymnastbeth]

Nope, no AC. We've never had practice cancelled because of heat, but today it was over 100, and we didn't do much. We practiced, but also played some games, and the coaches gave us ice pops! The key is to not over work when it's so hot, and take lots of breaks.
I remember this thread being interesting from last summer: http://www.chalkbucket.com/forums/gym-management/29992-how-do-you-keep-your-gym-cool-summer.html

 

[gymdog]

It was code red in much of VA today with heat indexes 110+ in some places. For many kids a strenuous practice could lead to heat related illness or asthma in an un-air conditioned building. It has been pretty hot other days, but not quite as bad with the air quality and heat index. But yeah, a gym not having AC here is rough unless it's in the mountainous parts of the state that tend to be a little cooler (not sure what those parts were like today).

 

[lhmom]

DD's gym AC went out before July 4th and they could not get it fixed until a week later. They basically modified the schedule for a few days (morning practices) until it was fixed. During that time of no AC, the temp inside the gym was around 97 degrees. Ugh!

 

[Sunobo]

Dd's no longer does gym but her gym didn't have a/c. The team kids have morning practice because of the heat. The gym is in a warehouse and has lots of fans and they leave the doors open. The kids drink lots of water and get a popcicle mid practice. We are in Texas and have had 20 days of 100+ temps, haven't been below 90 something since May and they typically don't cancel practice due to the high temps.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

ac baby!

 

[cher062]

WE were fortunate that we don't have practice today - with temps at 104 there is no way I think i would have even sent her. There is no AC except in the front lobby. I can't imagine these girls in that tin structure practicing 4 hours then get to go and swim.

I know they did have an open gym today and some of the kids went but to use the pool not do do gym.

When I think about the gyms in the area there really aren't any that i can think of off the top of my head that have AC. Just like the schools around here - no AC in them either.

 

[gymgurl]

Upstairs there is air con but all there is up there is boys pommel, Ballet barre, and 4 strips of non sprung floor that is generally used by the boys for pommel drills or lower levels for their routines so us senior girls don't get much use of air con, we have 2 massive garage doors that we keep open and we occasionally get a breeze

 

[bribri514]

I'm not sure if it's no AC or broken AC but my niece's gym in VA had no practice on Wednesday because of the heat index. Never really knew about heat index vs temp but I guess in places with bad air and loads of humidity it's very important. I thought I was going to die this morning walking to the metro station! I'm from a mountain town in Colorado at 11,000 feet above sea level, so it was usually 4 foot plus blizzards that closed the interstate that would close the gym for us (soooo many times, I also got snowed into my gym soooo many times). I used to think high 80s with 2% humidity was hot. I've changed my mind about that! We went to the pool instead of gym practice because the heat in our apartment doesn't work well either! When will winter come??

 

[gymmomof1]

Greatful DD's gym has ac since it's been really hot in NJ (like the rest of the county). If they didn't I would hope they would cut practice short.