I think it very much depends on the gym, the program, and your family. My daughter came to competitive gymnastics relatively late at age 10, after years in rec. She had a lot of "advanced" skills on bars and floor, but was woefully behind in other areas, especially vault. Plus our family was...
Just FYI- there is also a large L2-10 and Xcel invitational running in conjunction with the Nastia Liukin Cup and Winter Cup in the same venue, and that invitational is the last chance to qualify to the Nastia Cup. This venue also happens to be a block from my office. If anyone is travelling...
One year it was some crappy socks that unraveled before we even got home (just a three hour car ride). Plus a $5 credit at the vendor selling sweatshirts, where nothing costs less than $50. My kid is old enough that she's not going to throw a fit about not using the credit, but for people with...
We've been-- its a fun meet at a fun but very expensive venue. We're only 3 hours away but the expense is so much we use it as our "travel meet" the years we go.
My daughter generally likes starting on floor, if she had a preference. If she does floor last, she tends to run out of steam and has a little flatter performance. If she starts on floor, she can get the leg events out of the way and settle into bars and beam. My preference is for her to...
Adding the new story from the WaPo setting out the timeline:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/11/21/tom-farden-utah-part-ways/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=wp_sports
It's also notable that his lawyer was quoted as saying Farden had no plans to alter his coaching...
I saw one of the reporters tweet that Farden was put on leave right after she asked Univ. of Utah for a response to Farden's comment to the WaPo reporters that he planned to sue Eaker and Tessen, so people have drawn a line to his retaliatory litigation threat as a result.
Oh my daughter definitely didn't make the decision alone, but it was ultimately her decision. She's the one who will (hopefully) be going to the institution for four years, and I wasn't going to cram my choices down her throat. It's a complex calculus, as you state, with athletics only playing...
My daughter didn't purse college gymnastics (she could have pursued DIII, but wasn't interested), but she did end up committing to a DI A&T school. She'll sign her NLI in November. She had multiple offers and it came down to which school she liked best as a school. If you'd like to connect...
This is a great time to get into A&T recruiting because there are a lot of roster spots available. The sport is undergoing rapid expansion so a lot of new teams are looking to build out entire rosters. The coaches aren't expecting a ton of familiarity with the sport since there's no analog...
If you have any worries that she'll be scheduled in classes that will leave her short of NCAA eligibility, and you think there's a chance she'll be interested in Acro & Tumbling (my kid just committed to an A&T program, and there are programs at Divisions I, II and III), then at least go ahead...
My daughter was not typical at the time in her gym, but she started as Xcel only, then went from XD to Level 9 (with appropriate score outs) when she was 14. Since then a few others have followed her example and come over a little earlier as Level 7s. It's worked out well for her-- She did a...
Different states have different rules, so it's hard to say. I've fought some pretty egregious non-competes for clients and lost. What is 100% easy to say is when you are an individual facing the prospect of litigation from a well-funded company intent on enforcing the non-compete, it's hard to...
Our state meet had a masters division for adults competing Platinum for the first time ever this year. It was great to see. My daughter in the past had adults competing against her as a Diamond in the same age division, presumably because there weren't enough older gymnasts in the meet to...
The last episode setting up two of the most upsetting decisions a parent can face-- one of a more cosmic/global nature that most of us thankfully never face, and one that we face as parents regularly, did me in. So good, and thoughtful, and considered, and hit me hard as a parent. I can't wait...