i am writing this after an entire night i was up all night with son. he was frustrated. he needs to learn an entire routine quickly. the gym has reshuffled several teammembers in our gym to different teams because a few girls are not long on the team. the rumor is that their families were asked to leave because they haven't paid in a while.
we know that cheerleading is expensive why do these parent start the season knowing they can't afford it? they are putting my son through unneccessary stress. why do parents do this? it really hurts the entire team.
are other gyms going through stuff like this? it's so sad.
That is a bummer for your son, I am sure he will catch on though. The good news is that competitions don't start until October, so he has plenty of time to get that routine down.
I think it is common to see some shake out in gyms, but the important thing to remember is rumors are JUST THAT - rumors.
It is sad that parents would take on a committment they can't continue with but I guess everyone has things they go through. It's hard to comment not knowing the truth of the matters or the situations.
Our gym had some shake up around choreography camp, but hey, better now then right before a competition.
We don't always know what will happen tomorrow...a job lost, a water main breaking that costs $6000 to repair, a car that breaks down...so many things in life just happen. And the extra-curricular activities sometimes have to suffer for the benefit of the family. So, be compassionate, as you may not know the truth behind the decision to leave.
And I agree, better that it happens now. Lots of time to learn that routine. We've had situations where the night before a National competition a girl quits. But the team got through it and learned the importance of team work.
__________________
"Brothers, if you have a message of encouragement for the people, please speak."
Acts 13:14-16
we wish our competition season started in october. we have a competition in sept in santa cruz. there really isn't a whole lot of time to prepare.
i can certainly be compassionate IF something just suddenly came up. but it's tough listening to these parents every night at practice chating away about what mercedes they are driving or what summer vacation they just returned from. i also heard that these parents really didn't think that the gym employees would kick them out of the gym because their girls were the "stars" on the team. it was almost like these moms were going to see what and for how long they could get away with not paying their bill. it was almost like a game to them.
Wow, IF all that is true it is very sad. I guess you are better off without them. I am glad we don't have anything like that going on in our gym.
A competition in September in Santa Cruz - man I think I would be having anxiety attacks too! I don't even think most teams would have uniforms by then.
just_a_mom wrote:we wish our competition season started in october. we have a competition in sept in santa cruz. there really isn't a whole lot of time to prepare.
i can certainly be compassionate IF something just suddenly came up. but it's tough listening to these parents every night at practice chating away about what mercedes they are driving or what summer vacation they just returned from. i also heard that these parents really didn't think that the gym employees would kick them out of the gym because their girls were the "stars" on the team. it was almost like these moms were going to see what and for how long they could get away with not paying their bill. it was almost like a game to them.
I applaud gym owners that stick to their rules. "No pay...No play". It may seem stressful right now, but...it is only the first (and very early) competition. Some teams won't have uniforms yet. Some will only have partial routines. I think it is a great opportunity to just get out on the competition floor for the experience. So don't expect too much, from any team. And tell your son to do what he can and don't think that this one competition is the end all. It is just the beginning and the routines will mature as the season progresses. Good luck and I know they can overcome this situation.
__________________
"Brothers, if you have a message of encouragement for the people, please speak."
Acts 13:14-16
What a horrible situation. I totally agree with everything the other members said.
Honestly, I think everybody is being hit hard due to the economy. I have heard several gyms numbers are down. Its sad especially for the athletes that have been in the sport for a long time to have their parents(who previously had no problem paying) not able to suddenly afford to pay for the "extra" fees. I mean really, what can you do? Gym owners have to pay their bills too, not to mention their staff. So to make the sport more affordable the only option would be to lower prices. Then what happens to profit? It's a loose-loose situation! Is any other gyms having issues with their enrollment?
I applaud gym owners that stick to their rules. "No pay...No play".
This has got to be such a tough one. Do you remove people because of non-payment and risk damaging an entire team? Or do you keep these people around and for how long?
Cheer is like no other sport.
There is no second string, no subsitutes, no one you can just call off the bench.
Yes, there are personalities that you can call from another team in your gym but even with that flexibility you have to wait several weeks before that next person is comfortable with the flows of the routine.
This situation has got to be so stressful for the gym owners. Dang if you do and dang if you don't.
Exactly it's not fair. Where else can you drop off your kid day in and day out where they participate & receive a service and NOT pay your bill? Nowhere except an allstar cheer gym.
IS there gym hoppers out there that know this art of service? I mean do you know of families that leave one gym because of non-payment, then jump to another gym and not pay for a season. And so on and so on.
Gosh, how do parents get away with this. Perhaps, the cheer gyms need to unite and share this kind of information. That way, the next gym doesn't get burned.
I guess they get away with it because it's a business, and not all businesses are quick to get rid of someone who might make or break a team, which would ultimately bring in more business in the long run? Unfortunately I've seen it happen at a gym we left years ago. It could even be happening at our current gym, we wouldn't know because who pays and who doesn't isn't information that is typically shared.
If it's the case of something happening financially and suddenly a family can't pay, then I have to admit I really feel for the kids, and if they're dedicated and love to cheer I wouldn't mind at all if the gym let them slide. My thinking is there is probably other stuff going on and this might be something they need to get through bad times. But there I go making assumptions again.
