Quiting A Gym To Go To A Different One

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:03 PM, 2008

RE: Quiting A Gym To Go To A Different One

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:10 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Alot of us left a gym this year because of bad organization practices, the gym owners went around town bashing those who had left, saying that they are stupid for travelng outside of the city to cheer, and that we would be begging to come back. We'll none of us went back and each one are doing well at their new facilities. They can say that all the bad seeds are gone, but the reality is that you let your best customers walk out of the door, and you're gym has struggled all season long. You know what they say, " Karma is a Bitch".

I Second That! biggrin

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:11 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Alot of us left a gym this year because of bad organization practices, the gym owners went around town bashing those who had left, saying that they are stupid for travelng outside of the city to cheer, and that we would be begging to come back. We'll none of us went back and each one are doing well at their new facilities. They can say that all the bad seeds are gone, but the reality is that you let your best customers walk out of the door, and you're gym has struggled all season long. You know what they say, " Karma is a Bitch".

Right!

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:12 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

You do what you've got to do. I've know friends that have tried to take down gyms when they leave, not cool. But funny as it is at the time, usually that program ends up better when those customers are gone. Looking at it from both sides.

I absolutely agree with this post. Finally, someone is saying what so many others want to. There are times when a gym may lose a member or two and yes, you don't think you can live without them. But you realize, once they are gone, how nice the dynamics of the gym are and wonder why there is no stress or tension in the gym. Then it hits you, that person that just left was the cause of so many more team issues than you even could imagine. Sometimes, it's really nice when people leave.

I've seen this with parents who are unhappy with a gym who leave for another; often times the original gym is better off without their negativity, for sure.

It happened in our gym!

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:13 PM, 2008

Oh please, we all know that 90% is about money, because if it wasn't how come that poor little girl or boy down the street can't participate in allstars because the fees are outrageous. Most gym owners would not being doing this if they couldn't put food on their table. Especially in this economy, trust the first thing to go will be the allstar cheerleading bill.

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:15 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Alot of us left a gym this year because of bad organization practices, the gym owners went around town bashing those who had left, saying that they are stupid for travelng outside of the city to cheer, and that we would be begging to come back. We'll none of us went back and each one are doing well at their new facilities. They can say that all the bad seeds are gone, but the reality is that you let your best customers walk out of the door, and you're gym has struggled all season long. You know what they say, " Karma is a Bitch".

I am sorry that this happened to you. In our area we dont have many gyms to chose from so we dont have the experience of kids going to a different local gym, we never have to see our old kids in new uniforms or hear about it at school. It must be difficult for both sides. Normally if they leave the gym they are just done with cheer. I can't imagine going through that each year.

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:16 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Alot of us left a gym this year because of bad organization practices, the gym owners went around town bashing those who had left, saying that they are stupid for travelng outside of the city to cheer, and that we would be begging to come back. We'll none of us went back and each one are doing well at their new facilities. They can say that all the bad seeds are gone, but the reality is that you let your best customers walk out of the door, and you're gym has struggled all season long. You know what they say, " Karma is a Bitch".

Right!

same here!

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:19 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

You do what you've got to do. I've know friends that have tried to take down gyms when they leave, not cool. But funny as it is at the time, usually that program ends up better when those customers are gone. Looking at it from both sides.

I absolutely agree with this post. Finally, someone is saying what so many others want to. There are times when a gym may lose a member or two and yes, you don't think you can live without them. But you realize, once they are gone, how nice the dynamics of the gym are and wonder why there is no stress or tension in the gym. Then it hits you, that person that just left was the cause of so many more team issues than you even could imagine. Sometimes, it's really nice when people leave.

I've seen this with parents who are unhappy with a gym who leave for another; often times the original gym is better off without their negativity, for sure.

It happened in our gym!

Usually, the people that stay are the ones that people leave the gyms to avoid. Let's see how many of your people will come back next season, because of someone or persons in your gym that are catered too.It's the ones who don't say anything, but will be the first one's out the door, when the season ends.

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:20 PM, 2008

I am just glad you guys are happy now. I hope your kids are having a wonderful experience now.

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:21 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Oh please, we all know that 90% is about money, because if it wasn't how come that poor little girl or boy down the street can't participate in allstars because the fees are outrageous. Most gym owners would not being doing this if they couldn't put food on their table. Especially in this economy, trust the first thing to go will be the allstar cheerleading bill.

I disagee. I cheered at a gym where it was all about the children. The gym owner loved each and everyone of us. If someone didnt have the money to pay tuition she would still let us continue. One time someone didnt have the money to fly to flordia for a competition and she paid for that familys airfair out of her pocket. Now thats what i call love for the sport and her athletes. After i had to leave that gym i started cheering at one of the top gyms in cali. And still to this day if i got the chance to go back and cheer at that gym and be with those people i would give up winning, being on level 5, and going to worlds to do so.

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:28 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Oh please, we all know that 90% is about money, because if it wasn't how come that poor little girl or boy down the street can't participate in allstars because the fees are outrageous. Most gym owners would not being doing this if they couldn't put food on their table. Especially in this economy, trust the first thing to go will be the allstar cheerleading bill.

I disagee. I cheered at a gym where it was all about the children. The gym owner loved each and everyone of us. If someone didnt have the money to pay tuition she would still let us continue. One time someone didnt have the money to fly to flordia for a competition and she paid for that familys airfair out of her pocket. Now thats what i call love for the sport and her athletes. After i had to leave that gym i started cheering at one of the top gyms in cali. And still to this day if i got the chance to go back and cheer at that gym and be with those people i would give up winning, being on level 5, and going to worlds to do so.

Wow that is awesome. Our gym Owners did some things simular to that.

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:31 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

You do what you've got to do. I've know friends that have tried to take down gyms when they leave, not cool. But funny as it is at the time, usually that program ends up better when those customers are gone. Looking at it from both sides.

I absolutely agree with this post. Finally, someone is saying what so many others want to. There are times when a gym may lose a member or two and yes, you don't think you can live without them. But you realize, once they are gone, how nice the dynamics of the gym are and wonder why there is no stress or tension in the gym. Then it hits you, that person that just left was the cause of so many more team issues than you even could imagine. Sometimes, it's really nice when people leave.

I've seen this with parents who are unhappy with a gym who leave for another; often times the original gym is better off without their negativity, for sure.

It happened in our gym!

Usually, the people that stay are the ones that people leave the gyms to avoid. Let's see how many of your people will come back next season, because of someone or persons in your gym that are catered too.It's the ones who don't say anything, but will be the first one's out the door, when the season ends.

Last poster above, have you contacted your gym owners or owner and let them know how you feel. When a parent approaches me and says that her daugther feels like I cater to other kids my response is this ' I cater to the kids that I feel try their hardest, if she is not feeling catered to ask her is she is trying her best or working with attitude.' normally its the latter and the parent understands. Another thing to consider is that every personality is different and some kids are more outgoing and start relationships with their coaches that might be seen as favoritism. Some of the girls that I have coached the longest still hang in the back of dances and front spot instead of fly in sections. The placement within a routine has nothing to do with my feelings outside of cheer. It has to do with flow of routine and where people need to be, not who I like and think is pretty. That is all, just had to throw it out there on the coaches behalf.

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:36 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Alot of us left a gym this year because of bad organization practices, the gym owners went around town bashing those who had left, saying that they are stupid for travelng outside of the city to cheer, and that we would be begging to come back. We'll none of us went back and each one are doing well at their new facilities. They can say that all the bad seeds are gone, but the reality is that you let your best customers walk out of the door, and you're gym has struggled all season long. You know what they say, " Karma is a Bitch".

I am sorry that this happened to you. In our area we dont have many gyms to chose from so we dont have the experience of kids going to a different local gym, we never have to see our old kids in new uniforms or hear about it at school. It must be difficult for both sides. Normally if they leave the gym they are just done with cheer. I can't imagine going through that each year.

The hardest thing is to watch the kids in your community, go to cheer programs outside of the community. In our community, we had girl's who grew up together on one cheer team, that left for another that turn out to be very controversal so they left that gym and now are split between two other gyms that are not even in our community and having a great time. But come to school in the same school district. How sad is that????

Date: Thu Mar 20 11:42 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Alot of us left a gym this year because of bad organization practices, the gym owners went around town bashing those who had left, saying that they are stupid for travelng outside of the city to cheer, and that we would be begging to come back. We'll none of us went back and each one are doing well at their new facilities. They can say that all the bad seeds are gone, but the reality is that you let your best customers walk out of the door, and you're gym has struggled all season long. You know what they say, " Karma is a Bitch".

I am sorry that this happened to you. In our area we dont have many gyms to chose from so we dont have the experience of kids going to a different local gym, we never have to see our old kids in new uniforms or hear about it at school. It must be difficult for both sides. Normally if they leave the gym they are just done with cheer. I can't imagine going through that each year.

The hardest thing is to watch the kids in your community, go to cheer programs outside of the community. In our community, we had girl's who grew up together on one cheer team, that left for another that turn out to be very controversal so they left that gym and now are split between two other gyms that are not even in our community and having a great time. But come to school in the same school district. How sad is that????

I know what you mean. I have a friend that left the only gym in our city to go to another gym. Now she has to go to school with these other girls that hate her everyday. Shes having a really hard time. They always try to start problems with her and start romurs about her.

Date: Fri Mar 21 5:39 AM, 2008

Because the bottom line is that they will love your child, just as long as you pay your bill.

This is an interesting statement. Any busy loves their clients "just as long as you pay your bill". Are they going to love you if you don't pay your bill? Of course not. They're only going to put up with at for about a month and then ask the non-paying family to leave. And this is an act of not "loving your child".

The next time people go to Mcdonald's, the grocery store, or to the movie, ask the owners if it's ok to walk out the door with their products(without paying for them) and observe how much you are receiving.

Date: Fri Mar 21 5:52 AM, 2008

My area is infamous for "gym hoppers" and unhappy parents trying to start their own cheer gym. It is one thing to move gyms for happiness and necessary reasons but it is another to jump from gym to gym and even back to a previous gym. Who knows why these "gym hoppers" do it but it makes me laugh. Sometimes I want to start a pool on what gym they will show up in next. And it is 100% true that usually a gym is better off when "that family" leaves. It happened at our gym, and we are more than 100% better. The funniest part about "that family" is they claimed to be approched by John from POWER and asked to be on his team....hahahaha....that was my favorite part. The cheerleader still tells my kids that she is on POWER and has her double full (she wouldn't do her BHS less than a year ago) We have seen POWER NUMEROUS time this season and...oh no...no family.

On the other hand it can be hard and even hurtful when a family you love leaves your program. It has also happened in my gym. Sometimes a gym just isn't the right fit for a family. And vice versa. Being happy is the main priority. I loved the post from the cheerleader who said she would leave her level 5 worlds team to go back to her old fun gym. It give us lower level "fun gyms" hope....hahaha.

Vegas Cheer · Veteran Member

Hello all,
We in Vegas have this going on amongst our few gyms in town as well. We are constantly swaping athletes from year to year with about a 30 % to 40 % turnover rate coming from another gym in town and vise versa. I like to tell the athletes that we may not be the best fit for everyone. A majority of the athletes are like family and I tell them, we love having them be a part of our family but if they want to be a part of another program, I/We understand. I'm the first to pick up the phone and make the phone call to the other gyms in town and arrange for them to go where they will or think they will be happy. I am able to do this because as a owner of a program, I would rather be friendly with the other gyms in town then be hated. Now, I personally have been a member of all the other cheerleading gyms down here in one form or another and the attitude towards people leaving gyms has changed in the past decade in Vegas at least. It used to be we all were friends in and out of the gym and at competitions all the programs would be there for each other. Mind you I am speaking about Vegas Cheerleading here. Now, I see it all the time with the bitterness from the athletes towards other athletes, and I really see it from the parents. We have found that with talks about sportmanship and through poistive reinforcement of good sportsmanship, we can help the girls understand and be ok with former members of the program. The parents on the other hand can be a lot harder.

I don't know, that just the way I see it, in Vegas at least.

~Larry

Date: Fri Mar 21 8:46 AM, 2008

Wow! Well this is truly a touchy subject for many reasons...
But every single person deserves to be happy. Both the customers and even the poor gym owners and coaches.
With that said regardless for the reasons a family leaves a gym, both parties need to handle it with respect and integrity.
The responsibility lies on the parents to teach their children how to handle change and making decisions and choices that are good for their families.
The responsibility lies in the gym owners and coaches to handle this situation right the first time it happens that a family leaves... Because it sets a precedent to how you handle those in the future and how customers feel you will handle things.

Sometimes I think people get caught up in the whole who is right and who is wrong, they forget that young ones are watching and learning. They also forget that it is not about what is right and wrong, but what fits for you and you only. It is never about changing any one. It is not the job of a parent to want a whole organization to change to meet the needs of your child only. All star cheer is a team sport.
It is not the job of a gym to convince a family to change what they feel is important for their family.

We made a decision not to return next season to our cheer gym next season. but my daughter can walk in her gym without feeling pressured or scared about our decision. We let the gym owners know upfront and we never played the blame game. It was a personal decision and our gym taught my daughter fantastic skills and even how to handle situations and things she wasn't accustom to! She was use to things being a certain way and being handled a different way (and so were we), but what a great learning tool for the real world for her.
I would never speak badly about my soon to be former gym. I feel they would not talk bad about our family as well. Its a personal choice for our family. There are plenty of happy and content families in their program and the cheer world is so small. Why burn bridges? How sad would it be for children who have formed a unique bond all season (or for many seasons) and special friendships, to not be able to speak to each other because as grown ups we have set a bad example?

You have to look at your personal experience when making a decision about leaving or staying at a gym. As a customer you have a certain standard you expect. That is great, so you look for that standard but you do it respectfully. Never bad mouth those who have a different out look on things. Make your decision for you and your family. Leave others out of it. What may be right for you may not be what is right for others. AND just like you are wanting to be happy with your choice... Others deserve to be happy with theirs.

Gym owners respect will go a long way in this industry. Believe enough in your program that when people leave it is not personal and if it is, that it is their personal problem not yours. Handle families leaving with the same respect you want back. If you bad mouth families that leave, then realize it comes back on you. AND remember every family that walks through your door may not be a perfect fit for your gym, but that doesn't mean your gym is not a perfect fit for tons of other families. NEVER EVER BURN BRIDGES.

My daughter decided to do high school cheer and give up the all star cheer after almost a decade and a half. Since then she may have found an all star program that she is interested in and may do all stars there, but thinks she wants to go back to her gym because she has friends there... Who knows the mind of a teenager? But as her parents we will support whatever choice she makes. AND we will teach her to always finish what you start, to give everything 100 percent no matter what, and to be loyal.
And just because the program she is at now wasn't the perfect fit for our family, she has learned so much from them. She has made some great friends. They have been great to her and have done as much as they could for her at this point in her life to build on her strengths. Those are the things we appreciate about our gym now.

We are excited to finish out the season and go to Nationals. We are equally excited about what is in store for next season. Be it high school cheer or all stars, we are ready to support her decision. Because that's what parents do, we cater to our children. I don't remember that being in the handbook for how to raise teenagers, but it should be. They tell you that as infants that is what we do, but someone left that out on the teenage years wink

Good luck to all those getting ready to take the floor one last time. Safe travels and REMEMBER " it takes more energy to be negative and cause problems, than it does to just be positive and happy"

proud parent level 4 cheerleader!

Date: Sun Mar 23 5:33 PM, 2008

not going to mention the gyms name because there is no need to..but alot of kids are leaving a gym because all the gym focuses on is the coed team and i am sure there ae alot of good people on their other teams but they just do not focus enough on them..what are your opinions on that?

Date: Sun Mar 23 5:51 PM, 2008

Anonymous wrote:

not going to mention the gyms name because there is no need to..but alot of kids are leaving a gym because all the gym focuses on is the coed team and i am sure there ae alot of good people on their other teams but they just do not focus enough on them..what are your opinions on that?

stuff like this irks me. I think good programs are gyms whose teams can go out on the floor and majority of the teams will take first or second. Gym that kids are scared to compete against because they are good kind of like stingrays and cheer athletics. I hate seeing over here on the west coast especially that the focus is so much on the higher level teams in the gym. It is really starting to make gyms suffer in numbers. We are trying sooo hard to keep up with the big dogs that some of the gyms foget about lower levels I think level 5 driven gyms are kind of pitiful. while we all strive to be level 5 athletes it is not fair for all the level 1-4 kids who are paying the same amount of money and to kind of be pushed to the side and show up at competition and never take a first place. I have seen this season especially more than ever. I know i said something about one gym on here and someone from their gym came back and said- well we have ____ world bid(S)-i think we are good<<<something along those lines- while the rest of the teams in their gym are on the back burner. I know you were talking about favoring the coed team but i thoght this could relate to that. anyways-thanks for letting me rant.