All-Star Progression Through Big Gyms

[dmouth11]

I wanted to start a discussion about both how often/ how realistic it is to kinda start at the bottom as a cheer newbie (and maybe be on a tiny/mini/youth 1) and actually progress through to level 2, 3, 4, and finally on a worlds lv 5 team at a gym.


I say big gyms because these are the gyms that would most likely offer most if not all levels in their program. Like I'm curious... how many Panthers came to CA w/ maybe only a roundoff and front walkover? How many girls on Rays Orange actually learned a backhandspring at Rays? Things like that.
I know lots of athletes kinda start in gymnastics and learn lots of skills there first or lots start in smaller programs first and then kinda feed into larger programs for the higher levels, but roughly how many kids have strictly learned their tumbling/ jumping/ stunting technique and skills through one program?

Just curious. Athletes? Parents? Coaches? Care to share?

 

[BowsnBling]

I have coached many athletes that started on a youth 2 and then eventually senior 5, happens all the time I would say.

 

[coachTSC]

I know you asked for big gyms, so not sure what your definition of that is, but i'll answer anyway....

all of the athletes on my senior restricted team that came with us from our old gym are 100% home grown with the exception of maybe 2 or 3 that came to us with a round off tuck, and they now are all fulling. 4, 5, 6 and 7 years at the same gym with same coaches. I would guess this is common at most gyms. I think it's way less common to have amazing talent just walk in compared to the home grown talent. Although at "big gyms" it probably happens more frequently, as talent seems to filter to the big gym.

 

[Fameous MOM]

My cp started at a small gym(highest level was a 3) as a tiny and got a back walkover-the gym shut downand we then moved to Fame after the first season and she has moved up a level every season. Her 5th season of cheer and she is on J5. She is 10 and has a 1 to full, running double, and is working a 3 to double. She is not the youngest with these skills. I look back and am glad that small gym closed down because I don't believe she would have gotten the skills she had at that gy,. I am not saying all small gyms....

 

[cheermommaRN]

Phoebe started at Spirit with a back walkover and is now working tucks. She hasn't moved up a level a year but if I could afford privates she probably would. Right now she is averaging 2 years at each level...pretty good I would say.
We have no intention of moving and she would like to be on Small coed one day (med coed...we still call it small coed at the gym). I think the only time we would move is if she was Jr age and really wanted to be in a jr 5 and Spirit didnt have one. Then we would only go to Cheer Athletics. I think she will be lucky enough to be home grown...lol

 

[CAtimes2]

My daughter started at Cheer Athletics with a forward roll on Kitty Kubs Level 1 and now crosses on Jags and Panthers. Every skill she has was acquired in the gym.

 

[cheer36mom]

my oldest cp came to keystone extreme for tryouts when she was 9 with a back handspring and multiple standing hs she had her layout, standing tuck and standing specialty passes by the start of her first season its now our third season and she is close to her double and standing full my youngest cp started at 4 with nothing and is now 6 and working tucks so they definetly got their skills there lol

 

[12stepCheermom]

My son started cheering three years ago when Aviator opened its doors. He was a level ZERO (I'm not sure you can classify his first cartwheel as...well, anything). By the end of that year he had a handspring, he got into running tumbling the middle of year 2 with handspring series. This year he's on jr coed 3 with sky high tucks and he single bases in the routine. He's up to throwing standing tucks, triple jump tucks, layouts and punch front step outs to layout (that one is only on the tumble track right now) so he's legitimately moved a level each year. In year four (next year) hell be on a level four.

My daughter had been with another gym and only came three years ago with handspring series that had to be broken down and retaught. Shes on a jr 4 now with layouts and standing tucks.

We had a guy join last year with only a janky backyard backhand spring. He's on our level five (our first level 5 team) this year with the last corner pass. He competed at So You Think You Can Tumble at cheersport this year in the 15-18 division with a punch front through round off Arabian round off whip full whip double.

Needless to say we LOVE our aviator tumbling coaches! They are the BEST! These are specific examples but they're very typical. It's actually out of the ordinary to not progress. Large groups of kids seem to move up every year, legitimately, and the newbies we pick up just get into the pipeline and start rolling as well. I've said a million times if my daughter hadn't gotten (what we didn't know at the time was) horrible coaching for her first three years as a mini, she'd be spinning by now. But those layouts she's been throwing since cheersport, a few months of consistency with those and she'll be there in no time.

 

[Hi! It's me!]

We started at a small gym with my youngest cp. She was a tiny and mini 1 and they taught her no tumbling. We left and she had a cartwheel and round off that she learned in gymnastics. We moved to a large gym, for other reasons actually, and she spent 2 years on mini 1 and she had her level 2 skills solid long before the end of the second season. Then 1 year mini 2 and 1 year youth 2. At the end of youth 2, this year, she has very solid level 3 skills. I like that she is solid before she moves up and I don't mind that she has spent 2 years on each level, she however has finally realized what it takes to move up and she has the bit in her teeth and wants to be on jr 5 within 3 years, she is 9. Had we stayed at the small gym she would not have progressed so solidly, her friends that stayed struggle. So for us the move really helped her progression as well as opening her eyes to future possibiities.

 

[magical mom]

As a coach and parent at a large gym, most of our athletes start at level 1 or 2 and can move up to level 5. Right now my mini 2's were mini 1 last year and raw. Now 12 out of 17 kids have level 3 and 4 skills now. Will this team be level 5 athletes, absolutly!!! This team has the talent, drive, confidence, and the true basics to become a level 5 athlete. Our level 5 coed team Mysterious has half of the kids that have been with us since they were level 1 and 2 and in the mini and youth division. As a parent to a level 3 child, my daughter started off at the age of 4 not knowing anything but a cartwheel. She is now 9 and is now throwing level 4 skills. 5 years in the making and she is determined to be on a level 5 team. She is not a natural talented kid and has had to work hard. Believe me, I havent been the pushy mom and have allowed her to learn her skills just like everyone else in the gym. I wish I had the time to push her a little because I feel she might be level 5 by now, but she will have her time. At PCM we love to "breed" as I call it. It is more rewarding to me to teach these kids then accepting kids that already have the talent to create a good team.

 

[mstealtoyou]

We've never cheered anywhere else. We don't ever want to. LOL When my youngest was starting there was a rule about you had to be going into kindergarten to tryout. (We don't have that rule anymore) So she spent the year before she could tryout doing bhs privates. She's learned everything at our gym.