Hello Gymnastics World!

Just over a year ago, I introduced my 2nd daughter to the world of gymnastics. I wanted to give her the same opportunities that I had given my older daughter. So I researched in my area the local gyms. I found the traditional gyms (think Gabby Douglas) and they seemed to fit the bill. However, I happened to stumble upon a small gym in Livermore, CA called West Coast Training Center, WCTC. At first, it seemed like it was your average gym offering tumbling classes, because after all, my little one was 4 years old and that's what you need to even get started. What drew me in was the willingness of the owner, Marie Annonson, to describe her program and her focus on the kids. So my 4 year old started tumbling classes once a week on a Saturday and life was good. Forward a few months to the beginning of summer and I started to realize something was different about this gym. It should have dawned upon me something was different when I didn't see any uneven bars, balance beam, or pommels. There was essentially just a floor which I had regularly seen people do tumbling passes on. One day, we just happened to be at the gym and practice was starting after my daughter's class. I stayed a few moments and began to see these girls do amazing things with each other. No one was using equipment to do their skills, they were using each other! What was more amazing was the power, flexibility, and grace these girls possessed to be able to accomplish their skills. This is when I began to learn about acro-gymnastics. You're like, "What?" Acro as it's called by USAG or USA Gymnastics, is one of several variations of gymnastics with the most notable being Artistic (think Gabby Douglas again). Acro does combine gymnastic elements of tumbling, strength, flexibility, balance, and stamina just like Artistic does. However, in this sport, you as an athlete must rely on 1 or more other athletes to complete your skills during competition. Check out this video of Michael Rodrigues and Kristen Allen who are products of West Coast Training Center. So why am I blogging about this? Well, towards the end of the competition year, my daughter had completed several months of tumbling and the team was conducting tryouts. I asked my daughter if she was interested in trying out for team (after trying to explain to a 4-yr old what that means) and checking with Coach Marie to see if she could. Many people seemed to think my little one had potential and I thought it was a great atmosphere to be a part of. From what I had seen, the team was a close knit, well-mannered, mentally mature set of people that a parent would want for their kid. As a team, we are now well into the 2013 competition season and I now feel compelled to share my story as a dad nurturing and guiding his daughter through this sport. My hope is that I will educate dads about what it's like to support daughters through life events. I also hope to expose more people to the world of Acro and the journey that I take as a parent as well as share many light-hearted moments that bring a smile to my face. In future posts, I look to cover topics and experience such as...

• - Leotards and bling
• - Butt glue (what?!)
• - Hair and makeup (yes I do it!)
• - Choreography
• - Travel
• - Parent's Club
• - and many more!