Gymnastics Summer Camp - Yes or No?
Support Your Local Gym
First, make sure you are fully participating and paying for the
summer program in your own gym. Summer is often a very slow time
in the gym business and they can use the business. Before you
decide to spend money outside of your own gym, you should
seriously consider spending it in your own gym first.
No Coach is Going to Work Harder Than Your Own
No camp coach is going to be more interested and dedicated to
training your gymnast than your own coaches in your own gym.
Coaches at gymnastics camps are usually either the coach of some
other team or high school or college gymnasts. They have their
own gymnasts or gymnastics career to think about that does not
directly involve your child.
A Week at Camp Doesn't a Gymnast Make
It is possible that a new coaching perspective can sometimes
bump forward a gymnast's progress, but one week or so is not
likely to have lasting training value. In essence, your gymnasts
progress is going to depend on the training they receive from
your own coaches on a year round basis, not a one week at a
commercial summer camp.
Camps Let Gymnasts See Where They Really Stand
Gymnastics camps can provide some things that are not available
at your gym. Commercial camps draw a large number and a wide
variety of gymnasts from all over the country. Gymnasts can get
a feeling for where they stand in the sport in comparison to all
the gymnasts at the camp. This can be an enlightening experience.
Gymnastics Star Gazing
Commercial gymnastic camps often have nationally known gymnasts
and coaches visit which can be inspirational and educational.
Commercial gymnastics camps have all the latest training
equipment, which may or may not be available in your own gym.
Gymnastics Camp Gives Your Gymnast the Summer Camp
Experience
The other thing that commercial gymnastic provide is a camp
experience including the social aspects of going to summer camp,
meeting new people and making new friends and participating in
traditional camp activities.
Camp is Camp
So is it worth it? Send your gymnast to a commercial gymnastics
camp if you have already supported your own gym's summer
training programs. Send them to a commercial summer camp to have
a typical summer camp social experience. If that is your goal,
then your gymnast will certainly be able to have a positive
gymnastics summer camp experience.