A helpless feeling

My talented young gymnast (7yr old level 5) just competed at the Flipfest invitational in Knoxville TN. We had our sights set on a great weekend. Not only were we taking the whole family to watch our little kiki compete, we were also going to make a family vacation out of this! After all, Pigeon Forge and the great Smokey Mountains are just minutes from Knoxville. How bad could 9 hours in the car with a potty training 2 year old be?? Um...dumb question, but bad turned into REALLY bad when he started vomiting half way there. And his vomiting soon turned into both my sons vomiting and then daddy joined in and by Saturday night, just hours before the meet, the gymnast herself was ralphing too! She was able to keep it all in her during her meet, but the poor kid was so week she had her lowest scores ever. She later told me "daddy I was so nervous. I couldnt stop shaking" Nerves? Hardly! Try dehydration. During the awards Flipfest founder and former olympian John McCready spoke to the kids. He asked "Who here had the worst meet of their life" a few girls raised there hands. "Good" he said. "The bad meets are the ones we learn from. They will always be the most important meets. Not the most fun, but the most important" Truer words have never been spoken! I'm so proud of my kiki for getting out there when she could've given up!

"Payson" joins us for a chat!

We had a chance to chat with "Make It Or Break It Star" Ayla Kell this week! Not only was she incredibly nice, she informed us that we were her first radio interview EVER! She also may be checking in on gymdad.blogspot.com from time to time :) Enjoy the interview!

Click here!!!!

Here's an interview we did with Shawn Johnson last year, just as she was starting her journey on Dancing With The Stars!
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We just enrolled our daughter in something called "Parizi Speed School". It's purpose is to make your child a better faster stronger athlete. Our little gym gal is having issues with getting enough speed to get over the vault so it just seems like the natural thing to do. Well last night was her evaluation to determine where she should be placed. During her evaluation she was asked to do as many pull ups as she could and my little 7 year old busted out 10 like it was nothing. Everybody in the gym stopped what they were doing and gave her a standing Ovation including former Oriole pitcher John Parrish. He came over and said "wow that girl is an athlete" Its funny to watch non-gymnast athletes gawk over how in shape our gym kids are. It kind of reminds me of those t-shirts that says "If gymnastics were easy it would be called football". These girls never cease to amaze me!

Dennis
gymdad.blogspot.com

Make It Or Break It

Season 2 of ABC Family's "Make It Or Break It" debut's on January 3rd. If your DD (Dear Darling- a term I recently learned) is a gymnast, make sure to set the DVR's TIVO's or VCR's if your stuck in the last decade. My wife and I were a bit leery after the content of last season revolved around the star gymnast on the US National team losing her virginity. However, the good out weighed the bad and my 7 year old was hooked. Last season we had Candace Cameron (Full House) on our radio show to promote the ABC Family series. This year Alya Kell who plays Payson Keeler will join us on January 11th. Look for the audio to be posted on this blog shortly after. Also click the ABC Family link on the right to get more details on Season 2.

Blizzard of 09'

Well The Blizzard of 09 didn't affect our meet this weekend. We moved one session from Sat. to Sun. These things really never seem to get cancelled. I don't think a "State of Emergency" would stop a gymnastics meet from going down. My favorite line from a parent was "If I get into a car accident, I'm holding the gym and the judges responsible". Hey buddy here's some advise, if you don't feel the roads are fit to drive, then don't come! There was one very awkward moment of drama when a coach on a cell phone stepped into the vault runway while a girl was set to vault. Her dad stood up and started screaming at the coach. The place got so quiet you could here a pin drop! Ah you gotta love gym meets around the holidays.

Christmas on The Chesapeke

well, gymnastics meet #1 is over and done! Congrats to out girls for giving their all and competing tough against many gyms who are already at the END of their season. i must say, the judges were tough on this one. Sometimes I wish I could get inside their heads and know what the heck they're thinking. Over all the Baltimore meet was fun. I love that city since I am a diehard Orioles fan. Next up, a home meet that our girls are not competing in. Now take a guess what gym dad/radio guy would be asked to do at home meets? You guessed it, I am in charge of Emceeing and running the floor music. Seems kinda stereotypical huh? Oh he's a radio man, make him talk into a mic and play music! I don't mind though, except for the fact that the younger girls use the same music, so I have to hear it over and over all day!
But i digress, The season is officially under way and travel plans are already being made for Flipfest in Knoxville Tn. our next big road trip and just a few short weeks away! Weeeeeeeeee this is fun!