Gymnastics

These last few months have been crazy. Even though I have been a half time teacher, working everyother day ... raising a beautiful little girl (as you all can see)... those things were and are easy compared to being a HEAD coach (yes, head coach) of a high school girls gymnastics team.

Tahoma hired me as their head coach back in November. This district has had gymnastics as a girls sport for 6 years, and it has never been bigger then 11 girls. This year, we started at 22, and at the end of the season we had 16. On top of that, practices were every morning at 5:30 - 7 am at Summit Gymnastics (a club that let us lease space since we don't have any of our own equipment other thean a spring board). Out team is even more amazing... in the 6 years, this team has never had a coach for two or more years in a row (next year will be their first year... since I am coming back along with my assisstant coach Venise)... they have always come in 13th or 14th in our league which is made up of 14 teams... and this year we came in 9th!!! Our overall GPA was an average of 3.68 (amazing since these girls get up early for practice, then go to school, then after school to either work or clup gym or they do another sport) and each girl takes at least one AP class.

Yes, I like to brag about these girls!!

We had meets every Wednesday night, which lasted till 10 pm (then practice the following morning) and some Thursday nights we had meets too. We also had to stay and help put all the equip[ment away before we could leave. Toward the end of the season, our girls had to begin qualifying to go on to meets... first was Sub-Districts (new this year) -- then districts -- if you made it here you qualified to go on to State Championships -- if you made it there then to State Finals... then you are done. We had 3 make it districts and one of those girls went to State (at the Tacoma Dome), however she didn't make it to finals. We are so proud of her to get this far...as a freshman... just imagine her next couple of years! Each of these last four meets were full day Saturdays, usually ending between 10 and 11 pm.

I would not have made it as well as I did, if it hadn't been for my assisstant coach Venise. She was/is wonderful and we worked amazingly well together. She and I picked up where we were weak and kept our girls focused with the message that this is FUN, this is high school gymastics.