So there are clubs that incorporate good spotting as part of the teaching of the skills, and others that rely just on drills and the coaches don't spot. Which do you think is better, and which kind of club do you go to - a spotting or no spotting club? At my club the coaches do spot the skills, as well as doing drills - and actually sometimes the drills do involve spotting as well, as you learn it. I think that is the best way to learn faster, have better technique, and be safe! What do you guys think?

I agree too! Spotting makes a huge difference (the good technique ones)!!

Anybody at a club that doesn't spot and just uses drills to teach?

I heard Amy Chow's gymnastics club (West Valley Gymnastics) was more like the drills rather than spotting type.

Spotting with the spotting belt is good add too, for when you begin to learn the new skill.

We have a spotting belt on bars and on trampoline.

A club that doesn't spot? Anyone go to one? At the higher levels, there's less spotting when you've already learned the skills and you're practicing your routines, but even then there's spotting for new skills, form, warm-up, etc.

Not spotting and going with the drills skills only is like an excuse for gymnastics clubs to not hire more capable coaches that are experienced in spotting and technique and also are strong enough to do it. It's easier to find coaches if those don't add in as prerequisites for at least some of the coaches, and also to pay them less.

Another thing to think about is that there are different qualities of spotting. Experience, common sense, knowledge, strength and build of the coach counts a lot. I would say even if you are a small or light or young gymnast. I was visiting a gym today and was just watching a little bit of a class to see how that gym is and it was amazing to me that during warm up the coaches had their arms crossed standing there, occassionally giving some verbal communication like "go" or "now do this", or clapping their hands for the next gymnast to go in the line-up, etc., but didn't correct, didn't spot, while the girls were just falling all over the place - they were doing handstand to bridge, to stand up - or trying to for some of them, some wouldn't even get to a good handstand to do a bridge, some would just plop over instead of the bridge...there was really little to no coaching at all. It was amazing. And there were parents watching too. I don't get why they agree with that to have their kids in that class.

[quote=punchfront]I heard Amy Chow's gymnastics club (West Valley Gymnastics) was more like the drills rather than spotting type.[/quote] I think that was more the concept used during that time, doesn't seem like it now from what people are saying. West Valley just got a new coach after being without a regular coach for their bars, vault, tumbling (the position usually male coaches fill) for like 9 months and a lot of the girls on their team left. Guess who they got? Alexander ("Sasha") Tkatchev - the tkatchev is named after him. Before that he was at Peninsula Gymnastics for a few months I think, and before that in a club in Southern California. West Valley is rebuilding their team now. They just had their booster club Spirit of the Flame competition this last weekend. Here's a video of a great spot on a full twisting back: Incredible save [youtube]To7p8VF_oBM[/youtube] "Don Eckert spotting Chrissey Phipps at Stars gymnastics in Colorado Springs" Someone posted it on their gymchat player web!