How Far Would You Drive for a Child's Sport?

I would make the drive. It's hard to find a coach you like and change teams.

We live outside Atlanta and have driven to Cumberland, which is off "The Perimeter" (which people in DC would call the Beltway) and that's 25 miles one way.

I sort of think it's amusing that you think nothing of changing her academic school but are worried about changing her gym. Is she Olympic material? If not, I think I'd worry more about changing her school than her gym. Change her gym, save some money and some air pollution. I mean, that's of course provided that the new gym is a good one - I'm not suggesting to send her someplace with untrained staff or anything - but if the new gym is just as good, I wouldn't hesitate.

I have driven up to an hour each way for my kids sports. 20 mins is really not that far. If you have a great coach it's worth driving for. Especially if your going to be moving again in a year. We drive more than 20 mins just to get to my son's school lol.

My daughter played select soccer. Her practices were 25 to an hour away, three days a week, games an hour away on both Saturday and Sunday. So to answer your question, an hour.

My daughters take ballet. The older one is in a pre-professional program, so she is there 5-6 times per week for several hours each time. The studio is 30 minutes away (if there's no traffic, but with traffic it could be 45 minutes or even an hour away). It is what it is. There are studios closer to our house, but I'm not impressed with any of them, and I think that if your child is serious about a sport, it's best to get them the highest-quality training possible. The last thing you want is for your child to learn bad habits, and then have to try and fix them later on. In activities like gymnastics and dance, bad training can lead to permanent injuries - a little extra drive time is worth it to spare your child that, in my opinion.

I"m in the DC suburbs. Have you done this drive from your new home (at least from the general area) to her gym and back? Have you done it during the actual times of day when you'd be on the road -- which probably are after school/rush hour/evenings if it's during the week? If not, you need to do so, several times. If you live in or near DC you know that "20 minutes by highway" means nothing at all in real-world traffic; one car bumps another and the whole "highway" is at a standstill with multi-mile backups. So the 35 minute drive and back you predict may in reality be much longer -- even without any accidents. We should be able to get from our house to my daughter's dance studio in less than 20 minutes door to door, but I always allot 35 to 40 minutes, every time, just due to the vagaries of traffic.

You might find that you have to switch gyms just because you are not driving 35 minutes each way but much more at times, maybe much of the time.

Consider, too, overall quality of life for your family. If you have other kids, what impact does the commute have on them? Will they be sitting in the car for those rides, doing their homework at her gym, etc.? Will you end up with two times a week (more, if there are extra practices, team meets, etc.) of fast food meals in the car, or not seeing as much of dad, or staying up later doing homework because she just can't read or write in the car?

That can be asking a lot. And will she still go only two times a week next year, or is it likely to be more than that? Most kids increase their weekly gymnastics or dance or other lessons and practices each year if they advance.

I agree with the person who posted that if kids learn bad habits or don't advance their skills at a new gym or studio, that's bad, and can lead to injury. But if she is not on a really competitive track and does it for fun, let her find a fun gym closer to home.

Definitely do the actual drive, at the exact times you would really be doing it, several times, and get a real feel for the traffic patterns. You might find shortcuts that make it doable! Or you might find that it's really more stress and time than your family as a whole can afford.

My DD's dance class ended up being 40 minutes one way, once a week. I would consider if the stability of this gym would help her with an overall transition, and you said "temporarily move". I would at least give it a shot for one more run of classes if it's not prohibitive. I would look for ways to share the load. If it were every day, that would be one thing. But I'd personally drive 2x a week to a known quantity for a year rather than try to find something comparable for a short time.

However, I do agree with the other poster who said to give it a test drive. Like I said, I thought DD's dance class was 25 to 30 minutes. In reality it's not. I actually take a route that avoids the highway because at that hour 495 is just a parking lot. Find out what the REAL amount of time is before you change gyms or plans.

One way I make the most of it is when DD is in class, I go to the grocery store. So if there's a way to make the time more productive for you (vs trying to come home again) that might also be a way to make it work.

My SIL drove her son 3 hours one way twice a month for private cello lessons..... he is now in a prestigious university music program in Michigan.

it just depends on how good she is, and how dedicated she is to the sport.

Is this a year round commitment? If so, I couldn't devote that much time to the drive. If it was seasonal, sure, I could suck it up for a few months.

I'm a little confused if you are moving for just a year or would it be longer? If it's only for a year, keep her at the current gym and suck it up. If it would possibly be permanent or as permanent as you can tell for now, then make the switch sooner than later. You'll eventually do it anyway, most likely. Might as well start the transition.

My kids are in competitive sports (versus recreational). Long drives are just part of the expectation.

Depends.
How much is she into, gymnastics?
Is it just for fun? or a serious thing for her and where she will be doing it for years and competitively and it is a real solid lifestyle for her and she is, good?
Or, if it is just something she does for fun, is not serious about it, and it just takes up time to keep her "busy" then maybe it is not a real priority.
I mean, many kids have activities they do. Some they could take it or leave it. So you and she have to decide that.
Then, maybe for some kids, that ONE activity they do, IS real serious and it is more of a lifestyle for them and they will be doing it for years etc.
For example; piano lessons. The likelihood of a kid, being SOOOOOO good at it to the point they will be notable in it and become a serious top professional Pianist, is not a high percentage. At all. Meanwhile a child may spend a huge chunk of time in childhood taking lessons for years which adds up in time/money and driving time etc. But the child, could take it or leave it. It is not a lifestyle for them. Not even a hobby. They are just doing it to do it. And they rather do something else.

So discern gymnastics for your daughter, and per her ability and level of seriousness it is for her, or not.

I know a family who's kid does gymnastics. Their daughter has been doing it for years... and LOVES it and travels for it competitively and she is very, good. So therefore, they do what it takes, for their daughter to continue in it. Even if that means, they travel/drive a long distance to get to her lessons and private Coach. MANY times a week, they do this. And their kid's training is for like 3 hour time spans. Weekday and weekend.
It is not just a hobby for her nor just an activity to socialize or take up time. It is a serious "professional" sport, for her. And she is of that caliber in it. So the family does do, what it takes, for their daughter to continue to pursue the sport.

I routinely drive 25-35 minutes to one of the local hockey rinks, depending on traffic. When my oldest son played there, we went 3-4 times a week (two practices and 1-2 games). My second son played there twice a week last year and my youngest son will be going twice a week next year. The two older ones are playing in a rink closer to home next year but that's just for 1-2 practices. The other practices could be there or 20 minute away, and games are easily an hour away on a regular basis.

When my oldest played in middle school, he was on a team where the home rink for games was 50 minutes away. I actually valued that time with him...we had a lot of good conversations in the car to and from those games 1-2 times a week. I would go ahead and do it and make the most of that extra time together, then re-evaluate at the end of the year.

Depends on her goals with the gym. Is she competitive? Is she close to teammates? Have you looked to see what is available in your new area and met with the coaches there to discuss their program?

If your daughter is wrapping up her time as a gymnast and doesn't plan to continue doing it much longer (maybe another year?) I'd likely just stick with where you are. But if you or she thinks she is in this for a long haul, then you need to do your research into whatever is available closer in to your area.
Depending on what you find, you can go from there. But, if she gets more and more involved and competitive, she may go MORE often than she does now. It's doable, if traffic isn't a concern and it's only distance you are looking at. Heck, we live 20 minutes from everything. And 30 minutes from my daughter's middle school. She rides the bus home (over 30 minutes on the bus) and then we jump in the car and drive 20 minutes further into town for piano and karate 2 days per week. For awhile it was 3 days, until I was able to move piano to the same day as one of her karate classes.

But, I don't know what else you have going on, either. Other kids and their activities? Husband's schedule and home life schedule?

For us, my son also does wrestling... but most days he gets a ride home from school via the activity bus (not the regular bus). During the season, there is an athletic bus he can ride, but it doesn't bring him all the way home, so I have to be available to pick him up from a central drop-off location the bus uses (3 miles up the road from our house). So the other things you have going on matter, too.

So... is your daughter a serious gymnast who will be continuing to hone her craft for some time to come, getting more and more competitive? And is her current gym fulfilling their end of getting to those goals? What would another gym closer to your new location be able to do towards meeting her goals?
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Oh.. and wait... you said "temporarily"... what does that mean? How long will you be in a new city? And then where will you be going? Moving back to where you are now? If so, stick with the gym you are at.

Right now I drive anywhere from 15-30 minutes 3 days a week. Then the games are anywhere from 20 minutes to 3 or four hours and we stay overnight.
L.

I'd switch everything with the move including the gym.
You're in the DC area and 35 min can often turn into something that's a LOT longer - the traffic is horrible and unpredictable - I lived with it for 17 years.
This whole move is an adventure so embrace it, make the most of it and try not to do a lot of living on the highways (always commuting) if you can avoid it.
When you move back then switch everything back again.

Because of where we live I drive 20 minutes one way just to get into town so that means if my son has an activity it will likely take me 30 minutes one way. For me it's a choice of him having an activity or not because there is nothing near our house since we live in the boonies. I think if you plan to move back then I would keep up the commute. If you decide to move you can always make that decision then.

i'd drive that far for a sport my kids loved. i did a lot more driving than that during our little league years!
khairete
S.

Given the transitions you all are going through, I think that's a reasonable sacrifice and commute for the time being.

Make sure you check out the the new gym pronto though on a visitor basis, see how things operate, get to know a coach, etc.

I drive my kids to their sports more than 5 times a week, more than 20-30 minutes each way. It's a family commitment for sure. Both are national competitors though and there are other families who have much longer commutes then mine to train where they train.

If it is a competitive team and you will only be in the new location for 1 year and then returning, then I would leave her where she is at, but if things changed and we decided to stay in the new location then I would make her try the new gym.

We have kids that come 2-3 times per week from close to that distance. I'd see about taking 1 hour from the new gym but keep the old gym until the end of this semester, May. Maybe take classes at both for the rest of April and May. Let her meet the new gym people and make a few friends.

Since it's temporary she can simply think of it as taking a workshop or clinic. Learning new skills isn't hard on a child unless they learn it wrong.

If she has competition coming up I'd make sure the regular coach approves for the new classes. Otherwise it's not really a big deal.

We do 4 hours per week for one child and 2 hours per week for the other one. Some of it is dance and some tumbling/team.

How long is temporary? If it's less than a couple of years I'd probably not have moved unless it's a ton less expensive in the new area.

All in all, if you're going to be in the new town for a couple of years and they meet her standards, she likes the new coach, and she makes friends then switch her permanently at the beginning of the new school year. If you're only going to be there a year or less then I'd do both and cut the old gym to once per week if they aren't competing. Let her keep contact but not cut ties.