1. To see the name of Carlisle Gymnastics Club in the results and reports section of September issue of the "The Gymnast." Just to have reached the position to be able to enter the "Bill Slater National Competition" was an achievement in itself. The fact that the club competed confidently and could be ranked in the results alongside some of the ' premier league' clubs was certainly a first for Carlisle. Well-done ladies and a big thank you to our stretched coaching force. Competition at this level requires lots of fine-tuning, detailed preparation, investment of many hours of time and consistent performances on the day. You pulled it off magnificently.
2. For the British Women's Team to have qualified for the Olympic Games in Athens. As Brian stocks said in the gymnast last month, "Magical moments are few and far between." It must have been fantastic to witness Beth Tweddle's wonderful routine that won our first ever World Championship Medal in Women's Artistic Gymnastics. This bronze medal was well deserved after a lot of hard work but we should not forget the efforts of the rest of the team. 20 routines without a mistake must be unheard of and 9th qualifying place was a fantastic achievement. I'm reminded of the comments from Marie in a recent issue of this newsletter when she was stressing the need for commitment to match talent and how it is sometimes the less gifted performer that makes the greatest gains. This was certainly the case for the team that produced this qualifying performance for the 2004 Olympics in Greece. I am fortunate to know three of this team well because they were members of the group that made up our British Schools Team for the World School Games in France two yeas ago. If anyone had told me then that Lizzie Line, Cherelle Fennell and Vanessa Hobbs would all be part of an Olympic qualifying team within two years I would have used some rather rude expletive that questioned their sanity. This one performance encapsulates a quotation from Bill Laar that I often use in an education context…. "It's about taking young people to places they did not know they could go"…Roll on Athens, where can I get hold of some tickets.
3. Recognition of our committee members for their unstinting support for the club and the welfare of the young gymnasts. I refer to them collectively because I would hate to mention individuals and then miss someone out. All I can say is that in around 40 years of work in gymnastics I have never met such a group of dedicated volunteers. The work of this small group is unbelievable and the only reason why we continue to remain solvent. They make an invaluable contribution to fund raising, social events and coaching support. Every successful club needs such people and Carlisle is indeed fortunate to have this small but committed group. Thank you and well done everyone.
Fine timber does not grow
with ease,
The stronger the wind, the stronger the trees. Anon
I Howard Todd
FEES
Could everyone please arrange to pay their child's fees by cheque, if at all possible. This will save our Treasurer from having to carry around, and hold, such large amounts of cash, which is this day and age can be a bit risky.
Thanks!!
We have lots of thanks in this quarters newsletter, firstly
Thanks are due to Kev Pattinson (Megan's Dad) who has once again
mended the clubs CD player and also fixed the old Trampette. But
as if that wasn't enough Kev has also made a winners podium for
use in competitions. I am sure all the gymnasts who are lucky
enough to win a competition held at Carlisle will be thrilled
to now receive their medals on the podium. Thanks also to Sean
Haughey for his help in supplying the materials.
We also want to mention Jenny Harris and Judith Harris who have
both worked hard in the club recently, helping out in various
ways. Also deserving a mention are Phil and Julie Bailey. Julie
has been hard at work cutting back the brambles which were threatening
to take over and Phil has been busy fixing some of the boys equipment.
Without the help these people offer, in so many different ways,
the club would not be able to survive. If you feel you would like
to contribute in some way to your child's Gym Club please see
one of the coaches.
Dates for your diary
We will be holding a disco in the gym club on Thursday 30th October. Everyone is welcome; bring all your friends. The cost will be 50p per child and £1 for any parents who wish to stay. The disco will run from 7.30 - 9.30pm. Hope to see you all there.
Our annual Club competition is to be held on Sunday 14th December, with the warm up starting at 10.30am. Everyone is welcome to come along to watch even if your child is not competing.
SEE EVENTS
Christmas
The gym club will be closed on the following days,
Monday 22nd December,
Wednesday 24th and 31st December,
Thursday 25th December and 1st January,
Friday 26th December,
Saturday 27th December,
Sunday 28th December.
Fundraising
We have lucky enough to receive two further grants in the last
quarter. The first grant of £441.80 was received from Newcastle
B/S through the Newcastle Community Foundation. This grant has
been used to replace the Trampette and to purchase a further coaching
block. We also received £5,500 towards the cost of replacing
the exercise floor from Cumbria Community Foundation Local Network
Fund. Our thanks to these two grant making bodies.
Abseil
We now have a final total for the funds raised from the sponsored
abseil…..£1,692. This was a tremendous success, once
again well done to everyone who took part.
Strawberry Tea
The Strawberry Tea was a very successful day; everyone who attended needed to diet for the week after. We managed to raise the amount of £140. Special thanks to Laura for arranging this event and to Nancy for her help in getting everything set up and also for selling the books. Thanks also to everyone who made a Strawberry Dessert and to all those who attended. Final thanks must go to Maria for allowing us to use her house and garden for the Strawberry Tea. The drawing prizes were won by Nicola Hinde, Charlotte Wordsworth, Kelly Park, Howard Todd and Megan Pattinson, with thanks also to ASDA who provided a cookbook for one of the prizes.
WE NEED YOUR BREAD
Just for once this really does mean the stuff you toast!!
The Allied Bakeries are running a 'Free kit for Clubs' scheme. It involves collecting tokens from Kingsmill bread and rolls packets. Allied Bakeries hope the scheme may also extend to a national paper. The tokens will be available for up to a year so there should be plenty of scope for collecting them. The collected tokens can then be exchanged for sporting equipment. The tokens MUST be carefully cut out and photocopies are obviously NOT allowed. Please try to collect these tokens, and hand them in to one of the coaches.
Coffee Morning
The coffee morning held on 11th October raised £162.51. This was a tremendous effort. Well done to everyone involved, either baking or serving on the day, and thanks to Laura for arranging this event. Also special thanks to all the gymnasts who worked hard all day serving coffee, selling cakes and taking the door money.
Cleaning Rota
Unfortunately no one felt able to volunteer to become part
of the clubs 'cleaning crew'. This was very disappointing, as
we were not asking for a great deal of time or commitment. All
that would have been required was perhaps ½ to 1 hour every
couple of weeks or for someone to take a small part of the gym
and agree to keep it clean and tidy. On a happier note Julie Wordsworth
very kindly hovered the exercise floor one night and this has
made the gym look much tidier and cleaner. Thanks Julie.
We need to take a pride in our gym and if anyone now feels they
would like to help in keeping the gym clean and tidy, please contact
one of the coaches.
Club logo gear
We can now order various items of clothing with Carlisle Gymnastics
Club embroidered on the left breast.
There are fleece jackets, polo shirts, t shirts and handguard
bags.
Please check the back of the door for further information with
regards to prices, sizes etc.