A full month of competition season is already on the books! This January was filled with high-energy meets, new competitors through conference realignment, only a handful of the now rarer perfect ten, and major highlights overall.
Every team at this point has had the opportunity to compete at an away meet and, if they haven’t had the chance to have their home opener, are excitedly awaiting to compete in front of their friends and family for the first time! Both home meets and away meets are special in their own right; getting the chance to experience each is one of the greatest parts of the competition season! Reflecting now on the years I was competing, I have found the nerves always felt the same no matter where I was, but the experiences surrounding these emotions being at home versus being away were completely different.
My very first collegiate meet when I was competing for Bridgeport, we traveled to Central Michigan, and having an away meet as my NCAA introduction was definitely daunting. On a team with a large number of athletes, one thing that is different about competing away is that the entire team typically doesn’t get to go. As a freshman, this shocked me since I didn’t know any difference, but I was under the impression you traveled regardless of whether you made lineups or not. At both schools I competed at, usually only the people who are competing in lineups or exhibiting will travel to the meets which is one of the hardest parts about away competition.
At some points, it felt like there were two separate teams within the actual team; the girls who made lineups and those who hadn’t yet. Unfortunately for schools with these bigger rosters, I think this sense of almost a ‘forced’ separation is pretty common. Making the lineups and getting to travel is something to be immensely proud of yourself for, but not getting to share all these moments with the entirety of the team is difficult for both sides. One of the things I have found from athletes who have been in lineups and traveled as well as haven’t made it in that week, is you are still a team and acting like it is so important. Regardless of where you may be, it takes effort from every person on the team to make it feel like everyone is still being included which often gets lost in all the excitement of the season. However, this initiative from every athlete and coach really fuels how cohesive a team can be, and how much success you can have no matter what role you are in that year.
My first competition as a part of Temple was a home meet, but, with this being during COVID, and having cutouts of our family members as the fans in the stands, this was a unique experience of its own. The first real home meet we had with all of our friends and family back in our arena, the first thing I can recall was how loud it was. Whether it was just because we had gotten used to not having fans, or it was actually how many people had showed up to that first meet, all I remember was the energy. This by far is one of the best parts of getting to compete at home; you are in front of your friends and family, local fans, and future college gymnasts, and you are also in a more comfortable environment.
Going to an away competition, you have to create your own energy; you are essentially responsible for being the cheering squad every time you are not competing and making sure your teammates feel the support, even if it just comes from a few voices. One of the most energetic meets I have ever competed at was the EAGL championships at Pittsburgh in my first season at Temple. Although the fan numbers were limited in the 2020-2021 season, this was one of the most electric environments I have ever been in. Especially during a tri or quad meet, or a championship meet like this, you feed off the energy of the crowd, regardless of who this energy is meant for. One of the cool things about an away meet, at least in my own experience, was actually getting to hear my teammates. Although this might have meant that we weren’t getting that same love we would typically would at home, I almost felt more supported because I could hear the people who were having the same experience I was cheering their loudest to make me feel like I could do my best no matter where we were.
Energy at a home meet however is just unmatched. Watching your intro video, running out on the floor, and seeing every single one of your teammates in front of those who came to support you, is the best feeling. When you actually get started on the competition aspect, one of the best things about a home meet is not really having to make any adjustments. You already know the equipment, you know how bright the lights are and where to look when you are spotting a landing and letting go for a release, and, in this way, it’s a much more comfortable experience. Not that there are no nerves in this, because there was never a meet without nerves, it was more so about just doing gymnastics and having your best day, and not about worrying about how the beam felt or if the floor was a fresh carpet and you thought you might slip on your front pass.
At an away meet, however, you do learn how to make these adjustments quickly. Especially at some bigger arenas, these adjustments were not solely about getting used to the equipment, but also the temperature of the gym, how bright the lights were, or what corner you would start in for floor that was the same corner you started in at practice. As the season went on, some of these aspects would become a little easier, especially if you went back to the same arena again, but oftentimes, it was a clean slate each time you stepped into a new place.
Even though it might seem like I am personally favoring home meets just from this alone, I actually preferred away competitions. For me, going to an away competition made meet day seem more “real” than going to our gym and competing. It put more pressure on me to perform better because I was in a new place surrounded by new people. At an away meet, aside from staying in your team bubble, you have to set yourself apart from the home team. Maybe this means going a bit harder for your handstands or fighting for every tenth that you can get because you are in a more ‘hostile,’ less comfortable, environment where it might be a little harder to pull out a win.
However, the reason I loved away competitions was really because of the uninterrupted time our team spent together. Even if it meant spending eight hours driving to North Carolina from Philadelphia, connecting to someone’s hotspot to do your homework, and learning how to sleep in the width of two bus seats, some of my favorite memories are from these trips. You get to spend all weekend with the girls you have become so close to and to share all these unique memories, while all being attached to the same goal. While our away meets at Bridgeport mostly had us driving, competing, and driving back the same day, at Temple, most of the time we would be gone for a couple of days. Getting this time with one another is something I still hold so close to my heart. At Temple, an away competition would typically look like all having dinner together in a conference room, playing the most random games (specifically Secret Animal), and then going over our goals for the next day of competition. We would do one another’s braids, share rooms with teammates we might not have typically spent time with, get ready together the next morning, and we’d then go out and compete for one another because we were truly all there for the same reason.
This last aspect, all being aligned on the same end goal, comes regardless of whether you are home or away, and unites the entire team regardless of what colors the majority of the arena is wearing. As we head into the second month of meet season and see teams have both these experiences, as an audience, maybe give a little bit more love to those away teams who might need that extra boost of energy, and as athletes to cherish these experiences and be in the moment because this time really goes by in a blink.
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Article by Julianna Roland
