Competition schedules:
This can be one of the most hectic parts of a competition week. As an owner, you’ve got parents who are trying to figure out if they’ll need hotels, plan around little brother’s basketball games, and during certain times of the year – you’ve even got prom and graduation to worry about. With large EPs, a general schedule is often available a month or so in advance. A general schedule can look something like this:
Session 1: Novice & Dance 8-11 a.m.
Session 2: Prep 11-3 p.m.
Session 3: Elite 3-8 p.m.
Note: During prom season, don’t be surprised if they move elite teams to the beginning of the day.
It also will usually have awards times listed if the awards and competition are in the same venue (as awards for session 1 would typically happen somewhere within session 2 to keep the event flowing throughout the day).
Most EPs will send a draft schedule to coaches 10-14 days out. Always look at this right away. Check your teams to ensure they’ve got you in the right divisions and that you have the right number of athletes on a team. Usually, I don’t put out this time to parents as it’s likely to change. A few times over the years, we have given the estimated times of performance, but we put several disclaimers that say “DRAFT” and explain it is not final and to please be cautious of planning things around this time specifically. Usually, it only changes 5-10 minutes from the final schedule, but I’ve had it change 4-6 hours during prom season as the best EPs try to work with programs so athletes don’t miss those events.
A final schedule usually comes out about 7 days before the event (but we’ve had them finalize schedules as little as 2-3 days prior). Warn parents about this and remind them you have little control over when the final schedule comes out. Also, let them know two things:
- Occasionally EPs will put the schedule out on their social media and website. I make sure parents understand it’s not final for our gym until we send it. The EPs schedule may have known conflicts we’re waiting on for adjustments.
- These schedules also would not reflect our arrival times for our specific teams.
