The season's first home meet featured a little something for everyone: something old, something new (but nothing borrowed, and - most definitely - nothing blue!). The gym season ends each year in such an intense mode, with the championships and all. You just forget how much fun a home gym meet is. Last Friday night was a sure-fire cure for that!

Among the old:

• Another giant, enthusiastic, receptive Coleman Coliseum crowd was on hand to watch the Tide defeat a fine Iowa State squad, 195.975-193.750. The announced crowd of over 9000 fans cheered and applauded for every routine, Tide or Cyclone - naturally with the greatest enthusiasm reserved for the home team. Iowa State head coach, K.J. Kindler, appreciated her team's reception, "Alabama has a very classy program. They definitely set the bar for all the other teams. It was very exciting for us to come here. We enjoyed the crowd. This tells us where we're at." ¹
• The teams put on a fine display of gymnastics, despite some early-season bumps and bobbles for both. Iowa State encountered some problems on their first event, the uneven bars, as likely as not, attributable, at least in part, to their unfamiliarity with competing in front of such a large crowd. As the meet progressed, you could see the Cyclones' confidence grow as the got more comfortable with their surroundings. The GymTide had a little encounter with nerves as well, on balance beam. Coach Patterson admitted after the met that the coaching staff may have been partially to blame for that. After the rough start on uneven bars at the season opening Super Six Challenge, the coaches emphasized the bars in practice all week. "By our performance on the balance beam you could tell we spent most of our time working in pressure situations on bars," Patterson said. "You only have so much practice time. We will correct that." ²
• The 'YMCA dads' made their first appearance of the year, once again to the stunned amazement of another freshman class. However, it didn't take long for the freshmen, the crowd, and most of the team (well, the ones who weren't warming up on floor!) to get into the act, as well. Hey, we know: it's old, it's hokey...but - it's a tradition, already!
• Mari-Christine Bayer is still the most elegant gymnast around. To paraphrase what the TV commentators said of Mari during the coverage of the Super Six Challenge, "She even tumbles gracefully, that's not easy to do!" Although she redeemed herself with one of her patented smooth bar routines in the meet against Iowa State, even Mari managed to get into a couple of awkward positions on bars at the Super Six Challenge. However, it will shock none of you to learn that, despite having not one, but two falls during her bar routine in Gainesville, Mari kept right on smiling!
• This Friday's meet will feature what has become a really fun annual event, the Tide Tykes March Out. This past weekend, the children got a chance to meet with the gymnasts, get in a little play-time with them, and practice their part in this week's meet. Be sure to get to the meet early so you can help the GymTide's youngest fans cheer the team on.
• The 'seat drop' is back!

Among the new:

• Dana Filetti. Well, alright, she's not exactly new, but improved and more involved, for sure. I'm accepting accolades and affirmation on this one, by the way, I told you guys you were going to love Dana's floor routine (item seven). And is this not a terrific picture by RollTide.com photographer, Kent Gidley?
• Terin Humphrey on uneven bars. wow. WOW!
• Ashley Miles on beam. I'm happy to say that I'm one of the lucky few who got to see Ashley exhibit on beam last season in Kentucky. She has a great look up there, very reminiscent of some of the Tide's taller gymnasts from the past (Dana Dobransky Duckworth, for instance, although we will keep our fingers crossed that Ashley will reach that rarified a company of a two-time NCAA balance beam champion!).
• Coleman Coliseum, one of the largest arenas in the Southeastern Conference, has been the place to be for the best in college gymnastics for many years. But even the best building, at some point, needs a little update. And that can mean only one thing: construction. With the excitement of a gym meet in air, I barely noticed anything different last weekend. Looking at the plans and artist's renderings for what will be done, I have to say that a little inconvenience will be well worth it for such a beautful outcome.

LSU comes from the land of 'lagniappe': a little something extra. And, fans, that's just what you get with LSU almost every time. It's hard to say just what that 'extra' might be - sometimes it's good, and other times... A few years back, an LSU gymnast tried to keep her teammates relaxed during long warm-ups by doing a little 'cowboy dance' to her floor music - complete with a cowboy hat and a belt and holster, cap pistol and all! And last year, down in Baton Rouge, the LSU ROTC showed up to cheer on the Fightin' Tigers, but ended up switching sides - well, at least for one routine - when Ashley completely charmed them with her super-duper choreography and tumbling on floor. I don't mean to harp, but get there early - you never know what might happen!

Roll Tide!!!

¹ Alabama Gymnastics Beats Iowa State, 195.975-193.750 - RollTide.com article
² Humphrey thrills crowd; Miles wins all-around-article by Tommy Deas, TideSports.com/Tuscaloosa News