Show Boys Boy's Gymnastics Get Boost From Coach Coach Begins Career on Dare Kids More Than Lance ONeil O'Neil Sports Sports' Editor Most people dont don't know the difference between parallel bars r and the high bar or that a vault horse with handles is really called i a pommel horse Most people dont don't know much about mens men's gymnastics at all Dave Hancock does In IIi fact Dave has competed nationally broken his neck and is head coach of one of the largest boys boy's gymnastics gymnastics gymnastics gym gym- programs in the state at Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Dave started his gymnastics career on a dare My older brother dared me to do a back- back said or hed he'd beat me up It took Dave a week of practicing practicing ing on the trampoline in his backyard back backyard backyard yard before he could do the flipI flip I started just bouncing on the tramp Then I would jump off the bar on the side onto the tramp then from the bar to the ground and pretty soon I was flipping off anything Anything included blocks small walls and an occasional carI carI car I would just bounce on the front bumper and flip His opportunity to begin training training training train train- ing came from a volleyball game Awhile while attending Kennedy Jr High We had just won a tough game and when it ended I did a Dave recalled My volleyball coach at Valley was also the gymnastics coach and asked me to come try tryout out There was only one other kid in the class and everybody called him a fagg or a nerd be be- cause he was in gymnastics But when started working out of other kids joined up because I Iwas Iwas Iwas was a jock and pretty popular There were probably 10 boys in class by bythe the end of the year There was only one other kid in the class and everybody called h him hirn a fagg or a nerd because he was in gymnastics But i when I 1 started working out a bunch of oth other er kids ids jo joined in ed up Dave Hancock Dave eventually ended up at Rocky Mountain Gymnastics where he immediately impressed impressed im im- impressed im- im pressed then coach Tim Darling I was goofing around on the women's high bar and figured out how to do a gia giant t which is isone isone isone one of the hardest moves on the high bar Dave said On top of that the women's bar is an oval shape and much bigger than the themen themen's themen's mens men's s bar Coach Darling ended up offering offering offering of of- fering Dave free gymnastics lessons lessons lessons les les- sons for his first three months during which Dave became hooked on the sport I loved everything Dave said Gym is a great sport In his first year at age age 14 14 Dave began competing in Class Two Open Compulsory The normal normal normal nor nor- mal beginning for competitors is Class Five Open He won the state championship in his class that year while competing against boys as old as 17 Dave followed up his first championship with a string of three consecutive state champi champi- One at Class Two OC and the others at the Class One level The highlight of Daves Dave's career was a third place finnish on the rings and fourth on the floor exercise exercise exercise exer exer- cise at the Reno National Gymnastics Gymnastics Gymnastics Gym Gym- Invitational in Nevada Then something snapped His neck to be specific I w was s practicing the floor doing a twisting full-twisting dive You run and jump in the air do a full twist and land wi with th your hands going right into a somersault Dave said I under-rotated under and kind of freaked out and landed on the top of my head The landing left Dave with no feeling from his chest down for 30 minutes I wouldn't even let them call can an ambulance The feeling came back to his legs fully after about an hour so Dave drove home The next morning he was taken to the chiropractor chiropractor chiropractor chi chi- chi chi- where an X-ray X re revealed revealed revealed re- re 25 percent of his fifth vertebrae vertebrae vertebrae ver ver- had been crushed into powder After wearing a neck brace for three months and going though physical therapy for about a year Dave was ready to compete again agam He scored a 1 1085 at the state match which qualified him for Nationals A score of or win at region is needed to qualify for Nationals But bad luck struck again Dave was involved in a fight at school two months before nation- nation als and broke his hand He wasn't able to re-hab re the injury in hi time to compete If I had scored that 1085 at Nationals Dave said I would have taken sixth overall Dave currently coaches the boys boy's team at Rocky Mountain Gymnastics having replaced former former former for for- mer Bulgarian National coach Lubo Mer Ivanov and has been head coach for almost almos a year I love coaching and being a apart apart apart part of gymnastics Dave said Gymnastics isn't just a sport The kids learn responsibility bil ity interacting with others including adults and about life in general The boys are required to maintain maintain maintain main main- tain good grades by Dave I If the kids dont don't get good grades I wont won't let them work workout out out Not just compete but work out The best part of coaching for Dave has been seeing his program program program pro pro- gram grow When I took over we had about abou t 12 kids N Now ow were we're up to 70 Gymnastics are great for kids It is a good way for kids to get or keep in shape It is a good cross training sport It helps with strength ag agility lity and coor coor- Dave misses competing sometimes I I see some of those older guys out there and know I Ican Ican Ican can beat them But Im I'm happy with watching my guys win |