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Gymnastics hits the public radar every four years, as we sit and watch with renewed amazement the power and beauty the human body can achieve through the performances of Olympic competitors. Teenage girls throw themselves about in apparent indifference to gravity, spinning and twisting in the air, while men hold poses that might be anatomical charts for human musculature.

This same combination of joy and discipline is on display daily at Santa Cruz Gymnastics Center, giving those driven to compete a chance to measure themselves against their peers and also providing the opportunity for others simply to enjoy developing skills and control.

“I find gymnastics teaches children how to control themselves better than anything else,” said manager and owner Jim Kinney, who is celebrating his 20th year at the center. The center offers programs for children as young as 18 months, and divides instruction into recreational and competitive tracks. Kinney said his staff works hard to keep both feedback and class placement positive, so students do not feel frustrated or overwhelmed.

“I find that working in this environment is so much enjoyment. … All the kids want to be here,” he said.

Learning Skills with Many Benefits

The Gymnastics Center has been home to several national champions and athletes who have earned college scholarships for the sport, but students learn elements that reach beyond the balance beam and tumbling tricks.

Some of the center’s students take the skills they’ve developed in gymnastics to help them excel in other sports. Kinney proudly displays a photo of local diver Ariel Rittenhouse, an Olympian who recently placed fourth with her partner and who started her athletic training as a preschooler at the Gymnastics Center. Other athletes have moved into sports such as cheerleading, basketball, track and volleyball.

“All the other coaches have expressed real delight in having [our gymnasts] on their teams,” Kinney said. “They know how to be coached and listen.” Gymnastics experience also translates to confidence in public settings, whether performance or speaking, he added.

Kinney even cites a Florida study that gave at-risk middle school students a reading lesson, then gymnastics instruction and a return to reading. The students improved tremendously after the workout. Kinney attributes such success to both the opportunity to direct physical energy and the requirement of gymnastics to reorient oneself and focus.

Keeping Pace with Trends and Safety

Even someone who only watches gymnastics every four years can see that it continues to evolve.

“It’s a constantly changing sport,” Kinney said, and he regularly adds features to his gym to keep up with the latest trends in coaching and safety.

One example is the large pit in one corner of the gym filled with several feet of foam squares. Beneath that lies a trampoline bed three feet above the subfloor. The pit allows gymnasts to practice flips and dismounts safely. Without the need to rely on a coach to spot them, they develop confidence and proper alignment more quickly, Kinney explained.

A large section of the floor features a similar flexible surface to the one used for Olympic floor exercises. This development came about not to give gymnasts more bounce but to protect their bodies from injuries that can develop with repeated shock from landing on a hard surface, Kinney said.

The larger vaulting table, which replaced the narrow pommel horse-style model, and a wider setting for parallel bars also resulted from attempts to prevent repetition injuries.

This care is necessary for the most serious gymnasts. While preschoolers may spend 45 minutes stretching and completing a circuit, some of his highest-level competitors spend upwards of 25 hours weekly in the gym.

Kinney revels in every accomplishment.

“It’s marvelous to watch and see what they can accomplish. The littlest kids are so strong and fit, and that’s not usual in schools these days,” he said.

Promoting Fitness

Kinney began working with young athletes after earning his degree in physical education, and has worked with children from preschool through college age. He still coaches at Cabrillo College as well.

He became involved in fitness during the 1970s, when the Presidential Physical Fitness tests were implemented, and many students struggled to meet those benchmarks.

He came to gymnastics as a coach.

“Gymnastics is something I always wanted to do but didn’t have the opportunity to train where I grew up in Ohio,” he said. It remains a sport that is rare in public schools, and even college programs have faced challenges.

The Santa Cruz Gymnastics Center, which was founded by Trent Dilfer’s mother, Marcie Lynch, in 1973, had several other owners and had been taken over by the parent booster club by the time the group brought Kinney in as manager in 1988. Two years later, he and partners Wayne and Linda Strong purchased the gym. Six years later, the Strongs retired from gymnastics.

As with all sports, parent boosters remain a vital element to success, and Kinney praises the efforts they make to help sponsor meets and allow the athletes to travel to competitions.

He’s also very proud of the coaches he employs and their longevity at the center.

“Our staff is really good,” he said. “They are really terrific people who’ve been with me a long time.”

They include former champions and college-level coaches and athletes. The preschool program is run by June Ralston, who trained and competed at the gym herself.

The staff also offers special programs, such as summer camps that combine gymnastics, crafts and other activities. The gym also hosts birthday parties that provide an introduction to gymnastics and a space to celebrate afterward. Twenty years has clearly not dimmed Kinney’s enthusiasm for the Santa Cruz Gymnastics Center.

“How could you not like working here?” he asked. “It’s just fun to watch.”

Santa Cruz Gymnastics Center is located in Live Oak at 2750-B Soquel Ave., near the 7th Avenue intersection. For more information, call 831-462-0655 or visit their website at www.scgym.com.