Crash mats at competitions and showcases. Is there something I’m missing?
I love Aerial, but one of the main reasons I can do it is because there’s a crash mat and knowing how to fall safely helps to relieve a lot of my anxiety around the heights and the risks involved.
I’m currently training for a competition next spring and I’m seeing on the website that crash mats are optional. The set-up they provide is basically a gymnastics mat. You know, the fold up kind that you use for stretching 😂. But they will provide a crash mat upon request, which I will be asking for.
I’m just curious as to why a competition, especially one that bills itself as kid friendly and learning oriented, would not just have crash mats set up for every performer. I have been on this sub and in the Aerial Instagram world for about a year now and that’s been long enough to see that everybody that’s had a catastrophic injury has had one during a performance or practice that doesn’t have crash mats. These are not just beginners, these are aerialists of all levels - including experts. At my own gym, I’ve seen one of the instructors fall from the top of the Silks and luckily land on the crash mats safely (she bounced off and flew a couple feet across the room. It was crazy.). This was during a rehearsal for a performance, where luckily there were gonna be crash mats.
Is this just an aesthetic thing or a culture thing? What disappoints me so much about this specific “family friendly” competition is that by not making crash mats the default you’re training the kids there to believe that using a crash mat is less-than and takes away from your performance. I’m old AF and asking for a crash mat isnt embarrassing to me… but I’m guessing it might be for a 16 year old who’s friends are competing without one.
What are your thoughts on this? Is there something I’m missing?
Full disclaimer: my children call me “safety Mom” and my mother is a physical therapist who rehabs people with severe neck and back injuries.