Swinging from the uneven bars, pounding on the springboard, pushing through vigorous conditioning and completing routines on floor and beam, gymnasts spread all throughout the gym. One stands out in the crowd as she struggles to fall into the normal pattern.

Senior Mary Korlin-Downs switched gymnastics teams early November. Under circumstances out of her control, she was forced to leave Perpetual Motion Gymnastics and search for a gym willing to take in a new gymnast so close to competition season. Korlin-Downs tried several different gyms, but in the end, went to Flips Gymnastics since she knew a couple girls there.

“I started gymnastics when I was six at Perpetual Motion because I started a swim school there. I saw all the big girls doing flips and stuff, so I begged my mom to put me in [recreational] classes, and shortly after I was put on team. I was there for 10 years and then all of a sudden some personal conflicts came up where I had to switch gyms,” said Korlin-Downs.

It was difficult for Korlin-Downs because she had been with the same team for a decade, and change does not come easily. Workouts become a routine which are easily fallen into. Being part of a team is like being part of a family.

Korlin-Downs explained, “I miss everything about Perpetual Motion. I miss my teammates because I was with them for 10 years. I miss my coaches because I was with them for 10 years. It’s really hard especially with it being my parents’ decision, and honestly, the first week of switching gyms was the hardest week of my life because of my teammates and new coaches and new set ups and the way they work. Overall it’s been a hard experience, but I think it will be good in the long run.”

Korlin-Downs was not the only one missing her team; her team was missing her too. After being together for 10 years, through the ups and the downs, it was hard to see a friend leave.

An old teammate of Korlin-Downs, eighth grader Peyton Classon, said, “Mary was the person in the gym that always had a smile on her face. Every day you came into gym, she was always there as positive as can be, even through all her injuries. Everyone looked up to her. Even when I didn’t really know her at all and I was younger, I looked up to her. She always had so much spirit, whether it was at a meet or just on a Friday fun-day.”

Even though she misses Perpetual Motion, workout at Flips has been a helpful experience. The practices push Korlin-Downs to her limits to prepare for the upcoming season.  The average workouts are faster-paced and are more cardio based than workouts at Perpetual Motion.  This will help her become better acclimated for the competition season practices.

“They have really fast workouts with a lot of conditioning. On an average day at Flips, I would arrive at 3:30 p.m., you put on weights on your ankles and do conditioning and bar shapes for 15 minutes, and then we stretch and condition for probably an hour and then we go straight to events. We do four events each day and depending on the day, we’d go half-an-hour to an hour at each event. On events, we’d do routines. At the end of all four events we’d do another half-an-hour of conditioning and a half-an-hour of flex, which is splits and stretch and then we’re dismissed to go home,” said Korlin-Downs.

An early dream for Korlin-Downs was to earn a college scholarship so she could compete for a division one gymnastics team. Her new coaches at Flips have been helping her get in contact with more colleges and universities that offer D1 gymnastics.

“I also like Flips a lot. I’ll get to know more people in the gymnastics world just because of both gyms so like that’s kinda cool. I really like how they have a level 10 team. I also like how the girls are very interactive and include me, and the coaches are really good at helping me find colleges. Every other day they’re asking me if I’ve talked to colleges, and then they’ll call colleges for me. I like how they’re helping me get my name out there,” said Korlin-Downs.

Gymnastics is a large part of Korlin-Downs’ life and will continue to be a large part of her life even through injuries and conflicts.

“I like [gymnastics] the most because it’s challenging, because even with the long days, you work so hard for the six to eight meets per year. So, I think the challenge to get all your skills to get competition ready and doing your best is the best part,” said Korlin-Downs.