We are so excited to let everyone know that The Flipside on Quarry Road is getting the ultimate gymnastics facelift, bringing equipment up to international competition standard and tripling the size of the current facility. This project has been 7 years in the making. During that time, we have experienced so many setbacks and knock backs and it is just so amazing to finally see 7 years of persistence and hard work paying off and the work finally started on the dream facility.
During the lockdown period, the management and board of trustees of the club – which is a registered charity – was able to finalise the grant funding required to start the massive project and building work starts on the Quarry Road facility this week, ready for opening whenever Scottish Government gives the green light to return.
The facility will include 3 tumble tracks – Skakun for Tumbling, Eurogym for Teamgym and a fast track – 2 vault and trampette (again Eurogym) run ups and competition landings, 2 floor areas, one fully sprung, and a rebound area with trampoline and double mini trampoline.
The expanded capacity of the club means we can accommodate so many more participants in a wide variety of classes. We already offer pre-school classes right through to adult gymnastics, classes for fun or to compete at the highest international level; a full range of classes for all ages, abilities, levels and disciplines. With the extended space and increased capacity, we can offer more still, especially to marginalised and isolated groups or those who currently do not feel they have access to sport and activity. At the heart of the club – our long-term goal is to be able to reach out further into our community and offer opportunities for everyone to get involved – irrespective of age and circumstances. The club, and our funding partners, are investing heavily in Irvine and North Ayrshire and our fantastic coaches and volunteers who deliver these classes. I think it is testament to the success of the club and the support we have in the community that the funders were eager to work with us to make this happen. We believe this expansion plan can have a hugely positive impact on the community
The Flipside will become a centre for Non-Olympic gymnastics disciplines. The equipment we are installing is the exact same equipment used at World and European Championships in Tumbling and Teamgym. Both of our floor areas are of international competition standard, the sprung floor for Acrobatics and Display and the carpet area for Teamgym. We already have plans in place for international competitions in 2021 for gymnasts to represent the club and hopefully, selected to represent Scotland and GB. The improvements and expansion will benefit EVERY gymnast who walks in the door, regardless of their level of experience.
The building work is expected to continue throughout August and the club hopes to have completed the majority of the build and installation by the indicative date for return of indoor sport, 14th September, given out by the First Minister on 30th July.
We are so excited to welcome back existing members and say hello to new ones and see everyone benefit from the improvements we are making.
