It is becoming more and more common to see boys on competitive cheerleading teams.

Although many people are opposed to this, I think that it is quite alright. Without male cheerleaders, it would be very difficult for some teams to compete. Male cheerleaders are

strong, talented, and brave.

Many people do not appreciate the strength of male cheerleaders. They are often the back bone of entire squads. When watching a cheerleading competition on television, it is hard to ignore that the girls that get thrown the highest are more often then not powered into the air by male cheerleaders. On a cheerleading squad, the men often have the hardest tasks to complete, such as holding two girls in the air, one in each hand. Male cheerleaders often have huge muscles, for they are required to work out just as much as the football team, sometimes even more. Contrary to popular belief, being a male cheerleader requires an incredible amount of strength.

It is extraordinary to see how talented male cheerleaders are. On co-ed teams, the most talented tumblers are usually the males. They can perform insane and terrifying gymnastics, and make it look easy. Many male cheerleaders can even jump and dance just as well as the females on the team. Male cheerleading involves a significant amount of talent.

It takes a lot of bravery for men to be cheerleaders. Many ignorant people make fun of male cheerleaders, claiming that they are sissies. But think about it: when you see a girl playing for a varsity football team, you think that she is very brave, but why when men are on cheerleading teams are they thought of as wimps? Many people believe that when males do cheerleading they are stripped of their masculinity, when truly it is just the opposite. It is very hard for male cheerleaders to go against the norms of society.

Males play an extremely important role in cheerleading. Many teams would not be successful without their help. People need to stop acting ignorant and come to the realization that male cheerleaders are muscular, gifted, and courageous.

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Cheerleading Gyms

Over the course of a year, I have been to many different gyms that offer cheerleading classes. Some gyms went above and beyond my expectations, while others failed to please me. The gyms that I have been to are Gymnastics Training Center, Flipside, and Cheer Factor.

            Gymnastics Training Center, commonly referred to as “GTC,” is definitely not my top choice. Located in the Lowland Industrial Park in Holliston, Massachusetts, Gymnastic Training Center is closest to my house, yet I would rather drive to a gym forty-five minutes away. GTC is quite a large facility, but it is not taken care of very nicely and is extremely dirty. To begin with, the entire gym reeks of stinky feet! The spring floor is so dirty that it often causes me to wonder when the last time somebody vacuumed it was. Besides the facility being uncleanly, Gymnastic Training Center’s staff is far from friendly. It seems as though the staff care more about the gymnasts than they do the cheerleaders, which often leads to the cheerleading classes being held in the small back-room, which only contains two thin mats. The cheerleading coaches seem very inexperienced and don’t spot tumbling properly. It is not uncommon to see a cheerleader fall out of her tumbling when being spotted by one of the coaches and landing on her knees, or sometimes worse- her head. On top of all of this, the gymnasts at GTC act extremely rude towards the cheerleaders, often imitating and making fun of them. Gymnastics Training Center is far from perfect and I do not recommend it.

            Flipside Gymnastics, located at 2 Franklin Street in Medway, Massachusetts, is an all right cheerleading gym to attend. About twenty minutes away, Flipside Gymnastics is fairly close to home. The gym is not very large, but is kept very clean and organized, much to my liking. The staff here is friendly, but can sometimes be too friendly, letting cheerleaders walk all over them. They need to be stricter, in order to lead classes. Another drawback of Flipside Gymnastics is that the ceilings are not very high, making it hard to stunt. The stunting portion of Flipside’s cheerleading classes is held in a small corner, squished near the balance beams. It is extremely frightening and dangerous to be flying in a stunt when your arms are brushing against the lights and the ceiling fans; it is even more frightening to know that if you fall backwards, you will land on the balance beams! The size of the gym is annoying, for it tends to get over-crowded at times. Besides the small size, Flipside Gymnastics is not a bad gym.

            By far my favorite cheerleading gym, Cheer Factor exceeds all of my expectations. Located at 69 East Belcher Street in Foxboro, Massachusetts, the ride can be up to forty five minutes long, yet the lengthy ride is definitely worth it. Cheer Factor’s facility is the best of both worlds, for it is large and clean. I am amazed that a white spring floor can be kept so spotless, without even the smallest of stains. The Cheer Factor staff includes about ten different coaches, all dedicated to cheerleading. Each coach knows exactly how to spot tumbling, which is a very important characteristic of a coach. Besides being good spotters, every one of the staff members is a cheerleader and can perform the skills that they are teaching. It is almost as though it is magic, for it seems that at Cheer Factor, all cheerleaders advance very quickly, sometimes learning new skills in one day. Cheer Factor offers many different classes, which are broken up by skill level, so that everyone can get individual attention. I suggest that girls new to cheering and tumbling go here, for it is a great place to learn. Cheer Factor also offers All-Star cheering teams, some of which have gone all the way to the Worlds Competition, which consists of the best cheerleading squads in the nation. I am even intrigued by the gym’s catchy name, which is supposed to be a spoof of the hit television show “Fear Factor.” For countless reasons, Cheer Factor is my favorite cheerleading gym.

            After attending many different gyms that offer cheerleading classes, I have developed a liking for some, and a hating for others. I suggest that before a person decides to sign up for classes at a cheerleading gym, they should check out a few others, just to make sure that they are attending the best gym possible. Gymnastics Training Center, Flipside Gymnastics, and Cheer Factor are some of the gyms that I have attended.  

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Bring it On!

I have seen the movie Bring it On a countless number of times, yet it never fails to amuse me. It was about Torrance, the new, peppy captain of her high school’s cheerleading squad, who had to make up for all of the mistakes that the past captain, Big Red, had made. Many people can agree that this was the first cheerleading movie to come into theatres that was actually worth paying ten dollars to see. Bring it On was funny, original, and portrayed cheerleaders well.

            Unlike so many other movies, Bring it On was not trying to be hilarious, but the subtle jokes were still quite funny. An example of the subtle comedy in this movie was when Sparky, the new and insane choreographer, gives the Rancho Carne Torros a completely idiotic routine, filled with hip thrusting and spirit fingers. The squad arrives at competition only to see that two other teams have the exact same routine. This is funny because it is completely ironic. There are many other uses of ironic comedy throughout the film. The comedy in Bring it On was thoughtful and well-planned.

            Bring it On was basically the first cheerleading movie. It was extremely unique and there had been nothing like it at the time. The plot itself was not like any other movies and it was bright and well thought out. The movie makes very many unpredicted twists and turns, making it hard for one to predict what was to happen next. Every time I see the movie, I notice something new, that I had never noticed in the past. I liked Bring it On, for it was very innovative.

            Unlike so many other movies, Bring it On depicted cheerleaders as kind, smart, and dedicated. Bring it On stars Kirsten Dunst, as the quick-thinking cheerleading captain who knows how to fix all of the squad’s problems. Unlike cheerleaders in other movies, Kirsten Dunst’s character is quite intelligent. The movie shows how hard a cheerleading squad must work in order to perform well at competitions, and how much time and effort they must put it. This movie gives a visual to all viewers of just how dedicated cheerleaders are to their sport. It also shows the tight bond that a squad shares. Bring it On was not very stereotypical of cheerleaders as being dumb blondes, an example is that one of the stars was a cheerleader who had a punk style, and was a very talented gymnast. Bring it On revealed the good side of cheerleaders that is not often portrayed in movies.

            I have enjoyed watching this movie numerous times. I definitely suggest going out to the nearest Blockbuster and renting a copy of this brilliant movie. I promise that you will not be disappointed. Bring it On was a great movie, for it was comical, creative, and depicted cheerleaders fairly.   

 

Word count: 480

 

      I recently saw the movie Fired Up and was less than impressed. I couldn’t believe that I had just spent ten dollars to see this dull movie. Fired Up was about star football players, Sean and Nick, who were trying to get with as many girls as possible by ditching dreaded football camp and attending cheerleading camp. Along the way, Shawn begins to actually enjoy cheerleading and falls in love with the captain, Carly. I disliked the movie Fired Up because it was inaccurate, unoriginal, and crude. 

     Fired up was very inaccurate and stereotypical in the way that it portrayed cheerleaders. The movie depicted cheerleaders as stupid, untalented, and desperate. There were countless jokes about cheerleaders and their dumb ways. I’m not saying that there aren’t any cheerleaders who are dumb, because that isn’t the case, but this movie makes it seem as though all cheerleaders are extremely unintelligent. From a cheerleader’s point of view, Fired Up starred untalented cheerleaders. There were a few stand-out girls, who were very good, but, besides that, everyone else performed basic skills, which makes cheerleading seem as though no athleticism is required. The cheerleaders are portrayed as extremely desperate, because even though they know that Shawn and Nick are not there because they love cheerleading, rather they love girls, they act as though they don’t have a clue. Each cheerleader that the boys hit on feels as though she is the only one that they are after, even though she knows differently. The ways that Fired Up described cheerleaders were very stereotypical. 

      The entire movie lacked originality. The plot itself was nothing out of the ordinary and very predictable. If you've seen Wedding Crashers, then you've seen this in terms of story structure and plot. It felt like the less-raunchy, PG-13 cousin of that film. Even the two leads, played by Eric Christian Olsen and Nicholas D'Agosto, have a chemistry and friendship in the film similar to the characters played by Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson in Wedding Crashers. No aspects of Fired Up were memorable, and I thought of it as a “wanna-be” Bring it On. Fired Up was very unoriginal, contributing to my disliking it. 

      Besides being inaccurate and unoriginal, Fired Up was also somewhat vulgar. I recommend this movie for guys, rather than girls, for I think the jokes would be more humorous to guys. The comedy is very raunchy, which I did not enjoy. I don’t know if it was scripted, or if it just the actors, but Eric Christian Olsen and Nicholas D'Agosto were extremely annoying and immature throughout the movie, and they really got on my nerves. The humor used in Fired Up was very foul and I did not enjoy it. 

      I’ll admit that I did laugh once or twice while watching Fired Up, but that does not make up for the rest of the unsatisfying movie. I do not suggest that anyone see this movie, for the only thing it will get them fired up about is the ten dollars that they have just wasted seeing it. Fired Up was wrong, clichéd, and rude.
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Differing from popular belief, making a cheerleading squad involves a lot more then just a cute smile and having a split. New cheerleaders, hoping to try out for a team, need to prepare themselves for the tryout ahead of them. Before trying out, cheerleaders need to work on their tumbling skills, their stunting skills, and their dancing skills.

Tumbling is a key part of being on a cheerleading team. On most high school teams, cheerleaders are required to have at least a back handspring. In order to improve one’s tumbling, they must practice. Besides getting the technique down, a tumbler needs to put fears in the back of their mind and have confidence. I suggest going to tumbling classes at a local gym at least twice a week for three months before tryouts. In this amount of time, one should be able to get a back handspring, or at least progress towards getting it. At tryouts, many coaches will spot tumblers if they need to and the coach will be able to tell if the tumbler is close to getting their back handspring. If a coach feels that a tumbler is very close to getting their back handspring, he or she will often let the girl on the team. If one has never tried tumbling before going to tryouts, I suggest that one tell the coach this and he or she will offer to heavily spot the girl. Despite the cheerleader’s fears, she should still try to throw it with the coach spotting her to show the coach that she is willing to try new things. In order to make most cheerleading teams, a cheerleader must be able to do tumbling.

Stunting makes up a major part of a cheerleading. If a coach asks a cheerleader what position she is in a stunt, she should reply, “I usually ______ (base, backspot, or fly), but I am willing to try any position.” This shows the coach that one is open to trying anything that he or she asks her to do. If one is a base or a back, they are going to want to work on muscle strength in their arms and legs before tryouts. Flyers should be working on core and leg strength before tryouts. Stunting is hard work, but it is a necessary element for making a cheerleading squad.

Cheerleaders looking to tryout for a squad need to improve upon their dance skills. It is very noticeable when one is not a very good dancer. I suggest that cheerleaders sign themselves up for dance classes before tryouts. If this is too expensive, a friend, family member, or TV show can also help. Most tryouts are three days long, giving cheerleaders enough time to learn and perfect the dance that they learn. For those people who are just down-right bad at dancing should practice the dance that they learned at the first day of tryouts over and over again. All cheerleaders should practice performing the dance in front of friends and family, to receive constructive criticism and gain confidence. At tryouts, one should dance with confidence, even if they mess up. Although dancing seems easy, it can be very complicated and cheerleaders need to perfect their dance skills.

There are a few key components necessary for making a cheerleading team. They include tumbling, stunting, and dancing. If one is looking to tryout for their high school team in the fall, they should start preparing themselves now.

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UCA 2009 College Nationals

This past weekend, on Sunday, February 22, ESPN 2 aired The 2009 UCA college nationals. Now, for those of you who have no idea what this is, it is the final competition of the Universal Cheerleading Association for college-level teams. I enjoyed watching this and was not very surprised, yet content, with the results. The top three teams in the Coed Division I Cheer were Morehead State University, University of Delaware, and Missouri State University.

Before Morehead State University took the floor, many spectators predicted a win for them, considering that they were 25-time UCA National Champions. They started their routine off with very strong tumbling, consisting of two full team standing back tucks, which are basically back flips, and eight tumblers perfectly executing double back handspring fulls, which are extremely advanced passes. In their first stunts, one of the five fliers wobbled and nearly fell but managed to stay up and dismount at the correct time. Their cheer was very peppy and invited the crowd to join in, adding spirit points to their score. Their dance was very fast, but they managed to hit every motion with perfection. The rest of their routine consisted of more death-defying stunts and clean tumbling passes. Morehead State University delivered an amazing routine and definitely deserved to be crowned UCA National Champions.

The University of Delaware also did a great job at nationals, but a few things held them back from winning first. In the first stunt sequence, there were a few minor timing issues that needed to be fixed. They completely redeemed themselves in the next stunt sequence, when the bases threw the fliers, who were flipping through the air, nearly twenty feet high! When the fliers landed in the bases arms, they threw the fliers, in a ripple effect, across their heads over to the next group of bases. I think that one thing that dented their score was their lack of extreme tumbling, like that of Morehead State. Even though they didn’t win, they still had an interesting and clean performance.

Missouri State University, placing third at nationals, did an alright job, but made some mistakes. The first thing that the squad did when their performance began was full-team standing back tucks. There were two errors: one of the girls on the team fell out of her tuck and landed a bit messily, and a couple of the men in the back were off on their timing. Again, in another tumbling pass later in the routine, synchronization was off. Even though the squad was not very good at synchronizing their tumbling, their cross tumbling (individual tumbling across mat) was very clean and extreme. The lack of creativity and difficulty in their stunts probably contributed to their third place finish. If they had worked more on the correct timing of their stunts and tumbling, I think that Missouri State University could have placed second.

Each year, the competition gets harder and harder as new, risky stunts and tumbling passes are invented. The top placing teams in the Coed Division I were Morehead State University, the University of Delaware, and Missouri State University, all of whom delivered amazing routines. I enjoyed watching these squads compete, but I hope that next year Morehead does not win, just to spice things up a little.

Word Count: 550

Valentine's Day Competition

I spent my Valentine’s Day with my high school cheerleading squad at the 2009 Winter Tri Valley League Cheerleading Championship. Our performance was okay, but I feel like we could have done a lot better. Some things that I think need improvement are our stunts, our tumbling, and our spirit.

In our first stunts, two out of three flyers fell. The falls were minor, but by now, we should really be able to hit them solidly. An explanation for our stunts could possibly be that we change them so often. For example, we have kept the same pyramid for nearly two months, and execute it perfectly each time that we perform. To improve our shaky stunts, I think that we need to add two more practices a week, in which we only work on our stunts. I also think that we should stop changing our stunts and polish the ones that we have. Although stunting is only twenty five percent of our score, it is very embarrassing when one falls and it tends makes the routine look sloppy.

Another thing that our squad needs to work on is our tumbling. Our tumbling is basic compared to that of the squads we compete against. Many people on my team have tumbling, but execute it messily, with their legs open or toes not pointed. A few people on my team have good tumbling but are afraid to throw it. To improve upon this, I think that everyone on the squad needs to start attending tumbling practices. Our scores would dramatically increase if our tumbling was cleaner and more advanced.

At the beginning of our routine everyone is smiling and high-spirited, but after throwing tumbling passes and hoisting girls into the air, many of my teammates’ spirit has dropped significantly. We need to work on smiling, even if we mess up. Our cheer is very quiet, partially because there are only twelve girls on the squad, and partially because some are too tired from tumbling and stunting to say the words. If we were loud, we would come off as being more confident, thus raising our scores. The spirit has to stay up, in order to improve our scores.

We didn’t do as well as we had hoped at our Valentine’s Day competition, but with a little more practice I think we can become a lot better. Together, stunting, tumbling, and spirit make up a large portion of our score. We have to practice extremely hard in order to progress, but I think that we are capable of it.

Word count: 426

All Star Cheerleading

All star cheerleading squads are becoming more and more popular in America. This division of cheerleading allows cheerleaders to compete at higher levels than they would at Pop Warner and High school levels. Although all star teams are a fun experience, some seem to be more about the glitz and the glam than about the actual competition. Many All Star teams are expensive, superficial, and time-consuming.

Last spring a friend and I joined an All Star squad at a gym that we had been going to for about five months. We were so excited to be part of the team there, but we were somewhat disappointed with the results. Forty dollars was the cost we had to pay just to try out. Once we made the team, we were smothered with hundreds of dollars in costs. The uniform alone cost 300 dollars. To be on the team for a year, it would cost nearly two thousand dollars, not including traveling. A big part of All Star cheerleading is the traveling and the team I had made was planning on going to Las Vegas for a competition. It seemed as though every other weekend, we were to be going on another plane ride and staying in another hotel. The team was not all that we hoped it would be and we ended up not continuing. Yet, the gym kept five hundred dollars of ours from our first payment, and we had only attended one practice! Basically, we attended one 500 dollar practice. All Star teams are not inexpensive and anyone looking to join one should first explore the unworldly costs before making a commitment.

Anyone who has ever been to an All Star cheerleading competition knows all about the flashy uniforms and showy makeup. Although it may be appealing to some, I am not a fan of it. Cheerleading is supposed to be about the routine, not the outfits and makeup. On many All Star squads, the cheerleaders must wear half-tops, which are basically belly shirts. This is unfair to some cheerleaders who are self-conscious about their bodies. They are also required to wear short, tight skirts. Walking around at an All Star cheerleading competition, it is interesting to look at all of the different squads’ crazy makeup. It is not unusual for squads to be wearing different color glitter eye shadow caked on up to their eye brows or bright red, sparkly lipstick. I feel that the outfits and makeup take away from the actual routine.

Another downfall of All Star cheerleading is that it is extremely time consuming. On the squad I joined, there were two-three hour practices a week, and on top of that, we were required to attend two mandatory hour-long tumbling practices a week and one mandatory three hour-long conditioning class. Added all together, that is eleven hours a week, but that’s not all. It is about a forty five minute drive to and from the gym, which consumes even more times. The drive is also challenging if there is bad weather or traffic. All of this does not include the time spent at competitions or that spent traveling to them. All Star cheerleading teams require a lot of commitment.

I recommend to anyone looking to join an All Star cheerleading team to do some research before joining. Although there are many positive aspects about All Star cheering, there are also some negative ones. The cost, makeup, and commitment can sometimes be overwhelming and are some of the negative features of All Star teams.
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Fundraising Ideas

A large part of being on a cheerleading team is going to sleep-away cheer camp in the summer. Here, cheerleaders learn new stunts and tumbling, make new friends, improve their skills, and just have fun! Because cheer camps can often be costly, many cheerleaders do not get to participate in such camps. This problem can be addressed by fundraising. There are countless ways for teams to fundraise.

One fundraiser, probably the most profitable, is the bake sale. In order to have a bake sale, a location must be reserved in advanced. A busy place, like outside of a supermarket, is a great place to have a bake sale because many people are constantly coming in and out of the store. Another great place to have a bake sale is outside of a children’s store because, from experience, I have learned that the majority of people who buy the baked goods are children or parents who have children. Another thing that a squad should think about before hosting a bake sale is what everyone will be baking and how much the baked goods will cost. Squads should try to bring a variety of different baked goods in order to offer an optimum selection for buyers. There are two different ways to price what is being sold. The most common way to price the items is to assign a certain price to each individual item. An original way is to ask customers for a donation, and in return let them choose whatever they want from the table. However it is done, a squad should make sure that the prices are reasonable. This past summer, the squad I’m on had a bake sale a couple of my teammates and I walked down to Dunkin’ Donuts and stood right near the exit of the drive-thru and, surprisingly, we made a lot of money! Bake sales are a great way to raise a ton of money.

Another effective fundraiser is the raffle. Squads can go door to door offering people a chance to enter a raffle, usually ten dollars a ticket. There are two different raffles that squads can choose from. One of the raffles, called the calendar raffle, requires a ticket to be randomly selected each day of the month. Each day, a different amount of money is awarded to the winner, ranging from 100 dollars to 500 dollars. The other raffle is called the 50-50 raffle, in which squads sell raffle tickets for a month and at the end of that month, randomly select a winner, who ins half of the money that the squad raised in the raffle. This encourages people to buy tickets because the more money that the cheerleaders raise, the more money the winner will be awarded. Although many people think that raffles are impossible to win, they aren’t. Take if from me; my grandmother and my dad have each won one of my squad’s raffles.

In order to be rewarded with fun camps, squads must work hard and brainstorm different fundraising ideas. Other fundraisers include car washes, yard sales, and home-made jewelry sales. Fundraising makes it possible for all squads to go to fun cheer camps.

The History of Cheerleading

Cheerleading has been around for many decades. It originated about twenty years after football. Believe it or not, men led the first cheers. It began as simply chanting words in order to encourage the team and has developed dramatically.
The history of cheerleading goes as far back as the late 1880's. The first organized, recorded yell was: "Rah, Rah, Rah! TIGER, TIGER, SIS, SIS, SIS! BOOM, BOOM, BOOM! Aaaaah! PRINCETON, PRINCETON, PRINCETON!" This first cheer was performed at a pep rally at Princeton University. Although a good start, it did not carry over from the pep rally to the games for a few more years. One of Princeton's alumni, Thomas Peebles, moved to the University of Minnesota and in addition to taking along that first pep rally cheer, he also created a college “fight song.” However, it was Johnny Campbell, a first-year medical student, who led the initial organized cheer at a game in 1898. The inspiration to jump out in front of the bleachers came from two sources: a student letter and a professor's response. A student fan had written to the school newspaper to complain that their losing team would start winning if it had the backing of the fans. One of the university's professors took this statement one step further and declared that the combined stimuli of hundreds of students, focused on sending positive energy, would turn the tide of their losing streak. Johnny Campbell latched on to the theory and moved the cheers to the game. His example filtered to other campuses, paving the way for bigger changes, thus the history of cheerleading began.
Cheerleading was now a recognized force in schools. “Yell leaders” in the 1930's began to use megaphones, drums and noisemakers to heighten the excitement. Then World War II had come and men left to fight. Women took over cheerleading and began to dominate the sport. In fact, when Laurence “Herkie” Herkimer founded the Spirit Industry and organized the first cheerleader camp at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas in 1948, 52 girls attended. The camp taught fundamental cheerleading skills. Throughout the next two decades and into the 70's, the sport branched out to support wrestling, track and swimming, in addition to the well-established football and basketball. The expansion of cheerleading inevitably attracted the attention of television producers and, in1978, the International Cheerleading Foundation initiated the first nationwide broadcast of the Collegiate Cheerleading Championships.
By now, it was evident that the elevated skill levels being demonstrated in gymnastics, partner stunts, pyramids and advanced jumps needed uniformity to balance the competitive field. It's hard to imagine, but it was not until the 1980's that standards for cheerleading competitions were set. With these standards in place, the history of competitve cheerleading is relatively young compared to the history of cheerleading.
Cheerleading promotes community service projects and has been recognized by the media as an important way to promote enthusiastic, positive attitudes and school spirit. It's been quite a journey through the history of cheerleading; starting with Thomas Peebles' humble pep rally cheer to the competitive industry that exists today and make no mistake - cheerleading's popularity continues to roar.

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The Dangers of Cheerleading

            It is a known fact that cheerleading is an extremely dangerous sport. In fact, it is the most dangerous female sport. Many injuries and even deaths have been linked to cheerleading.

            On April thirteenth, 2008 cheerleading squads from all over New England traveled to Worcester’s DCU Center to compete for a chance to win the Minuteman Cheerleading Championships. Energy Cheer, a level six squad from Watertown, Massachusetts, ran onto the floor with spirit like no other team.  The squad was halfway through their routine, and so far had not made a single mistake. Twenty year old Lauren Chang, from Newton, Massachusetts, threw her flier, who was performing a kick-twist basket toss, into the air. On the flier’s way down, she accidentally kicked Lauren in the chest. When Lauren Chang rushed to the back of the mat, and collapsed, her teammates knew something was wrong. At once, paramedics sprinted onto the mat to try to help her. As quickly as possibly, she was loaded into an ambulance and rushed to Saint Vincent Hospital and then transferred to UMass Memorial Medical.  Sadly, the doctors could not do much for her and she died the next day. The autopsy revealed that her lungs had collapsed. At this same competition, three other cheerleaders were rushed to the hospital due to neck, back, and ankle injuries.  

            When the tragic death of Lauren Chang hit the newsstands, there was one person who was not shocked, for the same thing had almost happened to her. In 2006, Smith was cheering for a team at Sacramento City College. She was a flier and was performing an advanced stunt that required her to do a handstand and then be thrown before landing in the arms of her teammates. But the trick didn't go according to plan because the base that was supposed to catch her lost his balance and Smith fell to the ground, head first.  She ended up with a spinal fracture that doctors said was a millimeter away from paralyzing her.

            Another cheerleader, from Medford, Massachusetts died in 2005. On August ninth, during a practice session at East Elite Cheer Gym in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, fourteen year old Ashley Burns injured her spleen. Burns was in the middle of a move known as an arabesque double-down when she failed to complete the second of two twists. She landed chest down and died shortly after.

            Performing stunts, like flying -- being thrown in the air sometimes 15 feet or more off the ground -- can win trophies when done well. When done wrong, it can be devastating, as Chelsea Barrett’s team learned firsthand on Aug. 26, 2004. That's the day the assistant coach wanted Chelsea to try something new.  She was thrown up 15 feet in the air and came down straight on her head. She had a fractured skull, she had bleeding on the brain and after that she had a lot of memory problems and had to re-learn almost everything that she had ever been taught.

            From 1982 to 2006, 10 female athletes have died from injuries sustained  during cheerleading stunts performed at the high school and college level, according to the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research. More and more serious sports injuries have been linked to cheerleading. Many cheerleaders who are injured during practices are trained to “suck it up” and compete no matter what. This is very bad because they usually end up injuring themselves more. Cheerleading is an exceedingly dangerous sport and all members of the team must be very cautious and aware of the injuries that can occur as a result of cheerleading.  

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How to Execute Basic and Intermediate Stunts

The most basic cheerleading stunt is called a thigh stand. Before attempting a thigh stand, all members of a stunt group should stretch their muscles. To begin, the left and right bases should stand facing each other. The bases are in charge of lifting the flier up and catching her legs and lower back. The flier, who is the cheerleader that is lifted up, should stand between the two bases, but not completely blocking the base’s view of each other. The back spot, who is in charge of catching the flier’s upper back and head, should be standing behind the flier. The bases bend one of their knees, not letting the other knee touch the ground, in a lunge position. When the flier is on the base’s thighs, the bases should wrap their arms around her legs. The back spot grabs onto the flier’s waist and helps her to get onto the base’s thighs. The flier’s job in this stunt, and most others, is to keep her legs locked out and her core tightened. To bring the flier down, the bases lift one arm up and the flyer grabs onto them. The bases will then proceed to lower the flier to the ground. Although this is a basic stunt, cheerleaders can still get injured, so cheerleaders should make sure that they are stunting correctly and safely.

            The toe-touch basket toss is a popular intermediate cheerleading stunt. Once again, it requires two bases, a flier, and a back spot.  The toe-touch basket can be broken into four different steps. The first step, which is the load-in, requires each base to place her right hand on her left wrist. She must then grab the right wrist from the base across from her with her open left hand. This creates the basket, or platform, for the flyer to stand on. The basket should be loose with elbows slightly bent. The bases should be squatting with their backs straight. The flier then put her hands on the base’s shoulders and loads into the stunt on the balls of her feet, keeping her chest up. Then the back spot comes in and holds the ankles of the flier. The dip is the second step. During the dip, the bases bend their legs even more, still keeping their chests up. They also shrug their shoulders downwards. All that the flier needs to do during this step is keep her muscles tightened. The back spot dips with the bases, still grasping on to the flier’s ankles. The third part of this stunt is the throw. During the throw, the bases use their momentum from squatting down to stand up and straighten their arms all the way. The flier must push off of the base’s shoulders and immediately straighten her legs and hollow out her body. She must ride to the peak and then snap a toe touch, toes pointed, chest forward and her hands reaching for her toes.  The back spot’s job during the throw is to throw the fliers ankles, with all of her strength, into the air. The catch is next. During the catch, the bases and the back spot have the same job. They must lift their arms up above their head’s and catch the flier as high as possible, to avoid injuries. The flier must sit in a cradle position and wrap her arms around the base’s necks. This stunt has a higher level of a safety risk, so it is a good idea to have multiple spotters standing next to the stunt group to help catch the flier if anything goes wrong.        

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My Nationals Experience

When I was in seventh grade, I decided to join the local pop warner cheerleading squad, and we ended up going to nationals that year. In order to get to nationals, squads must qualify at three other competitions. The first consists of teams in the Hocomock League, which are all located close by. In this competition, my squad had a flawless performance and we received first place. During the second competition, which consists of competitors all over Massachusetts we made a few small errors, and once again, were rewarded first place. Our third competition was located at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Rhode Island. This competition was a long one- it ran from ten o’clock in the morning until twelve o’clock midnight. The long wait was worth it, for that night, at eleven forty-five, my squad discovered that we were on our way to nationals in Orlando Florida!
The first few days in Florida consisted of lots of practice. Every day we had one practice, which was three hours long in the morning, and another, that was two hours long, at night. During the rest of the day, we were free to do as we wished, and in Disney world, there is always something to do.
On the third day, we rose promptly at six in the morning. First, each of us had to curl her hair into small little ringlets in a pony tail on top of our head. Next, we got dressed and quickly ate breakfast. After breakfast, we found a spot on the grass and had one last practice. About twenty minutes later, the busses arrived and we were on our way to The Milk House.
Upon our arrival at The Milk House, we were sent to a room to warm up our routines. This is always the most challenging part of competition because it is the last time to practice anything before you compete. After a successful warm-up, we had to wait backstage for about a half hour until we were called onto the mat. This was probably the most stressful half hour of my life. Many of my teammates could not control their nerves, and one of my friends even threw, minutes before we were called to go on stage! I was extremely nervous and felt that at any moment I was going to faint. Even though, one might feel sick backstage, they still must perform, for every member of a cheerleading team is important.
It was the time that we had all been waiting for. Finally we heard our name called and ran out onto the mat with lots of spirit. We delivered one of our best performances yet and we could not wait to see what place we had come in. We were competing against twelve other teams from all around America, and found that we had gotten sixth place. To me, sixth in the nation is quite an achievement, even though I would have loved getting first.
The next four days in Disney World, my friends and I visited all of the different parks. We made our way through the Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and the Magic Kingdom. My favorite ride was definitely Splash Mountain because it was so exhilarating. On top of that we ate at many different restaurants, my favorite being the rainforest café. Overall, nationals was a great experience that I will never forget.
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Is Cheerleading a Sport?

Cheerleading has come a long way since the saddle oxford shoes, pleated skirt- wearing days when the only criteria you had to meet to be a cheerleader was a flashy smile. Nowadays, there are many more requirements that must be met in order to make a competitive cheerleading team. Cheerleading routines can be broken down into four categories- stunting, tumbling, dancing, and cheering.
During stunting, one cheerleader, the flyer, is lifted by three other cheerleaders, the bases. The bases are lifting a lot of weight, which requires a lot of muscle strength. The bases are assigned the job of catching the flyer, even if they have to put themselves in danger. The flyers need to have balance and be flexible in order to perform skills in the air. Their skills range from scorpion double-downs, in which they are standing in one foot, holding their other foot behind their head and are then thrown into the air and spin twice before being caught; to a simple thigh-stand, in which the flyer stands on the thighs of the bases. Stunting requires skill, flexibility, strength, and courage, all of which are requirements for playing sports.
Tumbling is basically gymnastics skills. Gymnastics is considered a sport world-wide and is an event in the Olympics. Cheerleaders perform many of the same tumbling skills that gymnasts execute. On top of that, cheerleaders must throw multiple standing and running tumbling passes and also complete the rest of their routine without tiring. Tumbling and gymnastics have very few differences, yet some would not deem cheerleading a sport.
Many people consider dancing, whether it is hip-hop, jazz, or ballroom; to be a sport. During a cheerleading routine, cheerleaders are required to perform a synchronized dance, which is usually a combination of many different genres of dance. Cheerleaders are required to have flexibility in order to do certain dance moves. All cheerleading routines also include a cheer. During the cheer, cheerleaders must yell the cheer while performing different motions, and sometimes even tumbling and stunting. Cheerleaders must keep their muscles tight and hit every motion sharply in order for the cheer to look clean, and this requires muscle control and strength.
Most sports, including cheerleading have a set of rules and regulations. In high school cheerleading, The American association of cheerleading coaches and administrators (AACCA) constructs the rules, from general guidelines, for specific legal and illegal stunts. The cheerleaders are penalized if they violate any of the rules, usually in the form of point deductions. Competition is the one shot that cheerleaders have to show how much effort they have put into their routine, and in the two minutes that they have, they work extremely hard, and try to have a flawless performance without violating a single rule.
As in any sport, injuries occur during cheerleading. Cheerleading was recently given the title of the most dangerous female sport by People magazine. Over 16,000 cheerleaders are severely injured each year. Recent studies show that cheerleading is responsible for fifty percent of girls’ head and spine injuries.
High school and all-star cheerleading competitions are on ESPN, the entertainment and sports programming network. So, if ESPN considers it a sport, why do so many people insist that it is not? The definition of sport, according to dictionary.com, is an active diversion requiring physical exertion and competition. Cheerleading does require physical exertion and is all about competition. Cheerleading should be considered a sport because, if abiding by the definition of a sport, it is.


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My First Post

This is my first post. woot woot!