Need Help Finding My First All Star Team...tryouts Coming Up Soon.

cheerbailey · May 27, 2016

Hi guys, this is my first season doing cheer. I live in an area where we have 6 or 7 squads within a 45 minute drive of where I live. I go to a private school that doesnt have cheerleading as a sport or activity. So, I wanted to join an all star team. I've been working on my tumbling and dancing. I've also attended clinics put on by a few of the area teams. I'm wondering, what should I be looking for in my first team/gym I sign up for?

Our teams tryouts are going to be starting soon. Can I make an all star team with a little bit of tumbling training and practice I've had with the few camps, classes and workshops I've attended?

What do coaches want to see when selecting who they want for on their team? How do I find out if I made a team and do gyms have different teams? If so, how do the different teams work?

Thanks. I'll update after tryouts

justcheering · May 28, 2016

@cheerbailey Did you like the gyms you took clinics at? I would look for a gym where you like the atmosphere- are the coaches and athletes welcoming? Did you feel comfortable and safe?

I'm not a coach but I know for tryouts most coaches have told me just to do my best, smile and have fun! Since you have minimal experience, you'll probably be placed on a level 1 team so coaches aren't looking for skills so much as they'll be looking at your work ethic and whether you seem coachable and have a positive attitude. Again, I'm not a coach, this is just what I've heard and seen!

Every gym has different teams based on the size of the gym and the athletes that tryout. Teams are based off of level and age.

Every gym has a different tryout process so whichever gym you tryout at will let you know when you make a team and they should tell you at tryouts when you should expect to hear back from them.

I hope tryouts go well!

cheerbailey · May 29, 2016

justcheering said:
@cheerbailey Did you like the gyms you took clinics at? I would look for a gym where you like the atmosphere- are the coaches and athletes welcoming? Did you feel comfortable and safe?

I'm not a coach but I know for tryouts most coaches have told me just to do my best, smile and have fun! Since you have minimal experience, you'll probably be placed on a level 1 team so coaches aren't looking for skills so much as they'll be looking at your work ethic and whether you seem coachable and have a positive attitude. Again, I'm not a coach, this is just what I've heard and seen!

Every gym has different teams based on the size of the gym and the athletes that tryout. Teams are based off of level and age.

Every gym has a different tryout process so whichever gym you tryout at will let you know when you make a team and they should tell you at tryouts when you should expect to hear back from them.

I hope tryouts go well!

I took clinics at all the gyms. There were two gyms I kinda liked. I got along with the others but didn't care for the coaches and felt like I learned some...but not as much as I would have liked. Three gyms I really liked. I got along with everyone there and felt like I learned a good bit. I liked the coaches but the distance and higher costs are an issue. I'm not sure if driving an hour in one direction, especially once the school year starts up or when winter hits is going to mix. Then the last two gyms I loved. They were the most local. I loved the coaches and the people I was in my clinic with. I also felt like I learned the most at these two clinics. The one team has three of my friends that I made from school and I made so many others there. The other, has two close friends and I really liked their team. They are both expensive for costs though. Distance wise. The one I'm closest to is only a ten minute drive from my school. The other is a fifteen minute drive from where I live. I'm not sure which of these two would be better for me to join. Any advice?

We have tryouts coming up on Monday since we're out of school. I'll definitely update.

justcheering · May 29, 2016

cheerbailey said:
I took clinics at all the gyms. There were two gyms I kinda liked. I got along with the others but didn't care for the coaches and felt like I learned some...but not as much as I would have liked. Three gyms I really liked. I got along with everyone there and felt like I learned a good bit. I liked the coaches but the distance and higher costs are an issue. I'm not sure if driving an hour in one direction, especially once the school year starts up or when winter hits is going to mix. Then the last two gyms I loved. They were the most local. I loved the coaches and the people I was in my clinic with. I also felt like I learned the most at these two clinics. The one team has three of my friends that I made from school and I made so many others there. The other, has two close friends and I really liked their team. They are both expensive for costs though. Distance wise. The one I'm closest to is only a ten minute drive from my school. The other is a fifteen minute drive from where I live. I'm not sure which of these two would be better for me to join. Any advice?

We have tryouts coming up on Monday since we're out of school. I'll definitely update.

The last two definitely sound like the best fit! They're close, you liked the people and the coaches and you felt like you learned a lot! Allstar is definitely very expensive but I'm sure either gym would have fundraisers and stuff. And since I'm guessing your parents are paying- closer = less money spent on gas

Distance wise they both sound pretty good! I drive 15 minutes to my gym and it's not bad at all!! Granted I don't have to drive there during rush hour lol. I would tryout at both, see how that goes and also see when practice times are! Then you could do a practice run and see how long it takes you to get to each gym depending on when you have practice. Cause the 10 minute drive could turn into 30 depending on location and traffic! Haha. But really either one sounds great! I don't think you can go wrong with either of them honestly.

cheerbailey · May 29, 2016

justcheering said:
The last two definitely sound like the best fit! They're close, you liked the people and the coaches and you felt like you learned a lot! Allstar is definitely very expensive but I'm sure either gym would have fundraisers and stuff. And since I'm guessing your parents are paying- closer = less money spent on gas Distance wise they both sound pretty good! I drive 15 minutes to my gym and it's not bad at all!! Granted I don't have to drive there during rush hour lol. I would tryout at both, see how that goes and also see when practice times are! Then you could do a practice run and see how long it takes you to get to each gym depending on when you have practice. Cause the 10 minute drive could turn into 30 depending on location and traffic! Haha. But really either one sounds great! I don't think you can go wrong with either of them honestly.

I did really like the two closest gyms. I don't know though if I want to do just one team or if it would be acceptable to do both. I'm probably going to do the gym closest to the school as my main preference. Then the one close to home can be secondary. You were saying about costs. What are the typical costs of all star cheer? My tryout is supposed to be Wednesday. I mistyped on my last post on here.

justcheering · May 30, 2016

cheerbailey said:
I did really like the two closest gyms. I don't know though if I want to do just one team or if it would be acceptable to do both. I'm probably going to do the gym closest to the school as my main preference. Then the one close to home can be secondary. You were saying about costs. What are the typical costs of all star cheer? My tryout is supposed to be Wednesday. I mistyped on my last post on here.

You want to do a team at both gyms? I've heard of it being done but I think the teams can't compete at the same competitions or something like that haha. That sounds like a good plan! And it can range in price, my small gym costs were about $1500 for the entire season but our uniforms were really cheap. I wanna say that for most people it's anywhere from $1000 to $5,000 and upwards haha. Your gym will give you a breakdown of costs though! Everything is done in smaller payments (at my gym at least) which is nice

BlockHead · May 30, 2016

cheerbailey said:
I did really like the two closest gyms. I don't know though if I want to do just one team or if it would be acceptable to do both. I'm probably going to do the gym closest to the school as my main preference. Then the one close to home can be secondary. You were saying about costs. What are the typical costs of all star cheer? My tryout is supposed to be Wednesday. I mistyped on my last post on here.

The cost depends on the gym. We pay $235 per month, but that includes everything except for her uniform and travel expenses. Your gym owner should be able to give you this information.

cheerbailey · May 30, 2016

justcheering said:
You want to do a team at both gyms? I've heard of it being done but I think the teams can't compete at the same competitions or something like that haha. That sounds like a good plan! And it can range in price, my small gym costs were about $1500 for the entire season but our uniforms were really cheap. I wanna say that for most people it's anywhere from $1000 to $5,000 and upwards haha. Your gym will give you a breakdown of costs though! Everything is done in smaller payments (at my gym at least) which is nice

I don't think I'm going to tryout the other gym if I make the first team. But I'm going to leave the other team open in case I bomb the first tryout that badly (I don't foresee that happening). I was talking to a friend that cheers for the gym that I'm trying out for first, and she tells me a full year at the gym uniform and all runs approximately $3,000. She tells me that money also covers travel expenses and other team related expenses. Does this sound reasonable? Should i make the team (I should make it), when do you usually receive your uniforms? Do you have a special fitting session or is it dependant on your shirt and short size? Does your gym have a special practice uniform and is that common among gyms?

Sherry said:
The cost depends on the gym. We pay $235 per month, but that includes everything except for her uniform and travel expenses. Your gym owner should be able to give you this information.

I was told by a friend that the gym that I'm trying out at first, it's $3,000 for the full year your first year. She tells me that it covers all your team related expenses. Does this sound reasonable?

BlockHead · May 30, 2016

cheerbailey said:
I don't think I'm going to tryout the other gym if I make the first team. But I'm going to leave the other team open in case I bomb the first tryout that badly (I don't foresee that happening). I was talking to a friend that cheers for the gym that I'm trying out for first, and she tells me a full year at the gym uniform and all runs approximately $3,000. She tells me that money also covers travel expenses and other team related expenses. Does this sound reasonable? Should i make the team (I should make it), when do you usually receive your uniforms? Do you have a special fitting session or is it dependant on your shirt and short size? Does your gym have a special practice uniform and is that common among gyms?

I was told by a friend that the gym that I'm trying out at first, it's $3,000 for the full year your first year. She tells me that it covers all your team related expenses. Does this sound reasonable?

Yes, I pay about $3200 for all expenses to the gym including uniform. Additionally, I spend between $1500 and $2000 on hotels. Plus money on gas, food, shirts, bows, etc. Depending on how much travel you do, I would expect to spend at least $5000 each year.

Every gym is different. We once went to a gym where we received our uniforms in January (our first competition was scheduled in December....not good). At our current gym, I think the kids are fitted in August and we should get them in October as that is when competition season starts.

justcheering · May 30, 2016

cheerbailey said:
I don't think I'm going to tryout the other gym if I make the first team. But I'm going to leave the other team open in case I bomb the first tryout that badly (I don't foresee that happening). I was talking to a friend that cheers for the gym that I'm trying out for first, and she tells me a full year at the gym uniform and all runs approximately $3,000. She tells me that money also covers travel expenses and other team related expenses. Does this sound reasonable? Should i make the team (I should make it), when do you usually receive your uniforms? Do you have a special fitting session or is it dependant on your shirt and short size? Does your gym have a special practice uniform and is that common among gyms?

I was told by a friend that the gym that I'm trying out at first, it's $3,000 for the full year your first year. She tells me that it covers all your team related expenses. Does this sound reasonable?

That sounds like a good idea! Always good to have options! And that cost sounds reasonable! I know travel costs and stuff definitely depend on if you do local comps or out of state ones. Like at my gym we only did 4 competitions and luckily since the farthest one was only a 3 hour drive, we didn't stay the night! But the gym will tell you all about that. Depending on when your first comp is, you should receive your uniform at least a month before if not sooner! You will have a special fitting session, allstar sizing is weird so they will make sure you get the right top and skirt size! My gym has a practice outfit but it's optional, they just want you to wear the gyms colors. Most gyms have a practice outfit though!

BlockHead · May 30, 2016

justcheering said:
That sounds like a good idea! Always good to have options! And that cost sounds reasonable! I know travel costs and stuff definitely depend on if you do local comps or out of state ones. Like at my gym we only did 4 competitions and luckily since the farthest one was only a 3 hour drive, we didn't stay the night! But the gym will tell you all about that. Depending on when your first comp is, you should receive your uniform at least a month before if not sooner! You will have a special fitting session, allstar sizing is weird so they will make sure you get the right top and skirt size! My gym has a practice outfit but it's optional, they just want you to wear the gyms colors. Most gyms have a practice outfit though!

BlockHead · May 30, 2016

You also might want to ask your gym if they typically do 1 or 2 day competitions. We typically do out of town competitions that are 4+ hours away. But we have to do overnights as they are mostly 2 day competitions. Plus there are times my CP has to be at the venue before 7am and it would not be in our best interest to not stay at a hotel.

Ask how many out of town competitions you have. This year, CP's gym has 10 competitions and only 4 of them are local.

Also check and see if your gym participates in competitions where out of town athletes are required to stay at specific hotels. Those hotels can get pricey.

cheerbailey · May 30, 2016

Sherry said:
Yes, I pay about $3200 for all expenses to the gym including uniform. Additionally, I spend between $1500 and $2000 on hotels. Plus money on gas, food, shirts, bows, etc. Depending on how much travel you do, I would expect to spend at least $5000 each year.

Every gym is different. We once went to a gym where we received our uniforms in January (our first competition was scheduled in December....not good). At our current gym, I think the kids are fitted in August and we should get them in October as that is when competition season starts.

That doesn't sound too bad considering cheer (at least competitively) for how many competitions you do. From what I'm told by a friend on the team I'm about to tryout for, they did something like 12 competitions and only 2 or 3 of them they didn't need a hotel room for. So, I'm expecting to spend some quality time in hotels.

You had said about your one gym you had a competition in December and didn't expect your uniform until January. What did you guys do for unis at your competition in December...especially if you had new kids that didn't cheer the year before and had a back up uniform?

justcheering said:
That sounds like a good idea! Always good to have options! And that cost sounds reasonable! I know travel costs and stuff definitely depend on if you do local comps or out of state ones. Like at my gym we only did 4 competitions and luckily since the farthest one was only a 3 hour drive, we didn't stay the night! But the gym will tell you all about that. Depending on when your first comp is, you should receive your uniform at least a month before if not sooner! You will have a special fitting session, allstar sizing is weird so they will make sure you get the right top and skirt size! My gym has a practice outfit but it's optional, they just want you to wear the gyms colors. Most gyms have a practice outfit though!

I'm told by a friend of mine that we do most of our competitions out of the area. We only had like 2 or 3 in area. So, I'm expecting to have a lot of quality time in hotel rooms over weekends. My friend tells me that our competitions usually start in either September or October. But I had seen her uni the other day as I was hanging out with her. I had been a little taken aback by how short her uni was. I had always gone to private schools where we had a school uniform and couldn't show much skin with the exception of the lower parts of our legs below the knee. That kinda has me a little nervous as I've never worn anything too revealing. I may have to try her uniform on as we're about the same size. Do you have to buy a new uniform every year or do you get multiple years out of a uniform? You said about your gym having practice attire. I think the gym I'm going to has that as well. What is that usually like?

Sherry said:
You also might want to ask your gym if they typically do 1 or 2 day competitions. We typically do out of town competitions that are 4+ hours away. But we have to do overnights as they are mostly 2 day competitions. Plus there are times my CP has to be at the venue before 7am and it would not be in our best interest to not stay at a hotel.

Ask how many out of town competitions you have. This year, CP's gym has 10 competitions and only 4 of them are local.

Also check and see if your gym participates in competitions where out of town athletes are required to stay at specific hotels. Those hotels can get pricey.

I know from my friend that they do some one day competitions especially if the drive is with in a few hours. I think the furthest they go for competitions on a one day basis is the Baltimore, MD/ Philadelphia, PA/Atlantic City, NJ areas. For us where we live that's within a 4.5 hour drive. The furthest they have gone for a competition is Austin, Texas. I was talking to her mom, who is an assistant coach with the team, they are talking about going back out there and maybe doing a competition in Orlando, FL! As far as I know they have specific hotels that they stay in...but the team does try to do fundraisers to help defray the cost of flying and hotel rooms of the further away competitions.

justcheering · May 30, 2016

Edit: posted twice

justcheering · May 30, 2016

@cheerbailey some uniforms are pretty revealing but it depends on the team! Most teams have full tops now which is nice and I had a girl on my team with longer legs who asked to get an inch added to her skirt so depending on the company making them it's definitely possible! I'm pretty sure typical use for a uni is 3 years so that's nice! Our practice wear is just a tank with the gyms logo and Nike pros with the logo as well but I've seen some gyms with a matching sports bra and shorts! You can search up practice wear threads on here too to get an idea

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