All-Star Cheer Athletics (questions/rumors)

[CricketCheerMom]

Ahh Zach Morris. My childhood crush!

What about Slater???

 

[FamousxMindset]

What do yo you want to see from aspiring coaches? Any specific certifications or experience?

 

[FierceIsTheName]

Absolutely. Most people simply don't believe us when we talk about how we try to have a positive, fun environment. I can't count the number of athletes from other programs who join us and are immediately shocked at how practices are run. The pace of practices is generally faster than what they are used to, but the atmosphere is totally different from what they expect & what they are used to.

That is not to say that every minute of every practice is sunshine and rainbows. There are select times when a different approach is called for. Also, coaches are human and can get frustrated at times - particularly with the older, higher-level teams. Generally, though, we try to make practices fun & positive.

Thats amazing! I wish Cheer Athletics would open a gym in Washington state haha!

 

[BlueCat]

BlueCat How are alternates dealt with at your gym? Are alternate/substitute athletes present on every team, only specific ones, or none at all?

Also, how and when are alternate members determined? What I mean by that is, if an athlete makes a certain team at tryouts, can they be certain they will be on the floor, for said team, come competition season?

It is not particularly common for our teams to have "alternates", but it does happen. There is no set criteria, and it varies from team to team and athlete to athlete. It can theoretically happen on any team, but usually it is only the older, more advanced teams.

I myself was an alternate for my college team my first year, so I understand more than most the frustrations and dynamics that it can cause. As a coach, I can also see the positives as well.

Most common scenarios:

1. We don't have the right "fit" for an athlete and their current skill set. They may be almost strong enough to make a level, but not quite. Generally, they are offered the choice of being a temporary alternate for team A, or be a full member of team B (generally a lower-level team) Some choose to move to Team B, other choose to stay on Team A and fight to earn a spot on the floor.

2. An athlete loses the skills that put them on the team - or fails to progress at a reasonable rate. They are generally given multiple "talks" about how they need skill "X" to keep their spot and given ample time to achieve that. Usually, this results in the athlete getting the skill, but sometimes it simply doesn't happen. It is very rare that any athlete is "surprised" by this type of decision as they know they were supposed to get something, but they don't.

Our alternates are never set in stone. If an alternate gains the skills needed (or resolves whatever situation they were in), then they can find themselves back "on the floor" at any point in the season. They almost always have the option to move to a different team and compete if they wish (and sometimes even remain an alternate for their original team), but most choose not to do that.

It is actually pretty rare that any healthy athlete goes through a season without competing most of the time. Injuries, roster changes, etc. make it so that most of the time, all of the eligible athletes end up competing.

 

[BlueCat]

BlueCat I don't know if anyone's already asked, but do your athletes go on a specific worlds diet? I know some gyms do it, but not all. Just curious!

We generally encourage them to eat healthy, but we do not give any specifics. There is no "Cheer Athletics Diet".

 

[Whit_Marieee]

We generally encourage them to eat healthy, but we do not give any specifics. There is no "Cheer Athletics Diet".

I'd just like to say thanks for being so open to all these questions everyone is asking and answering them! It's really nice to have this thread here to clear things up!

 

[gofriars610]

We generally encourage them to eat healthy, but we do not give any specifics. There is no "Cheer Athletics Diet".

that sounds like an excellent idea for a cookbook though...

 

[Ashley]

We generally encourage them to eat healthy, but we do not give any specifics. There is no "Cheer Athletics Diet".

There's no need to lie. I saw that image floating around on the Internet

 

[cheerheart4life]

There's no need to lie. I saw that image floating around on the Internet

Sad thing is I had more than one girl ask me if they actually followed that diet... Obviously they don't or they wouldn't be able to practice!

 

[Keep_Believing]

Thanks, what about the actual flyer try outs. Do you just look at the girls & their flexibility or do you actually have them go in the air & try out different stunts. Our gym doesn't have flyer try outs, just team try outs. That is why I was curious how flyer try outs were ran.

quote="BlueCat, post: 694473, member: 370"]There are no absolute rules on what body types go where in a stunt, but generally:

Flyers are typically very small for their age. They need to have a healthy physique for their frame (neither too heavy nor too thin for their body type.) They are typically VERY flexible for their age.

Main bases are typically short, but strong. Side bases are medium height, medium build. Back spots are typically tall for their age. Their differences in height (or more specifically - reach) take advantage of leverage/body mechanics to give stunts their best chance for success.

As athletes get older, these differences become more relevant.

Weight is not the only factor that determines who flies, but don't let anyone kid you - it is a huge factor. (Saying otherwise is like trying to argue that height doesn't matter in basketball.) Regardless of what you think is "politically correct" or "fair" - gravity and physics are cold-hearted.[/quote]

 

[Nothanks]

BlueCat when I referred to a kids phone as the "Zach Morris" phone from Saved by the Bell and she replied "Who?" I immediately went home and started plucking the gray hairs.

Hollywood Undead referenced Zach Morris in one of the songs on their new album. I never even thought about the fact that some of the younger listeners won't know who that is! hahaha

 

[cheermommaRN]

I am always baffled when coaches bash the athletes who leave their program. On top of all of the normal reasons why responsible adults don't trash talk children or teenagers, it is a terrible business decision. I would guess around 50% of the athletes who leave our gym for another return after a year or two. If we had trashed those athletes for leaving, they never would set foot in our gym again.

As a member of the 50% I can say that the treatment my cp got when she left is the reason we feel so good about coming back. Every comp we went to and she saw Brandon (her old private coach) he would give her a huge hug and tell her how great she looked on the floor. This was a change for us considering we had belonged to gyms in the past where once you left you were literally dead to them.

 

[cheermommaRN]

BlueCat when I referred to a kids phone as the "Zach Morris" phone from Saved by the Bell and she replied "Who?" I immediately went home and started plucking the gray hairs.

Here is my favorite moment from SBTB...


I still break into this at a moments notice....

 

[BlueCat]

There's no need to lie. I saw that image floating around on the Internet

I was mortified when I first saw that. I guess someone made that as a joke - but we didn't find it funny at all.

 

[BlueCat]

Thanks, what about the actual flyer try outs. Do you just look at the girls & their flexibility or do you actually have them go in the air & try out different stunts. Our gym doesn't have flyer try outs, just team try outs. That is why I was curious how flyer try outs were ran.

We do look at their flexibility & height. We also put them up in stunts & baskets using coaches and/or select veteran athletes from our older teams as bases.

It is important to note that going to flyer tryouts doesn't mean that you get to be a flyer. The reverse is true as well - not going doesn't mean you won't fly. It is just a chance for us to take that part of the tryout process OUT of the "regular" tryout day and give it a bit more attention than it would get otherwise.