All-Star Competitions For New Gyms

[Coachie]

I coach at an all-star cheer program in Okinawa, Japan. All of the kids in our program are US military dependents. We are not a competitive team because we are the only all-star team on the island, are a performance team that performs at different events. That said... we want to compete next year at least once. It is extremely expensive for us to travel to the US so we would look at attending only one competition. What competitions would you recommend?

 

[SL&AM]

I'd consider a competition like NCA in Dallas, Texas or UCA in Orlando, FL. Something big for the full experience, but that you don't need to qualify for it ahead of time.

I'd also consider reaching out for sponsorship's to help with the cost, it's surprising how much people are willing to help when it comes to military families and their kids. If you can see my avatar, my CP's first team was compromised almost solely out of military kids and each wore their parents branch of service on their sleeve. Every competition we went to it was all we heard about.

Good luck!

 

[quitthedrama]

For your team I would choose UCA. There aren't many international teams but there are more than at the other competitions and there is more to do in Florida than Texas, Georgia, etc . You also don't have to deal with Stay to Play and can choose accommodations that are best suited for your team.

"You are only responsible for being honest, not for someone else's reaction to your honesty."

 

[mamabear]

I also think that UCA would be a good choice. As military, you would have Shades of Green as an option for housing. Your military dependants discount will also extend to almost all hotels on site. It usually is a great discount!

You would also be eligible for discounted park tickets and it is a substantial difference. Call and talk with a cast member about it. If the parent is actively deployed then the family is allowed to use military tickets without him or her being there.

All of this would make your trip more affordable! Good luck

 

[kristenthegreat]

I have no useful information, but I'm coming to Okinawa Prefecture in May! My cousin works for the gov't on Zamami Island (fostering Japanese-American relations). I'm going to be touring Japan, so excited

Best of luck!

 

[randomactsofcheer]

How much travel time are you willing to do? How much time off from school are your kids (parents) willing to take? You will also need to take into consideration the age of your athletes and how long it will take for them to adjust to the time change. I would plan for 24 hours of travel each way and 2 days to get used to the time change when you get here, in addition to competition days. I believe Japan is 18 hours ahead of the US, so you will have to deal with it being 8am pacific time or 11am on the east coast while your bodies will feel like it is midnight. UCA and NCA would be great, however a competition on the west coast will cut down on your travel time and make it easier to adjust to the time change. Maybe look into attending a competition that coincides with spring break. There are the USA All-Star Championships in Anaheim at the end of March and Encore in San Diego in April.

 

[mamabear]

fwiw-- military discounts work for the west coast too, if that works better!

 

[randomactsofcheer]

fwiw-- military discounts work for the west coast too, if that works better!

If you do a San Diego competition, you may even be able to book a block of rooms at one of the base hotels. 32nd St, Coronado, and Point Loma all have hotels. In addition, Coronado and Point Loma have beach houses that you can book. But you have to pay attention to the booking window because those normally book within the first two days they are open.

 

[Coachie]

I have no useful information, but I'm coming to Okinawa Prefecture in May! My cousin works for the gov't on Zamami Island (fostering Japanese-American relations). I'm going to be touring Japan, so excited

Best of luck!

May is a great month to come to Okinawa!!! The weather is so nice! My avatar is a picture I took at the beach... Japan is an amazing country.

There are the USA All-Star Championships in Anaheim at the end of March and Encore in San Diego in April.

Finding sponsorship here is tough but we would definitely do some fundraising, but a lot of it will come from the parents pockets. I think traveling to the west coast would be more affordable and would help them adjust to the time change quicker. I like the idea of the USA All-Star Championships or Encore... those could flow right into their spring break from school. The schools here are very understanding of missing time due to sporting events, our high school teams travel quite often. What I think is important is being competitive but also letting these kids see what a competition is really like. I would really love for them to see some great team compete. For most of the kids this is their first experience in cheer. Would it be best to consider ourselves an international team?


Gah! So many things to think about!!

 

[Helen uk uni cheer]

May is a great month to come to Okinawa!!! The weather is so nice! My avatar is a picture I took at the beach... Japan is an amazing country.



Finding sponsorship here is tough but we would definitely do some fundraising, but a lot of it will come from the parents pockets. I think traveling to the west coast would be more affordable and would help them adjust to the time change quicker. I like the idea of the USA All-Star Championships or Encore... those could flow right into their spring break from school. The schools here are very understanding of missing time due to sporting events, our high school teams travel quite often. What I think is important is being competitive but also letting these kids see what a competition is really like. I would really love for them to see some great team compete. For most of the kids this is their first experience in cheer. Would it be best to consider ourselves an international team?


Gah! So many things to think about!!

Consider yourselves as an international team having the opportunity to compete with usa teams and hopefully place well does wonders for confidence. I don't know how feasible this might be but once you pick a competition to go to, maybe go a couple of days ahead and contact an allstar gym to see about practising might be nice for them to see what a USA gym is like.

 

[randomactsofcheer]

Would it be best to consider ourselves an international team?

Gah! So many things to think about!!

Do you operate on a US military base? Are all of your athletes military dependants/US citizens? If so, I would not consider you an international team.

 

[Coachie]

I don't know how feasible this might be but once you pick a competition to go to, maybe go a couple of days ahead and contact an allstar gym to see about practising might be nice for them to see what a USA gym is like.

I love this idea!!! We don't have great facilities... it's very difficult to get equipment here and we practice in a school gym. We don't have our own gym.
Y'all are getting me so excited for our kids!!!

 

[Coachie]

Do you operate on a US military base? Are all of your athletes military dependants/US citizens? If so, I would not consider you an international team.

Yes, all the kids are US citizens. We operate on an Airforce base but we have kids from all branches of the US military.

 

[SarahS]

Yes, all the kids are US citizens. We operate on an Airforce base but we have kids from all branches of the US military.

Are you an independent business or do you operate under the base youth sports program? If you are part of youth sports, CONTACT ME. I run a competitive cheer program on an Army post (although we also have kids from all branches). We have a completely unique program and I think I can help you, especially with funding ideas.

 

[Coachie]

Are you an independent business or do you operate under the base youth sports program? If you are part of youth sports, CONTACT ME. I run a competitive cheer program on an Army post (although we also have kids from all branches). We have a completely unique program and I think I can help you, especially with funding ideas.

No, we do not operate under youth sports, we are a non-profit organization. All of our staff.... from the coaches to the executive board are volunteers. It is a pretty unique situation.