Transitioning From Sideline To Competition

Transitioning From Sideline To Competition

It's Novemeber and it's time for cheerleaders and dancers to begin the transition from sideline to competition.

Nov 2, 2017 by Vicki Dill
Transitioning From Sideline To Competition
In November, nearly every American town has gathered to watch their local heroes battle it out underneath the Friday night lights of their school's stadium.

High-ponytailed cheerleaders will tumble, jump, yell, stunt, and of course smile, hoping to give their teams the motivation to push just a little harder for the weekly win.

These moments are remembered forever in the hearts and minds of the athletes, students, coaches, and parents. The cheerleaders also thrive on that feeling of building spirit in the crowd and knowing that their enthusiasm has a direct impact on the outcome of each game. It's not always easy to create an environment of positivity, but that's what cheerleaders do.

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When football season ends, the players go back to a more normal lifestyle, but with the start of basketball season the work never ends for cheerleaders. When they finish supporting their school's two most popular sports, that's when the intense training begins -- it's competition season. 

With a cheerleader's work never being done, how can they possibly find time to prepare and transition smoothly into their competition season? It's a juggling act of extra practices, an organized vision for the season, well-planned training sessions, as well as committed team members who give 110 percent effort for the good of the squad.

Here are a few tips to take every cheer team from sideline cheering into competition season with ease and guaranteed success.

Coaches - Plan Your Season


Before school starts, make a detailed calendar of all the upcoming events. Share these dates with your team members and their parents. Make a physical calendar that is visible for both the coach and team. Make sure to include all required games, regular and extra practices, fundraisers, school functions, choreography dates, and competitions that your team will attend. It's better to "over" plan and cancel than to "under" plan and have to frantically contact your team at the last minute to schedule a practice.


Squads - Get Your Busy Work Done In The Summer


Often cheer teams are expected to make spirit posters and/or breakthroughs for their school's sporting events and spirit weeks. These tasks create camaraderie but are time-consuming for an already-busy squad. If you get those things out of the way during the summer months, your squad's fall season won't feel so jam-packed.

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Coaches - Schedule Your Choreography Dates Early


If possible, get your competition choreography done before school starts. If you are hiring a choreographer, get references and be specific about your team's strengths, weaknesses, and the skills of your team members. Ask your choreographer to give you easier, progressive versions of your stunts as well as more advanced versions that your team can work towards. The same goes for your pyramid and basket sections. 

Coaches & Captains - Integrate Competition Skills Into School Events


The best way to ensure that your team doesn't miss a beat when transitioning from games to competition is to integrate your competition skills into pep rallies, orientation events, games, and even cheerleader introductions. Perhaps your school has three scheduled pep rallies each football season -- those are opportunities for your team to perform three sections of their competition routine.  

Jasmine Arnold, University of Houston cheer coach, shares some helpful details about their practices:

We practice our game day skills at the beginning of practices with slower counts and towards the end of practice we speed up our counts as though we are at competition. I have my team perform everything that we work on during practices at games. If they can hit their game day skills in front of a packed football stadium of 40,000 fans, then we can do so in front of competition judges.
Another idea is to require each cheerleader to perform their competition tumbling pass in pregame introductions or during the game. You can also have the team perform their standing tumbling or jump section, synchronized, on the sidelines for the audience. Not only will this help prepare the team for competition, but it will also pinpoint who isn't consistent -- with certain skills --  before they are in the competition setting in front of the judges.


Coaches & Cheerleaders - Practice Adjustments from Game Season to Competition Season


The Cougar cheerleaders from Houston have consistently tough practices all year. Coach Arnold explains:

I do not change my intensity or work ethic from sideline to competition cheering. My expectations for my team in regards to game day and competition cheer stays the same throughout the year. I believe that game day and competition can be taught, learned, and conditioned all at the same time. We use many of the same skills at games and at nationals.

Coaches & Captains - Schedule a Performance Date 


When the games are finally over and the team has time to concentrate on competing, they're going to need very productive practices with itemized to-do lists. There should be a countdown calendar available and specific dates for when the routine will be performed full-out. A performance date should be scheduled at least one week prior to the team leaving for competition. 

Cheerleaders - Outside Preparation to Ease the Transition


There are several things that team members can do make the transition fluid from season to season. Team members can take outside tumbling classes to work on specific skills. Top girls should be stretching consistently. Brittany Guajardo, a Houston cheerleader, suggests that fundraising should be done during the summer -- and finished before competition season rolls in -- to avoid extra stress or uncertainty regarding finances. 


Cheering at games and competing might sound overwhelming, but every squad can succeed with a well-designed plan. Remember that every practice counts and each event is an opportunity to prepare for competition season!