BC Lions
3/18/2009

Following a weekend of grueling auditions followed by an intense round of interviews in front of the judging panel, the 34 members of the 2009 Felions Dance Team have been selected and will make their debut at the Lions’ pre-season game versus the Edmonton Eskimos on June 23rd!

This past Saturday, more than 100 Felions hopefuls turned up at Vancouver’s Commodore Ballroom to audition under the watchful eye of Felions talent scouts, looking for just the right combination of beauty, talent and exuberance required to become a member of the Felions Dance Team. From this group, a number of girls were invited to further demonstrate their skills in a special Finalist Showcase at Metrotown’s Grand Court on Sunday afternoon in front of a celebrity judging panel.

The Felions are a team of 34 beautiful and talented women that represent the BC Lions Football Club at community, charity and corporate events in an energetic, informed and professional manner.

One of the premier dance teams in the CFL, the Felions set and maintain the highest standards of excellence in appearance, talent and dedication to community service. The Felions contribute to the exciting and interactive experience of game day at all BC Lions home games with energy, enthusiasm and team spirit. They are driven by their love and passion for dance, performance, CFL football and BC Lions team spirit!

Click here to view the 2009 Felions auditions photo gallery

By Sheila Abrams
The Warren Reporter

Miranda Lobs wears many hats. First and foremost, the energetic resident of the Panther Valley community is a wife and a proud stay-at-home mom to three young children.

But demanding as that job is, she doesn’t stop there. She is a psychologist. She is a dancer, She is a former NFL Cheerleader. And, most recently, she has added to her resume the title of published author.

Lobs, a native of Florida, is the author of “What No One Ever Told Me About Motherhood,:” published in 2009 by Tate Publishing. The 148-page paperback is a breezy, light and amusing look at the female side of parenting, from a viewpoint which is also honest, sometimes painfully so.

“I don’t want to scare people,” Lobs said in a recent interview. “But there are things even your best friends don’t tell you beforehand. “

Lobs’ research for the book began with an email survey of friends and acquaintances, asking the question, “What did no one ever tell you about motherhood?” Some of the answers she received are quoted in the book. She also kept a journal during her early days as a stay-at-home mom, and the book ultimately evolved. It was her second book. The first, written while she was still in college and is thus far unpublished, is about dating and relationships.

“Before you have kids,” Lobs said, “you know everything – or at least you think you do. You see other parents with their kids misbehaving in public and you say, ‘That’s never going to be me. My kids will never behave like that.’ And then you have kids and one day you realize that everything is not in your control. Motherhood is nothing if not unpredictable.”

The book includes chapters dealing with becoming a parent, the early days of parenthood, which may not match the idyllic storybook image a new mother has, and then the nitty-gritty of dealing with having young children. A light and amusing book, it looks at issues not from the perspective of the professional, handing down advice from on high, but from that of the real live woman who is living with those issues every day. Practical, realistic and comfortable, it may be very reassuring to the young mother who thinks she’s the only one with these problems. It’s also an amusing look back for someone who has been there herself.

Lobs earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of North Florida, with a major in psychology. Subsequently she earned a Master of Arts with the same major. After college, she worked as a psychologist, conducting psychological testing for clinical trials in the pharmaceutical industry.

A dancer from early childhood, Lobs had taught dance since the age of 16, and was a member of a prize-winning competitive dance team while at college. While working in the field of psychological testing, she decided to try out to become a Cheerleader for the Miami Dolphins football team. Her husband, Josh, was particularly supportive of her efforts because becoming a  Cheerleader would give her access to tickets to Dolphins games.

Out of about 600 women who tried out, Lobs was one of the 40 who were selected. Out of those 40, she eventually became one of 16 who toured as an elite show squad. She enjoyed the experience but resigned after a year, when she learned that she was expecting her first child, Joshua, who is now six.

The Lobs family moved to New Jersey in December 2006, where Josh works for Novartis, a pharmaceuticals firm. Along with Joshua, the household includes Jonathan, 4, and Julia, 2. Lobs’s book speaks honestly about her problems with conceiving her first child, and the surprising ease with which she conceived her younger two, as a caveat to young mothers.not to take anything for granted.

In addition to raising her children, Lobs works as a dance director for the New Jersey Football Classic cheerleading squad. She also continues to write. Information about purchasing ““What No One Ever Told Me About Motherhood” can be found at the website www.mirandalobs.com or at www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore.

Auditions are held during the league’s two day camp. This will include a “freestyle”
dance routine, learning a short choreographed routine and a personal interview.
Squads will be formed for each city from the camp. Please arrive on time and be
prepared to stay as long as needed. Detailed information will be handed out to you on
the first day of camp, but here is a brief overview:

Day One:

Candidates will have the opportunity to perform “freestyle” dance moves in groups for
the judging panel. At the end of the performances, the judges will complete the judging
sheets. This will be one part of your final score for the audition.

Day Two:

* Learn a dance combination. (You will be expected to perform the dance
combination many times throughout the rest of the audition process)

* Candidates will perform the dance combination in groups.

* Final judging will be held after all interviews have been completed. This score will
be added to your freestyle score.

* Personal interviews will be held during the afternoon for Day Two.

* Squad members will be announced at the end of Day Two.

Personal Interview:

Panel interview with the judges. Candidates will participate in an interactive interview with
selected judges from the Judging Panel.

Audition Attire

You should wear:

* 2-piece attire – Top: Dance/Athletic Bra Top Bottom: Hot Pants/Short Shorts

(No tank tops or bike shorts)

* Skin colored dance tights

* Any type of dance shoes – jazz, ballet, character, split sole Dance Sneaker, etc.

What Do I Bring With Me:

* Drivers license or passport for identification (Required)

* Water bottle

* Lunch and snacks

* Personal items: make up, curling iron, extra dance attire, etc.

RULES & REGULATIONS

Minimum Requirements:

* High school graduate or have a G.E.D.

* Must live in (or relocate to) the area where the team is based and have reliable
means of transportation.

* Must be able to attend all rehearsals.

* Must be at least 18 years old
For more information, please contact us:

Phone: 205.978.0042
E-mail: info@abibasket.com

[Audition Information]

Germany (Düsseldorf): The countdown is running. Next month the countries German and Japan will fight for the German-Japan Bowl-in the ESPRIT arena in Düsseldorf .

This is the first meeting of both national teams. Both have supremacy of their continents. Japan is a twice world champion and Germany has the best results of all European countries with two bronze medals.

International friendship games between American Football nations are not so often. Therefore the German-Japan-Bowl will be the indicator of two dominant national teams.

For the players are the starting positions in the next international championships very important. Meanwhile who Germany is preparing for the European championship July 2010 in Frankfurt. Japan is concentrating for the World Championship 2011 in Austria.

The Blue Lightnings and the NRW Allstar Team will cheer at the  German-Japan-Bowl.

The Blue Lightnings were launched in 2003 by the former Rhein Fire Cheerleader Anke Dabels (formerly Drosten).

Anke assigned her trainer position to Katharina Kreth and Vanessa Neus in 2005.

Anke came back in 2008 but as Blue Lightning Cheerleader and does photo support. She is an excellent photographer.
In the meanwhile, two junior teams were installed – the peewees “Blue Twinkles” and junior team “Blue Sparks”. We are now a big cheerleader dept.
In 2008 The Blue Lightnings was the vice champion of cheerdance in the German state North Rhein Westfalia and one of the top ten German cheerdancers of  2009.

The Blue Lightnings are a part of the NRW All-Star team (red costumes)

Blue Lightning at  a Harley event

Anke Drosten Blue Lightning Cheerleader and photographer

With Stitch, the team mascot

A Blue Twinkle with  trainer Carina

Blue Lightnings at a football promotion in the city of Duisburg

More NRW All-Stars

[Official Blue Lightning Website]

By Marc Allard
The Norwich Bulletin
Mar 27, 2010

She’s always been a big football fan and she figured there was no better way to get closer to the action.

Brittany Bonchuk, a 2001 Griswold High School graduate, decided three years ago to audition to be a New England Patriots cheerleader.

She’s been with them ever since.

Unfortunately, this will be the last season for Bonchuk to cheer on NFL sidelines.

The Griswold resident once again successfully auditioned for the team over the last month and a half and was named a team captain for a second year in a row last week.

“It’s a great feeling to know I still have it and can perform with the younger girls,” Bonchuk said about being chosen for the team for a third consecutive year.

Team rules are pretty clear, however, that cheerleaders stay on the team for a maximum of three years.

“Every organization has its own rules, but it allows more girls the opportunity to participate and keeps fresh faces on the sideline,” Bonchuk said. “I’m sad, it’s a little bittersweet, but this has been a great opportunity and it’s been so worth it.”

Bonchuk has been performing ever since she left Griswold High where she participated in cheerleading and softball. She participated in several off-Broadway productions, performed with musical artists such as Neil Young and Rascal Flatts and was a member of the dance teams for the Hartford Wolf Pack and Connecticut Sun.

The idea to try out for the Patriots cheerleaders was in the back of her mind, but there was one mitigating factor.

“The commute was intimidating, but I felt it was worth a shot,” Bonchuk said. “It was a great opportunity to watch a game live.”

Bonchuk was named a team captain last year, the only second-year cheerleader chosen as a captain. That makes her the lead in that regard for this upcoming season.

“I was pretty honored by it last year. Now I have a year under my belt and I get to show the others the ropes,” Bonchuk said.

Being a Patriot cheerleader is a year-round job, according to the Griswold grad. The 25 members of the team will travel to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic in about a month for the 2011 Patriots cheerleader calendar photo shoot.

It’s also a chance for the new members of the team — which comprise about half of the membership this year — to bond with the veterans.

“I think the part I enjoy most is the performance aspect, to entertain that many people, to meet new people,” Bonchuk said.

Bonchuk and the rest of the squad traveled to Afghanistan last summer to perform for the troops — and not just the troops in the more populated and safer areas of the embattled country.

“They took us out in Black Hawk helicopters to remote areas in the mountains where there were only at times some 100 troops,” Bonchuk said.

And the enemy wasn’t all that far away as the cheerleaders heard some relatively close fire.

“It was a little dangerous, but we were able to see firsthand what kind of situations our troops were experiencing,” Bonchuk said. “It brings you back to reality, but I wouldn’t have changed it. It was worth everything we encountered.”

Bonchuck is a graduate of Central Connecticut State University and is a Connecticut licensed clinical social worker when she isn’t cheering on the Patriots.

“Most of my co-workers don’t even know that I’m a Patriots cheerleader,” she adds. “It’s my outlet, it keeps me in shape and I certainly don’t mind traveling.”

Bonchuck is also the dance team coach at CCSU where she will return after her last hurrah as a Patriot cheerleader to complete her doctorate degree.

“I don’t sleep much, I drive a lot and I work a lot,” Bonchuk said.

And she’s loving every minute of it.

Videos of this year’s NFL cheerleader auditions are surfacing all around the internet.

Click here to watch the Buffalo Jills tryouts

Click here to watch the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Cheerleaders tryouts

Click here to watch the Jacksonville Jaguars tryouts

From Buffalobills.com:
During the next two weeks, two Buffalo Jills Cheerleaders team up to go behind-the-scenes and provide their insight to the Jills Cheerleader audition process. In today’s third installment here on BuffaloBills.com, Lisa, a three-year Jills veteran and Natalie, the rookie, share their tryout experiences.

Jills Cheerleader first cuts

BuffaloBills.com
Mar 24, 2010

Natalie, the rookie’s blog:

Phew! I made it through the first cuts. I can finally breathe a sigh of relief, at least for the next few days.

The auditions went great . You could see how much everyone wanted to make the first cut because they really brought their A-game. When I first arrived at the convention center Saturday morning I received my number, 38, so I was pretty close to the middle of the group.

It felt like hours went by before it was finally my turn to perform and after my 45 seconds on stage the rest of the day flew by, until we were waiting for results, that is. Once the judges went in the back to calculate the scores the half hour we waited was never ending!

I have been in a large number of cheerleading/dance competitions before but nothing compared to the pressure and nerves I felt while waiting to see if my number would be shown on the big screen. When I finally did see my number I felt a huge rush of excitement that I had made it to the next step of the process. Although I was feeling so happy, it was bitter-sweet to see some of the girls I had become so close with, have their journeys end.

The next part of auditions will continue with a final dance day next week before interviews start. I can’t help but still feel extremely nervous because they have now cut it down to the best of the best. They are going to get a much closer look at your abilities as a dancer as well as who you are as a person and see if you a good fit for their program.

I will have to really stand out and show my personality and make sure they see how badly I want to be a part of their team!

Lisa, the veteran’s blog:

One round is done, three more to go!

The first cut is always the biggest and the most stressful especially for veterans.

We love meeting the new girls and helping them through the audition process but we’re still fighting to keep our own spot on the team. Overall, it’s a very emotional day with lots of tears of joy and sadness. I hope that girls who didn’t make it this time around come back next year and try again.

I auditioned four years ago and wasn’t selected for the final team. Since then I’ve received awards for Rookie of the Year and Veteran of the Year and have had so many amazing experiences. My life wouldn’t be the same if I had decided to give up.

We continue the audition process this week. In the first round we are taught a dance and then given a week to perfect it. The second round is much more difficult. We are taught another dance along with a cheer then asked to perform them that night.

More cuts will be made next week, then again following rookie interviews.

The new season is almost here!

More NFL Auditions today, including the Washington Redskins Cheerleaders. And it’s also  about the time of the year where Sasha gets all weepy and despondent about all upcoming retirements. Well, I promise not to get weepy. And I truly do miss every Cheerleader and Dancer who makes the decision to retire. But I’m going to make a special post to recognize a Cheerleader who’s been reading and supporting this site since it’s very inception.

Heather of the Washington Redskins

She danced for George Mason University where she earned a degree in Environmental Science with a minor in Dance. She ten cheered for the Wizards for 2 seasons before moving on the Redskins. She cheered for the Redskins for 6 seasons, the last 2 as Captain. And then earlier this year she represented her squad at the 2010 Pro Bowl.

From her Pro Bowl Diary:

Day 8- February 1- Its Monday morning and I am returning home. I had such a spectacular week and will never forget the amazing events and new friends I have made. This is my last season as a Cheerleader and I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect ending to a perfect 6 seasons as a Redskins Cheerleader. It has been an honor to be the 2010 Pro Bowl cheerleader and I want to send hugs to all of my teammates and of course-all of the Redskins fans!!! Thanks for making my retirement so special!

Good-bye Heather. We will miss you!

[Heather at Redskin.com]