Patrick Lane
Hill Country News
July 19, 2011

The first round of auditions for the 2011-2012 Texas Stars Ice Girls was held on Saturday, July 17.

Ice Girls Coordinator Kristin Ditto said 11 ladies were selected to advance into finals week with the final squad announcement later this week.

Stay tuned for the FINAL photo of the new Ice Girls team which will be performing this hockey season at Cedar Park Center.

2011-12 Checkmate Auditions begin August 14th at Extreme Ice Center in Indian Trail, N.C.

The Charlotte Checkers are looking for highly motivated candidates to become part of their interactive cheer team. Candidates should be at least 18 years of age, must commit to a full year of rehearsals, games, (including preseason and playoffs) and be prepared to support the Checkers in their second American Hockey League season!

The schedule is as follows:

Sunday, August 14th – Preliminary Auditions at Extreme Ice Center, Indian Trial, NC
Registrations at 11 a.m. auditions noon-5 p.m.

Those who advance past Sunday prelims will be asked to continue through “finals week.”

MUST be available Monday, August 15th and Tuesday, August 16th from 7-10 p.m. for finalists rehearsals. MUST be available for a 30 minute business interview at Checkers main office (located in downtown Charlotte) on Monday (8/15) or Tuesday (8/16) afternoon. Final auditions will be held at XIC on Wednesday (8/17) from 6-8 p.m.

All candidates must arrive at auditions wearing midriff top and long, fitted dance pants. If you can ice skate please come with skates to showcase skating ability. If you are not yet a skater, please be prepared to learn skating techniques before the start of the Checkers season.

Please pre-register by sending your name and contact information to checkmates@gocheckers.com.

Come be part of the most exciting sports team in town!

[Texas Stars Ice Girls]

Audition for the AHL Houston Aeros dance team, the Aero Dynamics!

The team is hosting two prep classes in advance of the auditions.

AeroDynamics Prep Classes
July 16th and July 23rd
Both days will be from 1pm-3pm
$25 each class.
Please RSVP to Aero Dynamic Dance Director/Choreographer – Kirstin-Alys
www.redsatindp.net / (281)-288-4599 / red_satin_dp@yahoo.com

Click here for additional details!

Texas Stars Ice Girls are getting ready for their upcoming auditions for the 2011-2012 season. Auditions will be held starting July 16th at MA Dance Project in Cedar Park, Texas.

“We are looking for a diverse group of ladies to be ambassadors for our hockey club as well as role models in the community”, says former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader and Ice Girls Director, Kristin Ditto. We are looking for young ladies with the total package……dancers, cheerleaders, skaters, good communicators, attractive and passionate.” We highly encourage interested candidates to sign up for prep classes starting July 1st, and all interested candidates should register online at www.texasstarshockey.com. You may also like us on facebook.

Kristin Ditto, Director, has over 15 years experience in the sports and entertainment field. She spent two years with the internationally acclaimed Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders from 1998-2000 and is the daughter of the legendary, pro wrestling WWE hall of famer, The American Dream, Dusty Rhodes.

From TexasStarsHockey.com

Over thirty aspiring young dancers participated in the first ever Texas Stars Jr. Ice Girls Dance Clinic on Saturday, June 11. Instructed by members of both Texas Stars and Dallas Stars Ice Girls squads, the clinic was the first of many events aimed to involve young participants of the community with the Texas Stars Ice Girls.

Dancing technique and instruction was the order of the day, but the fun didn’t stop there. Following an Ice Girls themed arts and crafts session, participants were taught basic etiquette, self-confidence, and what it’s like to be called an Ice Girl.

Keeping energy levels high, everyone was treated to a quick snack break before it was time to dance. Not only did the girls put their dancing skills to the test, but they learned real routines used by the Ice Girls.

The clinic wrapped up as each young star was invited to show off dances they had learned in front of their parents. At the end of the day nobody was left empty handed as the girls were given their own Ice Girls goodie bag. Each participant had the option to take photos and get autographs from their favorite Ice Girls.

“It was a fantastic day,” said Texas Stars Ice Girls Director, Kristin Ditto. “Everyone had a fun time with the dances. I think we made an big impact and hopefully inspired a few young girls with the basics of etiquette and self confidence.”

With the success of the first clinic, planning has already begun on future Junior Ice Girls events.

“I think the clinic was an important step for the Texas Stars Ice Girls program, and we are looking forward to growing the Junior Ice Girls in the community.”

By John Royal
Houston Press
Mar. 18 2011

The Houston Aeros have ten games remaining in the regular season. As of today, they are one point out of first place. However, they’re just five points out of fifth place, and finishing in fifth could mean they miss out on the playoffs. There’s also the possibility that they could finish all of the way down in seventh place, so close are the teams in the AHL’s West Division grouped together.

The Aeros play their cross-state rival San Antonio Rampage twice this weekend — Saturday here at Toyota Center and Sunday in San Antonio. The Rampage are in sixth place, but they’re just six points behind the Aeros. So it really is key that the Aeros find a way to win these games so that they can start to get some distance and breathing room between themselves and those teams below them.

Helping to cheer on the team and fire up the crowd this weekend will be the Aerodynamics, the Aeros cheerleading squad. And if you watch the Dynamics, like any good male should, you’ll notice something just a little strange. Sure they’re wearing the tight cheerleading clothing. Sure they’re waving pom-poms in the sky. But if you look closely, you’ll notice something else: The squad has two sets of twins, or as I call them, twin twins.

I talked to one set of the twins, Kristen and Kirsten, before last Sunday’s 6-3 win over Manitoba. And I talked to them before the game as they were doing something that I’ve never seen the Texans cheerleaders or the Rockets’ Power Dancers do, and that was they were all lined up at the entrances to Toyota Center, greeting the fans as they entered. And this wasn’t just a one-time thing, the Aerodynamics do this before every game.

Kristen and Kirsten are in their second year as Aerodynamics, and I was comforted by the fact that while I couldn’t tell them apart — they’re identical twins, after all – neither could their teammates. But the two young ladies found that to be funny.

They said they became cheerleaders for the Aeros because they love hockey, mentioning the fast pace, aggressive action and the hard hitting as the reason why they’re such fans. However, if you’ve watched the Aerodynamics during a game, you have noticed that they’re never in one spot for too long as they’re constantly roaming the stands for giveaways and contests, or they’re out on the ice between periods doing routines or assisting with more contests.

“We see a lot,” Kristen said. “We go downstairs usually at the five-minute mark before intermission, so we see about 45 minutes of the game.”
​
The Aerodynamics do spend a lot of time in the stands, interacting with the fans, which, once again, is not something I’ve seen the other squads for Houston teams do. And the ladies say they never have any problems with the fans, not even with some who might have had a bit too much alcohol. Kristen said the only problem she’s ever had in the stands is when she misses a step running or down the aisle.

During their free time, Kristen and Kirsten are students at the University of Houston, and both are assistant teachers, Kristen working with preschool ages and Kirsten working with elementary kids — you’re going to have to find the schools out on your own. But becoming teachers is something they would both like to do after graduation.

“I love children, and I just want to stay in education,” Kirsten said.

And any time that they’re not at school, or working, or at games, they’re still handling Aeros duties.

“We have two practices a week, but it’s really a nonstop thing,” Kristen said. “You have to continuously work out, continuously practice at home just to keep your body in shape and your mind focused on the routines, and everything. It’s really a non-stop job.”

And when they’re not practicing, they’re doing charity work associated with the team. The Aerodynamics are involved in charitable activities for Fanatical Change and St. Jude’s.

This is an important weekend for the Aeros — it seems like every weekend is an important weekend for this team — and doing their best to help out the team will be Kristen and Kirsten and the rest of the Aerodynamics squad. So say hi when you walk into Toyota Center, and always make sure the aisle is clear before you head up to concessions so that you don’t run into one of the young ladies while she’s throwing out free T-shirts or playing air guitar for the air guitar contest.

High energy and high responsibility
Shaun Bill
Pro Hockey News
Jan 31, 2011

PEORIA, Ill – Yes, they are pretty. Perhaps that is stating the obvious, but it is the truth. The Peoria Rivermen Ice Girls are certainly attractive young women. Dressed in their trademark skin-tight uniforms, they are often the first official faces a fan sees upon entering the arena – greeting fans and handing out promotional items.

And while they are plenty nice to look at, the old cliche still rings true – there is more to them than meets the eye.

The Ice Girls have a big responsibility. In Peoria, they are responsible for the in-stands promotions during stoppages in play and the on-ice activities between periods. Or, in the words of Arena Hostess Megan Miller, “We’re responsible for turning a hockey game into a party.”

Miller is the Master of Ceremonies for these parties. Accompanied by her entourage of eight Ice Girls, Miller and her crew dance with little kids, quiz fans, throw T-shirts, and generally run their tails off for four straight hours, making sure fans are having fun. It’s not just the fans that are having fun, though.

“For me, it’s a great opportunity to be a part of the Rivermen hockey tradition,” said Ice Girl Samantha, a 20-year old student at nearby Bradley University. “I’ve always loved hockey, so when I had this opportunity to get in front of people and socialize, start cheers, and just put a smile on someone’s face, I jumped at it. It sounds corny but the best payment you can get from something is a smile and we get tons of them every game, I love it!”

“We get the best reactions, definitely, from the little kids,” Samantha continued.

By far, the Ice Girls biggest fans are also the littlest fans. Wherever the Ice Girls go around the arena, gaggle of children appear.

“We can’t walk through the concourse without getting mobbed,” Miller added, “They love to dance. It’s just a lot of fun. We pay special attention to our younger fans. They might not remember who won the game but they will remember they had fun. There is more than hockey at the Rivermen games!”

Being an Ice Girl sounds like a pretty good gig. You dance, you give away stuff, you get mobbed by kids – but there is a bit more to it than that. “It is a lot of fun but it is also a lot of work,” said Miller, “We arrive two hours before the game and are working from the moment the doors open until the end of the game.”

You get to see a lot of hockey though, right?

“Not really,” said Miller. “We are running so much. We’ll do a promotion on one ide of the arena and then have to hustle to the other side for another promotion just a few minutes later – sometimes I don’t even know the score of the game.”

It takes more than good looks and the ability to hustle to be an Ice Girl, too. “You really got to have a bubbly, outgoing personality,” Miller says. “It certainly isn’t as easy as it looks.”

Ice Girls on the NHL level often are responsible for shoveling snow off the ice during breaks in play. That job is handled by youth hockey players in Peoria. That wasn’t the original plan, according to Miller.

“We had some beautiful girls come in who also had skating ability. Unfortunately, they just didn’t have the right personality for the job. All our girls are gorgeous, but we are also in charge of the fan experience and they’ve got to be outgoing, personable and smart. It goes way beyond sex appeal.”

So, working with the fans, what does Miller look forward to the most?

“Big, rowdy crowds,” she said emphatically. “The more people we have, it seems, the more they want to yell, dance and sing. We love those nights.”

She anticipates some large crowds coming up.

“April 9th is the final home game of the regular season and Fan Appreciation night. There will be free hot dogs and popcorn that night. It is going to be huge.” Miller said. “March 5 the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders wil be here. That will be another huge crowd. I look forward to working with such a well-known, professional group.”

Miller is also looking forward to March 26. “There wil be a kids jersey giveaway. We love the energy the kid bring to the arena. Oh, and February 19 we’ll have the Wedding On Ice…where a couple will show their dedication to love and hockey at the same time,” she adds with a smile. “It should be a lot of fun.”

And that is what it boils down to – fans having a good time…no matter what the result on the scoreboard.

When the fans laugh, yell and, in the end, walk out of the arena with a smile on their face, the nine, now rather tired, young ladies from the Peoria Rivermen Ice Girls know they helped make that happen.
Contact the author: Shaun.Bill@ProHockeyNews.com