Vikings’ cheerleaders must be in top condition

Ann Carroll
FoxSportsNorth.com
July 14, 2011

[Calendar Shoot Photo Gallery]

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — While Minnesota Vikings players and coaches wait eagerly for the green light to start the 2011 NFL season, the team’s cheerleaders are hard at work preparing as if it’s business as usual.

The team of 35 women, including 12 rookies, was chosen in April, the annual swimsuit calendar was shot and produced in May and now, in July, that calendar is hot off the presses.

It is labor of love for 14-year head coach Tami Krause. She is the calendar’s artistic director, coming up with the original design concept year after year. The location for this year’s calendar was brand new. The cheerleaders used an eclectic Northeast Minneapolis warehouse as the backdrop, giving the calendar an edgier feel than ever before.

“I am so proud of this year’s calendar. I think it is absolutely our best calendar we have ever had, for sure,” Krause said Wednesday. “I would dare to say it is the best in the NFL.”

It’s also one of the most unique.

“We are very proud that we are the only team in the NFL that features every single team member; that is 35 girls,” Krause said. “That is a big deal. Some teams are very selective; some use only veterans or the top 12 girls, but we feel every single one of our girls is beautiful and worthy of having a full page to represent the Vikings.”

A portion of the proceeds from the year-long sale of the calendar goes to benefit the Vikings Children’s Fund, the charity arm of the Vikings’ organization that helps raise money for the University of Minnesota Department of Pediatrics.

So, with the calendar project off the to-do list, Krause is getting the cheerleaders ready for game day, whenever that might come.

“We are getting the girls’ bodies to their best physical condition, so they can cheer three hours on the sidelines,” she said. “We are focusing on knowledge of routines and learning a lot of choreography. Plus, we are working on confidence-building.”

Krause said there is plenty of conversation about the status of the lockout, but she knows her team must be ready when the Vikings are ready. There has been no delay in her team’s approach.

“We are practicing three days a week right now and hitting it hard,” she said. “The practice sessions can be 3 hours long, with a 3.5-mile run just as a warm up. Following the run, the girls are put through a one-hour cross training session all before one dance step is ever taken. We are constantly working on strength and endurance and tightening up their bodies.”

Nutrition education is also part of becoming a cheerleader.

“We had a nutritionist come in these last two weeks to meet with the girls to help them in their lifestyle and life stage for getting the most energy, recovery time and just making sure the girls’ bodies are ready to go in costume,” Krause said.

Plus, learning the game is a must for the Vikings cheerleaders.

“We ask the girls to start with just getting to know the fans,” she said. “Then, as fans start to engage with the girls about the game, the players, the season, they need to have information and knowledge. We want our girls to enjoy the conversation with fans and show passion toward the organization. The girls read game recaps, and we talk about the upcoming opponents and the schedule. We talk about players, changes — we want to be ready to go for all phases of our game.”

Though the cheerleaders spend most of their rehearsal time on the same practice field as the Vikings inside the Winter Park facility, a handful of them recently returned from visiting US troops across the country. From Hollaman Air Force Base in New Mexico to Fort Lewis in Washington and Fort Hauchuca in Arizona, it is an exciting opportunity for the women to spread goodwill and purple pride.

“They came back and said it was life-changing,” Krause said. “We realize that pro cheerleaders are the whole package and they needed to be prepared in a variety of areas. We do a lot of talking about being role models and representatives of the organization everywhere we go.”