Detroit Pride Cheerleader Liz H prior to Lions-Bears game

You know, it really was an unfair challenge. After all, it has been almost 30 years since the Bears fans had their own Honey Bears on the sidelines. They are a vulnerable species when it comes to cheerleaders.

So when the Detroit Pride Cheerleaders and their Directors, Andrea Wilamowski and Megan Agrusa, came up with this challenge for Bears fans (get a free, hot off the presses DPC Swimsuit Calendar, just for yelling, “Go Lions”) temptation crossed the minds of all the Bears faithful. Throughout the pre-game tailgates prior to the Lions-Bears game on September 29th, there were plenty of orange Bears supporters in addition to the silver Lions fans. And not too many Bears fans accepted the challenge. Some would say, “Go Lions” and maybe throw in a “NOT!” but they all considered throwing their Bears under the bus for the swimsuit photo ensemble.

And some Bears fans succumbed, and no one seemed to enjoy it more than calendar cover Felicia, who appeared to have super special powers of persuasion over Bears fans.

At Bookies Bar & Grille, one of the morning stops for the Pride, the unofficial but officially beloved cheerleaders for the Lions, Felicia sensed a weak Bears fan, willing to be trapped by the lure of the DPC Calendar. See the sequence below, like a scene from Animal Planet:

-Felicia senses a weakened Bears fan,
-Bears fan stands in crowded restaurant and shouts his “Go Lions!” even while pointing to his Bears logo (face blurred to protect his reputation after such sacrilege, after all, Chitown is Bartman country)
-and Felicia’s joy in accomplishing her ensnarement of enemy forces

And Felicia’s work was not done, as she continued trapping Bears fans with the appeal of the DPC Calendar.

In addition, the Pride Cheerleaders also met the world smartest baby boy at Bookies. After all, finding their silver poms the one thing that was worth holding onto and not letting go was a smooth move on his part. Nice move, little man, nice move. If only the other pre-game fans were so smooth.

But DPC Amber not only hung out with super smart baby, it seems like the constantly smiling Pride Cheerleader is a magnet for unique Lions fans, or vice versa. Amber not only was a fav of the Lions super fans, she visited with Lions fans in their own tailgate ready hot tub! So, you might want to keep track of the Amber’s whereabouts, it seems like she is the center of lots of fun!

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Raiderettes during their first home game

Current third year veteran Laura during her TopCat rookie season, October 2011

Jessica of the Tennessee Titans Cheerleaders, September 2012

Saturday night, the Detroit Pride Cheerleaders held their calendar release party, which showed their continued growth and prominence in Detroit’s sports scene. The unofficial cheerleaders that cheer on the Detroit Lions presented a Caribbean theme for the party. Most of the calendar was shot during a cruise to the Bahamas, St Maarten, and St Thomas, with some additional photography performed locally. Also, the party was held in their brand new 8,000 square foot studio, complete with multimedia capabilities. Andrea Wilamowski founded the Pride, which is now part of her Woodward Entertainment Group, which also now grown to also manage some of the Lions super fans..

Andrea is joined this season by Director of Cheerleading Megan Agrusa, who previously danced for the Pistons for four years and was part of Andrea’s other venture, the Motor City Kitties.

After the Caribbean drummer departed the stage after cocktail hour, the stage belonged to the Pride. Three sets of Cheerleaders performed, each in different uniforms that the Pride have incorporated through the years. Then each member walked in swimsuit as Andrea talked about each one. Then, it was time to see the photos for each month, and eventually, learning Felicia was calendar cover photo!

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Sunday’s Titans home opener will be a big event Sunday in Nashville, but the Titans Cheerleaders and the Director of Cheerleading Stacie Kinder are adding to the festivities by celebrating “15 Years of Cheers” with the alumni returning to LP Field for a big halftime performance. It is going to be a memorable day for all former and current TTC, but particularly for their four new captains in their first regular season home game. Hope all the returning cheerleaders from past eras have a spectacular time, and here are the four captains starting their own new era, from photos taken during last season’s Titans home opener…

The first signs of the significant influence of the Oakland Raiderettes, Football’s Fabulous Females, prior to last Sunday’s home win against Jacksonville was the presence of scores of uniformed Junior Raiderettes (perhaps Gridiron’s Gifted Girls?), from tots to teens, excitedly heading to their on-field performance appointment through the parking lots and from the BART station on their way to the Coliseum. In addition, it was clear that the Raiderettes reign over Raiderville, from every angle. Raiderville is the pre-game entertainment experience where Raider Nation converges to get their daily recommended requirements of Silver and Black before they head to their seats.

On stage, there was Jeanette Thompson, who hosts the Raiders “Behind the Shield” video series and is the Raiderettes Director, as she interviewed former Raiders from distinct Oakland Super Bowl eras, Lincoln Kennedy and Otis Sistrunk. “J” as her interviewees fondly referred to her, had to use some of that footwork she demonstrated on the sidelines as a Raiderette herself, in a figurative sense, to keep those two in line telling stories from wild Raiders days during a fun discussion of Raiders past, present, and future.

Meanwhile, heads turned, as the swoosh of silver poms was heard at the entrance of Raiderville. Eight Raiderettes entered the tented autograph area, as fans lined up for their autographs next to the Raiderville stage. Caitlin, Althea, Leah, and Marcy signed autograph cards, as Raider fans young and old swooned with delight.

But at the core of the Raiderettes is entertainment. After Jeanette wrapped up her stage time with the Raiders legends, it was time to get the crowd energized as four Raiderettes hit the stage for a performance for the Raiderville crowd.

After their performance, the Raiderettes perpetual motion machine was in full force, as they headed off to the stadium. Some of the Raiderettes performed on the field as the Raiders left the locker room, and also, the pre-game performance encompassing the entire field was the Raiderettes joined by their young junior counterparts, as proud parents clicked away to photograph their daughters on center stage.

The Raiderettes returned to midfield as the halftime entertainment, as each Raiderette was introduced by name, culminating with those with the longest tenure, including six year veteran Natalie.

The Raiderettes performed on the sidelines, on the field, near the goal line, as silver popped across the stadium. The Raiders had no trouble keeping the Jacksonville offense in check, and easily won 19-9. But come on Raiders, we need more than one touchdown to see the complete Raiderette celebration. No matter what, the Raiderettes are one of the most airborn squads there can be, often punctuating energizing moves with high jumps to electrify the crowd.

So, are the Raiderettes as fabulous as they claim? Nope, “Fantabulous to the n’th degree” does not even come close to the importance of the Raiderettes to Raider Nation. So here they are, Football’s Fabulous Females, 2013 edition:

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Kim Garrett, Director of Bomb Squad Dance Team, has a second audition planned for her squad. The Bomb Squad Dance Team supports the Beltway Bombers, a charter team of the Atlantic Coast Professional Basketball League. The Bombers play their home games in Largo, Maryland.

The CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats Cheerleader Tenisha regrets that she did not start dancing earlier, but when she was young, Tenisha concentrated on karate. By nine, Tenisha won gold and silver medals for Team Canada at the Junior Olympics in karate.

In her fourth year with the Ticats, Tenisha’s hometown is Stoney Creek, Ontario, and Tenisha graduated from Brock University with a BA in Dramatic Arts and also went to George Brown College for Commercial Dance.

During the August 24th game against Winnipeg, Tenisha was also featured on the big screen dealing out Tiger-Cats Cheerleader playing cards for a game break contest. Appropriate, because having Tenisha on the sidelines is a big deal for Ticats fans!

Click on the Continue link below to see more photos of Tenisha from the Hamilton-Winnipeg game, and there are more photos at this link.

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