Phil of the Buffalo Pro Cheer Blog was present on both Friday and Saturday for the Jills appearance at the Season Ticket Holder Draft Day Parties.
By Doug Moore
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
There was hair. Lots of it. Smiles right out of a toothpaste commercial.
And, yes, with a stage full of pretty young women vying to be a St. Louis Rams cheerleader, there was on display an ample supply of what brought many of the men to this tryout.
For the first time, the Rams invited the public to be a part of the selection process. Everyone who came to the Pageant last week got a ballot to vote for their favorites. Those results were factored in to the final tallies by the six judges.
It was the Miss America pageant meets “American Idol.” And it was the Rams reaching out to the public, a way to generate interest for a team that in the last decade has gone from one of the best to one that offers little to cheer about.
So why were these 36 finalists trying so hard to become a cheerleader for a team that was 1-15 last year, the worst record in the NFL? A team that hasn’t had a winning season in seven years? A team that saw more and more seats filled by fans for the opponents as last season wore on?
“I’m always hopeful,” said Shannon Ward, 23, who was selected for her third year as cheerleader. “I’m a very positive person.”
There is excitement building. The Rams had the first pick in the NFL draft Thursday and selected Sam Bradford from Oklahoma. Such a quarterback with a marquee name could provide the on-field leadership needed to turn the team around — and the kind of hype the Rams hope will bring back fair-weather fans.
And as the Rams’ ownership gets sorted out, it appears both men in the running want to keep the team in St. Louis.
All good things to cheer about.
Theresa Mancini, Rams cheerleader coordinator, says there is more at stake here than shaking pom-pons on the sidelines in the Edward Jones Dome for $75 a game.
The women, many of them college students, are ambassadors for the Rams, making more than 500 public appearances a year at golf tournaments, grand openings, awards banquets, corporate sales meetings and fundraisers. The cheerleaders have met with troops in Iraq and entertained on a Caribbean cruise.
The women at Tuesday night’s tryout were judged first on poise and ease of public speaking based on a question by host D’Marco Farr, a former Rams player. The questions ranged from basic (“What was your first job?”) to abstract (“What makes you happy?”)
They were then critiqued on how they looked in a two-piece swimsuit (red, brown, pink and white were popular colors) and how they danced (there were some missteps but no mishaps).
It must have been assumed that all the women have team spirit. They were not asked to do any cheers.
The crowd of 1,500 — labeled a sell-out although the tickets were free —included supportive family members, many holding signs and clicking photos. And there were guys such as Brandon Stewart and Jason Hudson, both of O’Fallon, Ill. Both football fans. Both appreciators of beautiful women. The cheerleader tryouts dovetailed those interests nicely.
Shelly Harris and her friend Traci Basden, suburban moms, seemed a bit out of place — until Harris introduced her son, Nicholas.
“I like hot girls,” Nicholas, 13, of St. Charles said. Basden’s son, Clay Goodman, 14, expressed the same sentiment with head nods and giggles.
Both women were in the good graces of their sons, but unsure if they themselves deserved the moniker of Mother of the Year.
“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Basden said.
The first of the 25 women selected to be a member of the 2010 team was Emily Spriggs, 19. The announcement brought a loud, prolonged celebration of fist pumps and whoops from proud dad Don Russell standing down front.
“You OK? Don’t have a heart attack,” Farr said to Russell, of Eureka.
After Russell’s excitement settled to a simmer and he had a little time to think about it, he said he was suffering from “apprehensive fatherhood.” As a Rams season ticket holder, Russell can’t wait to see his daughter cheering at the Dome. But he also knows there will be men there ogling the cheerleaders.
“About 70 percent of males go to watch the cheerleaders,” said Jeff Kannel, whose sister-in-law, Jayne Cox, was among those selected.
Kannel’s comment will do little to ease Russell’s anxiety. But a winning season, the first since 2003, would surely help.
Mayle one of 66 vying for Colts cheerleader spot
By Jason Moon
The Brazil Times
Fans of Northview guard should take note as a former cadet is a finalist for the 2010 Indianapolis Colts’ cheerleader squad.
Mara Mayle, a 2008 Northview High School graduate, is one of 66 women to have made the final cut.
“This year, we’re planning on 32 (cheerleaders),” Colts’ cheerleader coordinator Theresa Pottratz said. “It’s not definitely set in stone, but it will be pretty close to that.
“It varies (from year to year). It depends on different things.”
Pottratz is in her fourth year as the coordinator. She said the squad has cheerleaders from across the Midwest. She added one of the finalists has been traveling back and forth from West Virginia.
Approximately 230 women tried out this year and the final night of cuts was April 22.
Pottratz said the first day of auditions took place April 10. Since then, cheerleaders have met on Tuesdays and Thursdays for three-hour practices.
The final list of cheerleaders will be determined at Plainfield High School Wednesday, May 5.
The 66 finalists will take part in the public audition, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Doors open to the event at 7, and tickets cost $10.
Tickets are available at www.colts.com.
The final tryout is a show performed by all 66 finalists.
In addition, residents of Clay County have the opportunity to vote for the cheerleaders by going to the website and accessing the cheerleader page. From there, choose profiles of the finalists from a pull down menu and click on the profile to vote.
Mayle’s picture is on the site. All the finalists have a short biography attached.
NHS Guard Instructor Ruth Ann Medworth said Mayle was always “a great performer.”
“Some people, when they’re on the floor, you just watch them, because they have that performance ability,” Medworth said. “She was always fun to watch.”
By Abby Breeden
The Exponent
Not many boyfriends have texted their friends to say, “Guess who’s dating a Colts Cheerleader?”
Last year, Kathleen C., a sophomore in the College of Liberal Arts, became the youngest woman on the Indianapolis Colts cheerleading squad and the girlfriend of a “very proud boyfriend.”
“It was my first year trying out,” she said. “I went in with no expectations; I just wanted something to keep me busy.”
Busy does not begin to describe the lifestyle overhaul accompanying the football season. Weekends are sacrificed for Sunday home games, Tuesdays and Thursdays are devoted to intense three-hour dance practices in Indianapolis and appearances and a healthy diet are a must.
However, Kathleen is returning this week for a second year of tryouts and intends to keep trying out until she tires of the Colts, which is unlikely anytime soon.
“My favorite part of the game is when the players run out on the field. In that moment I think, ‘I don’t know how anyone would quit wanting to do this.’”
While the whole meant-to-be mantra seems cheesy, Kathleen said “doing something she loves” for such a large organization is often surreal.
During moments like the Super Bowl, Kathleen said she has to take a step back and think about the magnitude of somehow going from college student to cheerleader, smiling for one of the most watched programs on television ever.
For the rookie, age did not prevent her from developing close friendships with women on the squad.
“I have no distinction of age. We just became friends with the same jobs, same stress and same excitement,” she said.
Theresa Pottratz, Colts cheerleading coach, said the fans love Kathleen’s young, girl-next-door look to go along with the Colt’s more conservative image in comparison to other NFL cheer squads. However, Pottratz couldn’t help but notice Kathleen’s edge as she develops further in her career.
“We always think of little Kathleen who is so innocent and young, and then I saw her swimsuit photos! There is one of her walking out the pool with the water dripping off her and you think, wow that’s our little Kathleen?” Pottratz said. “It’s like your best friend’s little sister suddenly grew up.”
By Kris Hill
The Covington Reporter
Tricia Grove-Johnson told her sister to go find a cure for cancer.
So, in 2002, Elizabeth Lanning took the suggestion literally and came up with a fundraiser called Dance for a Cure that is now in its eighth year with the event slated for 7 p.m., May 1 at the Bagley Wright Theater in Seattle.
“I was very sick,” said Grove-Johnson, a Ravensdale resident. “I had been diagnosed with stage four uterine sarcoma. My survival chances weren’t great.”
In fact, her chances of survival were less than 1 percent, but she “didn’t really take that to heart because that’s just not me.”
“I was bound and determined to beat it. And to beat it by myself,” Grove-Johnson said. “My family wanted to help. I didn’t really want any help. I was a little stubborn. My sister, who is my best friend, was continually on me and said, ‘What can I do?’”
And that’s when, in an effort to get her sister to leave her alone, Grove-Johnson said to Lanning, “You can go out and find a cure.”
Lanning runs a dance studio in Bellevue and she decided to put on a dance performance with the proceeds going toward the Fred Hutchison Cancer Center.
Her dance students would deliver meals to Grove-Johnson’s front door and send “buckets and buckets of cards” telling her of their progress on preparations for the fundraiser.
“The first year was an incredible success,” Grove-Johnson said. “With three months preparation these kids raised $12,000.”
Grove-Johnson went to the first event, watched the show while trying not to identify herself, “then I cried through the whole thing.”
In 2003, Lanning’s students went to her and asked if they were going to do it again.
“It started out as a tribute to her sister and it has become a community event,” Grove-Johnson said. “It blows my mind the altruism of these kids. It’s more about who they’ve seen in their lives affected by cancer.”
Since that first year, Dance For A Cure has grown by leaps and bounds, with a vision statement and more partnerships with groups like Gilda’s Club, Locks of Love, Pete Gross House and others.
“It’s just getting bigger and bigger,” Grove-Johnson said. “Talking with the kids, they want it to continue on, they want it to continue making a difference.”
Dance For A Cure has gone beyond raising money during an annual event to, “the community coming together and helping every day of the year.”
These days the e-mails Grove-Johnson gets about the event “are just incredible” with people no longer asking how to get tickets, but instead asking how they can help.
“With the economy being the way it is, people may not be able to give the funds,” she said. “But, if they have the time and the will to serve (they can). And, it just puts more fire in (the student’s) bellies.”
There will be dozens of dancers involved, including Grove-Johnson, who will be performing with Amanda McAndrew who is an alumnus of Lanning’s business, Elizabeth’s Dance Dimensions.
“That’s where I grew up dancing and then taught,” McAndrew said. “I grew up admiring Trish because she was such a strong person. Her story now proves just how strong. Now here she is, still intense in everything she does.”
Dancers between the ages of 6 and 19 will perform as well as 15 members, including Grove-Johnson, of the MO-DAZZ alumni group that is made up of Lanning’s former students will perform. There are a number of other featured performers slated to take the stage.
A former University of Washington cheerleader, Grove-Johnson has done some dancing in her day, including performing with the Seattle Sonics dance team until she decided she wanted to be an attorney.
Grove-Johnson, 40, works in private practice in Renton and has continued her career and dancing while fighting through a myriad of aggressive and even experimental treatments to beat the cancer as well as the side effects of those treatments.
“Cancer sucks, I’m not going to paint a pretty picture,” she said. “I despise it. But, cancer has not beaten me.”
What has come out of it, all the negative, frustrating times during the battle against cancer, Grove-Johnson said, is a mission of service in Dance For A Cure and beyond.
Last year, she said, the event raised $75,000.
“We’re always hoping to do better than the last year,” she said. “We really believe $100,000 is not out of reach. If the kids sweat means anything, then, I think we can do it.”
Dancers lift Lexie Hewitt during rehearsals for Dance for a Cure set for May 1 at the Bagley Wright Theater in Seattle.
For a larger version click the flyer or go here.
So, you’re just walking around town with a hockey stick in that outfit?
Definitely—at least today. I’m headed to a Blackhawks promo event for the playoffs. I’m one of the team’s ice girls. But, you know, this outfit is becoming more a part of my everyday wardrobe.
Did you learn to skate at a young age?
I was raised in Schiller Park, and the Franklin Park Ice Arena is nearby. I pretty much grew up at the rink. My dad and my brother play hockey, and I would watch their games and see girls out there. I said, “That’s what I want to do.” Then I was a poms girl at East Leyden High School.
I didn’t know the Blackhawks have cheerleaders.
People call the ice girls cheerleaders, but we’re not, exactly. We skate out and shovel slush off the rink during time-outs. Mouth guards and blood, too. The guys lose teeth out there a lot. They get mixed up in the slush pile and are thrown out. The fun stories are when you’re on the ice and you get spit on. [Laughs]
Yeah…fun times. Why do women swoon over the NHL’s toothless, bruised canucks?
They’re down-to-earth compared to a lot of other athletes.
So the lumberjack appeal?
Right. It’s that casual look. The grubby beards!
Do you have access to the players’ locker room?
[Laughs] No, absolutely not! We see them in the hallways, but we have our own separate locker rooms.
Is that your full-time gig?
It’s not. I’ve been doing it part-time for three seasons. It takes about two to four days out of the week. I also cohost a TV show on the side called JBTV. I’ve interviewed bands like Saves the Day, Switchfoot, the xx, Bowling for Soup.
Jerry [Bryant, the silver-haired, gnomish main host of JBTV] just wasn’t bringing the sexy anymore?
Oh, come on! He looks exactly the same as he always has!
By Kate Nocera and Oren Yaniv
New York Daily News
The nation’s best football talents are getting ready for the NFL draft this week – but that’s not the only game in town.
Hundreds of dancers are gearing up for a shot at gridiron glory, too, as members of the Jets’ Flight Crew cheerleading squad.
Open auditions will be held May 1 – and current crew members say the thrill of high kicking in front of 80,000 roaring fans can’t be beat.
“Come on, I’m an NFL Cheerleader,” said Jasmine, 22. “How great is that?”
Like the other Flight Crew gals, she kept her last name as secret as coach Rex Ryan’s plays – mindful that some fans can be a bit obsessive.
“This past year has been the time of my life,” she said of her first season as cheerleader. “I know more about football and the Jets than most men do.”
The dancers spoke to the News at the Jets’ practice facility in Florham Park, N.J., where players have started training for the 2010 season.
They raved about the perks of the job – and they’re not talking about close-ups of hunky quarterback Mark Sanchez.
“I’ve grown so much as a person,” said Samantha, 19, a Staten Islander who also joined the squad a year ago.
“I would encourage anyone who wants to try out because it will be the best experience of your life.”
For a chance to shimmy on the sidelines in green and white, applicants can go to www.newyorkjets.com/flight_crew.
Applications are due next week.
All 30 current cheerleaders have to re-audition, although they are exempt from the preliminary rounds.
“I really look for girls who are reliable, responsible and organized in addition to being beautiful, smart and great dancers,” said Denise Garvey, the Flight Crew coach.
Jessica freestyles.
A finalist strikes a pose.
The pre-registration deadline is next Monday (April 26th). Download the registration form here. If you don’t make the deadline, don’t despair. You can still register at the Auditions, but you need to follow all the steps here.
(click photo to enlarge)
At the Eagles Cheerleaders Finals the judges rated the hopefuls in four categories: Beauty, Fitness, Dance, and their response to the Interview Question.
From left to right here are the ladies with the top scores in each category:
Tracey totally rocked the dance performance!
Stephanie aced her interview question!
Alicia’s beauty once again dazzled the judges!
Paige is jaw-droppingly fit!
More photos coming later this week.
You can watch the finals online here.
New squad to be unveiled online tomorrow and at the Eagles Draft Day Party.
