The Anaheim Bolts are one of the newest teams in the PASL. The PASL season starts at the end of the month, and the dance team has a lot to accomplish before then. High up on the priority list: team photo. They’ve got to have a photo to autograph and hand out to fans, so this is one item of business that needs to be handled ASAP. With that in mind, the Bolts Dancers gathered together early one day last month for the team’s first photo shoot. Team Director Taylor Hooks had an ambitious plan for the day: uniforms in the morning and swimsuits in the afternoon. With 15 dancers to prep and primp, they had their work cut out for them.

The morning shoot took place at a studio in San Clemente (between Los Angeles and San Diego.) By the time I arrived there, most of the hair and makeup was done and they were about ready to begin the photography. (Perfect timing on my part, if I do say so myself.) Each dancer was to be photographed in two outfits, the dance costume, and a Bolts t-shirt.

This was also a reunion of sorts, as five members of the 2007-08 Clippers Spirit Dance Team were in the mix. It was a nostalgia moment for me, since that year’s team was the first team I ever got to cover in person. (Thank you Jessie Christensen!) It’s always awesome to see what the girls have been up to since then. Taylor and Lynae are the Director and Assistant Director of the Bolts Dancers, respectively. Alex is a member of the team. Kelley, a professional make up artist, and Harmony, a professional hair stylist were part of the team responsible for beautifying the dancers. Ahhh, memories…

Back in the day: Taylor, Lynae, Alex, Kelley, and Harmony

The first thing that happens at any photo shoot is the waiting. You get your makeup done, and wait. You get your hair done, and wait. You put your outfit on, and wait some more.

Alex, Jolene, and Amber

Heather and Myra

Kaylee

Lynae customizes Elizabeth’s giant t-shirt

One thing I have learned over the past few years is that photo shoots are a unique and special kind of torture for dancers. On the one hand, they know they’re going to be wearing little bitty outfits, so they don’t want to eat anything. On the other hand, there is a lot of waiting around. It’s always a looooong day. And what’s the most common activity for the trapped and the bored? Eating. They resist and resist.

Eventually Amber broke down and had a rice cake.

Mmmmm….peanut butter. Between the 15 of them, I think they managed to polish off a whole jar of the stuff.

Harmony makes sure everyone’s hair is on point.

Kelley does a quick touch up on Alex

Christine, Alex, and Elizabeth (That doesn’t even look like the same shirt, does it?)

Amber and Lauren in their new uniforms

Taylor and the photographer fix Christine’s hair

Asst Director Lynae

Laura works it

Lauren strikes a pose

The fan kept blowing Mekayla’s skirt up…so Taylor had to tape it down with masking tape.

Careful peeling that off…

Heather

Jolene

Danielle

Around 1pm we jumped into our cars and drove to a house in Coto de Caza for the swimsuit shoot. Coto is a huge, gated, master planned community in the OC. If you’ve ever watched “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” this is the “Coto” they’re always talking about. As in “All the right people live in Coto” blah blah blah. (I only watched the first season. Hopefully they’re over themselves by now.)

I’m not entirely clear on how this house wound up being the location for the shoot. I think the homeowners were friends of the photographer, or something like that. Anyway, nice place! A great setting for the team’s calendar.

All of the shooting was done in the back yard, around the pool and outdoor barbecue.

Taylor explains the plain of attack

For the most part, everyone’s makeup was still looking good from the morning. All the makeup artists had to do was a little touch up.

Ashley gets a little more powder

The photographer, who has a swimwear company, provided swimsuits in the Bolts team colors for the shoot.

The blue team: Christine, Heather, Elizabeth, Myra, Mekayla, Alex, Danielle, and Laura

The yellow team: Amber, Lauren, Sarah, Kaylee, Ashley, Jolene, and Stephanie

While the girls were changing, Taylor and Lynae worked out the various locations around the property. They needed at least 12 setups, plus a location for the cover. There was an interesting rock feature behind the pool, that looked like a good spot for the group shot.

Taylor tries to figure out if they can fit 15 girls on there without anyone falling into the pool.
I’m thinking 10 girls, max. I hope everyone can swim.

Once all the girls were ready, Taylor gave everyone a once-over to make sure the whole look worked.

Between you and me, those were some tiny little suits. They were ruched in the back and everyone’s buns got a little more sun than they expected. (You’ll have to take my word for that, as there are no booty shots in this collection.)

When everything was ready, Taylor picked out the first few girls, and the shooting began.

Elizabeth, Amber, and Laura. I don’t think you’ll see this shot in the calendar. There was a lot of mix and match going on. I think in the end there will be a photo of Amber with Heather in this location, but Elizabeth and Laura were pulled into other setups.

Taylor had Elizabeth hop up next to the built in barbecue

Danielle’s background was really pretty, but I bet it was no party, kneeling on that wall.

Kaylee’s suit looked really great with her coloring

I don’t think Myra ever stands still for more than 5 minutes at a time, so this was a rare shot.

Lauren and Christine were in the jacuzzi for their shot. The light falling on them made the shot really pretty. I can’t wait to see how it turned out.

Laura and Sarah

I mentioned that there was a lot of waiting in the morning, right?
Well ditto for the afternoon. Luckily, entertainment arrived in the form of Stanko, the homeowner’s dog. A big sweetheart of a Boxer, looking to make new friends.

Stanko proceeded to make the rounds, sniffing everyone and their possessions thoroughly. He wandered into a couple of the shots, but that was an accident. See, Stanko thinks if you’re looking at him, it must be because you want to pet him, so of course he’s going to come over and make himself available for a good scratch behind the ears.

In his world “Stanko, get out out of there!” translates roughly into “Please let me rub your belly.”

Just as “Hi Stanko” means “Come sit on my lap”

Stanko isn’t familiar with the concept of “personal space”

It wasn’t until Myra pulled out some food that we discovered Stanko does in fact know how to sit and lie down.

It was just an orange, but his eyes were locked on it like it was Filet Mignon.
(I just think his butt looks funny in this picture)

The girls dealt with the waiting in different ways…

Jolene and Stephanie

Sarah and Kaylee

Sarah and Laura

Like I said, she doesn’t do a lot of standing still.

Some shoots were easier than others

I bet Stephanie was thinking “Hey, this is no sweat”…

…until they pulled her out of the water and told her to lie down on her back and lift up like that. And then hooooooold it. Stephanie definitely wins the prize for most uncomfortable shoot of the day.She didn’t complain though. Possibly because she has both abs and buns of steel.

Once all of the individual/duo/trio shots were done, it was time for the all-terrain portion of the shoot: the cover.

Taylor explained what she wanted the girls to do. They looked at her. They looked at the rocks. They looked at her again. They looked back at the rocks. Everyone’s thought bubble was “You’re kidding, right?”

Plenty of trepidation, but no complaints. What a bunch of troopers.

It was a little tense for a while. Clearly there weren’t enough good-sized, perfectly flat spots for sitting. Some people were going to be in awkward and/or precarious positions.

It took some finessing to get everyone in place. Once everyone was in place, Taylor started moving peple around so the yellow and blue suits were evenly distributed. I had my eye on a few of the girls as the ones mostly like to take a swim. The hair and makeup artists were long gone, so if anyone fell in the pool, it would NOT be a good thing.

I thought for sure either Alex (Blonde in blue in the front row) or Amber (Blonde in yellow on the far right) would fall in.The reason you only see one of Amber’s arms is because she is because her other hand had a death grip on Stephanie. In between takes, Amber was clinging to that rock like a life raft. I don’t even know how Alex got into her spot, just that it took a lot of baby steps to get there.

Once they got a few good shots for the cover, they did a few silly ones.

Go Bolts!

And then they carefully…ever so carefully, climbed down, one by one. At that point, I was kind of hoping that someone would fall in, but nope.

The shoot concluded like most of these shoots do – with FOOD. The girls had been day dreaming about El Torito all afternoon, and they wasted no time packing up and heading to the restaurant. I feel bad for not calling ahead to tell the staff to throw the nachos on the table and get the heck out of the way.

In all, they managed to accomplish everything Taylor had planned for the day. I was pretty impressed. I know I couldn’t have pulled it off.

From what I understand the calendar is at the printers right now.Hopefully we’ll see the finished product soon. In the meantime, you can click here to check out the rest of my photos from the day, and here’s a little sneak preview:

Sea Gals, local high schoolers go pink to rally 12th Man
by KING 5 News
NWCN.com
October 2, 2011

The Seattle Sea Gals wore pink boots and waved pink pom poms as the Seahawks and the NFL promoted breast cancer awareness Sunday. At halftime, the Sea Gals were joined by cheer and dance squads from several local high schools.

See all 26 photos »

By Sarah Hecht
Portland Trailblazers
9/30/2011

[Photo Gallery]

The BlazerDancers are in the midst of a whirlwind NBA Madness tour of the Philippines with NBA Legend Clyde Drexler . As one of two NBA dance teams—the other being the Magic Dancers—representing the league, they’re sharing hoops with the people of Manila on a non-stop adventure.

Sunday afternoon six BlazerDancers—Eri, Rea, Michelle, Stephanie, Kimberly and CaMicha—accompanied by Performance Teams Manager Michelle Woodard began their journey and hopped a 16-hour flight bound for the Philippines.

Day one saw the tour grind to a halt before even starting. What was supposed to be a well-oiled itinerary was thrown asunder by a visit from Typhoon Nesat. Racing winds coupled with drenching rains resulted in the cancellation of NBA Madness plans for the day.

A day later, after the storm cleared, activities resumed at a break-neck pace. St. Dominic College of Asia played host to the opening events of day two. Drexler instructed eager students at a hoops clinic and the BlazerDancers taught a routine during their time on stage.

Woodard called the enthusiasm at St. Dominic’s the highlight of the day. “It was the most incredible, overwhelmingly fun experience I think for any of us,” Woodard said. “We were shocked at how enthusiastic the kids were. It was insanity. They were excited before people got there and then they sustained that energy for two hours.”

With NBA mania in full swing in Manila the BlazerDancers moved into a third day jam-packed with events. BlazerDancer Eri engaged in a very special experience. Of Japanese descent, and fluent in the language, she held an interview with TV WOWOW of Tokyo and graciously posed for a small photo shoot—sure to result with her being marketed in Japan. The media session was followed by another school assembly and the NBA Madness crew rounded out the day at a pop-a-shot challenge hosted by Coors Light.

Reception for the NBA ambassadors has been through the roof. “They’re just excited about the NBA period. There have been some really good emcees so they get the crowd going and really amped up and we’ve been told everywhere that the Philippines, surprisingly, are huge basketball fans overall,” said Woodard.

As the NBA Madness marquee event draws nearer Drexler, the BlazerDancers and the Magic Dance team continue to promote the sport to an enthusiastic fan base halfway around the world.

Stay tuned for more from Clyde Drexler and the BlazerDancers at NBA Madness!

The NBA Madness 2011 tour stopped in Manilla this week to bring a dash of excitement to local fans. The tour is a traveling event that features famous NBA alumni, dance teams, the league’s outreach programs, and of course lots of basketball. This year the Portland Trail Blazers BlazerDancers and Orlando Magic Dancers are part of the fun.

Click here or here for photos.

The 2011-12 Oklahoma City Thunder Girls have been selected. Congratulations!

This week it’s all about the Bengals, Bills, Bucs, Chargers, Eagles, Panthers, Raiders, Rams, Saints, Titans, and Vikings. Click here!

The Week 3 gallery on NFL.com features the Charger Girls, Ben-Gals, Saintsations, Top Cats, Jills, Sea Gals, Raiderettes, and the Colts, Bucs, Titans, and Eagles Cheerleaders. Click here to go there now!

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers website has been updated with Individual profiles of the 2011-12 Bucs Cheerleaders. Click here to read up on the team!

By Craig Peters
Titans Online
Sept 21, 2011

Video | Photos

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Titans cheerleaders celebrated the release of their 2012 calendar in chic style Tuesday night with a meet-and-greet, fashion show and autograph session at Cabana in Hillsboro Village.

The night allowed the 25-member squad to showcase the swimsuits that appear in this year’s calendar, and celebrate the collection of spectacular images taken by Nashville photographer Erick Anderson with fans, friends and family members.

“We are so excited to be at Cabana again for our third year,” Titans Director of Cheerleading Stacie Kinder said. “(Cabana General Manager/Owner) Craig Clift has done a really amazing job, pulling out all of the stops, letting us come back and host this event again for a sell-out crowd.”

The release party is well-deserved, considering the amount of preparation and planning that go into the success of the calendar.

Brooke, who adorns the cover and is one of the squad’s captains this season, said sunrise shoots involve waking up at 2 or 3 in the morning in order to have hair and makeup ready for the great window of lighting conditions that occur at dawn. Sometimes, she said, the squad took pictures at sunset, which is her favorite time.

Brooke said the four-night, five-day photo shoot at Cottage Rental Agency in Seaside, Fla., was “awesome” because of the welcome the Titans cheerleaders received and because of the time they were able to spend with each other as a team.

“It was amazing hospitality and the beach was beautiful,” Brooke said. “We were really happy with that destination, and hopefully we can go back there again.”

In addition to the long days during the photo shoot, the cheerleaders commit hours of fitness training and careful selection of their favorite swimsuits.

“We picked out swimsuits and met with our photographer and did a lot of great preparing before we got there,” Brooke said. “You have to find something that you really love yourself in, and that our coach loves, and the photographer likes and goes with whatever setting that we’re taking our pictures in.”

Chocez, who is in her fifth season on the squad, said the trip to Seaside was a “beautiful experience” because of the location and the excitement level among the team even during the early mornings.

“It’s where they filmed The Truman Show, and they told us all about that,” Chocez said. “You’re so excited in the first place, you’re nervous, you don’t want to miss it and you want to look your best so you probably won’t get much sleep. The energy in the hair room and the makeup room—everybody’s just so excited that it doesn’t even feel like four in the morning.”

Kinder said this year’s team has 10 rookies out of its 25 members, so it was important for the team to bond while they were on location. She said the ladies did so through activities like a scavenger hunt and by staying in small groups at the cottages.

While the ladies are able to select their swimsuits, there is some teamwork that goes into producing the timeless images.

“Everyone gets to show their individuality while showing a team unity at the same time,” Kinder said.

Although this is Brooke’s sixth season with the squad, there are still pleasant surprises along the way.

“When I saw the cover, at first, I was in shock,” Brooke said. “They put it up on the big screen and I was expecting it to be maybe a group shot. I was really excited about it.”

Kinder thanked Titans owner K.S. “Bud” Adams, Jr. for his support of the annual calendar and the fans who appreciate it.

“It is wonderful to have a swimsuit calendar, and I’m so thankful to Mr. Adams for supporting our calendar every year,” Kinder said. “Our football fans love our calendar and we’re so happy to put it out for them every year.”

So far, this is the only photo I’ve come across. The new outfits look a little like a cross between their two previous costumes. Can’t wait to get a better look!