OT Being A Cheerleader Back Then, Was It Really That Big Of A Deal?

[BuegeSmalls]

How did that work? When I used to take tumbling they had us start out on the trampoline, then we progressed to the Tumble Trak, and then the mat (first with a spotter, then transitioning to doing it on our own on each surface).

You just start off getting spotted on the floor. Like for a back handspring you start getting spotted on it. Maybe you'd do some drills using the boulder. And then you'd usually get your bhs by yourself on the wedge mat and eventually on the floor. The wedge worked for tucks too.

I basically learned all of my skills just on the floor (I started learning all most all on non-spring. ), maybe using the tumble track sometimes for standing tucks, but I hate that thing.

 

[Official OWECheer]

You just start off getting spotted on the floor. Like for a back handspring you start getting spotted on it. Maybe you'd do some drills using the boulder. And then you'd usually get your bhs by yourself on the wedge mat and eventually on the floor. The wedge worked for tucks too.

I basically learned all of my skills just on the floor (I started learning all most all on non-spring. ), maybe using the tumble track sometimes for standing tucks, but I hate that thing.

How was that for your joints?

 

[BuegeSmalls]

How was that for your joints?

I've never been seriously injured (knock on wood) so I think it went well lol

 

[vannahlexis]

How was that for your joints?

That's how we did it at my school too and all of our joints are fine! Lol

The only time I've been seriously injured from tumbling was after using a tumble track. Just not my thing I guess haha

 

[JMW]

How did that work? When I used to take tumbling they had us start out on the trampoline, then we progressed to the Tumble Trak, and then the mat (first with a spotter, then transitioning to doing it on our own on each surface).

Y'know, back in the olden days, we didn't have all that fancy schmancy equipment. I learned a bhs in the grass. Instead of a wedge mat we used a hill. ;-)

 

[gymcatmomx2]

What was the legitimate case? The 3 girls clearly had superior skills but didn't make the team over girls who weren't as skilled? What was the case that was wasn't legit? Someone who really didn't have the top skills but tried to force herself on anyway? And what was the technicality that got her on?

In the legitimate case, the cheer coach had been warned previously about hiring unqualified judges. The coach picked people that she knew instead of hiring from a third party company. The girls that didn't make the Varsity squad threw standing backs and running layouts while there were a handful of girls who made the squad that threw back handsprings or just round offs. When the girls received the score sheets they compared their scores with the girls that made the squad; they saw on the tumbling section that girls who threw level 1 and 2 skills scored higher than girls that threw level 3 and 4 skills. The parents found out that the judges were dance coaches from a studio that the coach was familiar with. The grievance went all the way to the school board and they agreed with the parents. So in fairness to all, everyone who tried out was put on the squad, for both JV and Varsity. The school doesn't have a Freshman squad. This even affected the middle school squads since they used the same judges. To prevent that from happening again, the school provided a standardized score sheet that the judges used that gave a breakdown of standing and running tumbling skills and the score ranges for each.

As for the illegitimate case, the judging was sound (third party company was hired) but the parents who filed the original grievance stated that the natural break of 1.6 was not a large enough natural break. The cheer constitution does not specify how large the natural break should be. The scores are always close every year since this area is heavy with all-star cheerleaders. That original grievance was denied. However, one of the information sheets that was handed out at the parent tryout meeting gave the formula of how the tryout scores were calculated. 80% was from the tryout score and 20% was from the disciplinary score. But it was not a straight 80/20 calculation but that was what was on the information sheet. When it was brought to the administrators' attention, they calculated the scores using the incorrect formula and in so doing, there was still a natural break at 20, however the girls who made it changed.

So, to make it fair, the administration took the natural break using both methods which put 30 girls on the Varsity squad instead of 20 and added 3 girls onto the JV squad. The Freshman squad ended up with the same girls using both methods.

The school changed the policy of receiving copies of the score sheets. You could only ask to view your scores if you did not make the squad. If you made the squad, you could not see your scores.

 

[Official OWECheer]

In the legitimate case, the cheer coach had been warned previously about hiring unqualified judges. The coach picked people that she knew instead of hiring from a third party company. The girls that didn't make the Varsity squad threw standing backs and running layouts while there were a handful of girls who made the squad that threw back handsprings or just round offs. When the girls received the score sheets they compared their scores with the girls that made the squad; they saw on the tumbling section that girls who threw level 1 and 2 skills scored higher than girls that threw level 3 and 4 skills. The parents found out that the judges were dance coaches from a studio that the coach was familiar with. The grievance went all the way to the school board and they agreed with the parents. So in fairness to all, everyone who tried out was put on the squad, for both JV and Varsity. The school doesn't have a Freshman squad. This even affected the middle school squads since they used the same judges. To prevent that from happening again, the school provided a standardized score sheet that the judges used that gave a breakdown of standing and running tumbling skills and the score ranges for each.

As for the illegitimate case, the judging was sound (third party company was hired) but the parents who filed the original grievance stated that the natural break of 1.6 was not a large enough natural break. The cheer constitution does not specify how large the natural break should be. The scores are always close every year since this area is heavy with all-star cheerleaders. That original grievance was denied. However, one of the information sheets that was handed out at the parent tryout meeting gave the formula of how the tryout scores were calculated. 80% was from the tryout score and 20% was from the disciplinary score. But it was not a straight 80/20 calculation but that was what was on the information sheet. When it was brought to the administrators' attention, they calculated the scores using the incorrect formula and in so doing, there was still a natural break at 20, however the girls who made it changed.

So, to make it fair, the administration took the natural break using both methods which put 30 girls on the Varsity squad instead of 20 and added 3 girls onto the JV squad. The Freshman squad ended up with the same girls using both methods.

The school changed the policy of receiving copies of the score sheets. You could only ask to view your scores if you did not make the squad. If you made the squad, you could not see your scores.

How dumb and selfish does one have to be to cut girls with good tumbling in favor of the 'special ones'?

 

[cheer25mom]

How dumb and selfish does one have to be to cut girls with good tumbling in favor of the 'special ones'?

Happened on CP's elementary school dance team. 58 tried out, 22 were taken. The teenage coaches were allowed to judge tryouts. CP was one of 3 girls taken that did not attend one of the 2 dance studios the coaches attend. They took girls they knew and knew could learn the choreo. The 3 others were teacher's children. I didn't think it was fair, but my kid made the squad so I really couldn't do much other than encourage the parents of talented kids who didn't get puck to ask about scores. It is the same deal as above. Girls that make the team cannot se their scores.


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[blyndreamalum]

At my high school they started requiring everyone to be in a tumbling class. You could either take it at an all star gym or through school for less, (we brought coaches in). I did both.

My school did both as well. The company they brought it was horrible. The first day they looked at the group and said " if you've ever been spotted on a back handspring you're in this group and everyone else over there", no evaluation, and then horrible spitting. I remember them coming like twice? And then we were required to go to an outside tumbling class. Half of our girls went to the dance studio that many of them danced at and our coaches taught at. They didn't have any real equipment just a standard blue tumbling mat that is like 5 feet long. Others ( including me) went to a local gymnastics gym. After summer most of the girls dropped so the two months they went didn't make a difference. They didn't understand why they weren't winning at competitions when other teams had full team tumbling and we had like 5 girls with back handsprings or higher.

 

[blyndreamalum]

That's how we did it at my school too and all of our joints are fine! Lol

The only time I've been seriously injured from tumbling was after using a tumble track. Just not my thing I guess haha

I am deathly afraid of throwing combinations on those. No matter how straight me tumbling was I refused to do more than a RO BHS

 

[blyndreamalum]

How dumb and selfish does one have to be to cut girls with good tumbling in favor of the 'special ones'?

My senior year I was one of I think 4? girls with tumbling. I had been on varsity as a junior and made no squad for senior year. Our outgoing coach had a little sister a year younger than me and all her friends were trying out. She had coached them since rec league. A girl that had been hidden in the back the entire previous competition season and a girl with a broken arm made it. I could have filed against the school, and my sister's senior year the coach made reference to seeing the score sheets after try outs and discovering that the squads were fixed. Instead I switched to Allstar and made a level 4 team and then a college squad the next year. Best thing to happen to me because my best friend on the squad was miserable with the girls that year.

 

[BuegeSmalls]

My school did both as well. The company they brought it was horrible. The first day they looked at the group and said " if you've ever been spotted on a back handspring you're in this group and everyone else over there", no evaluation, and then horrible spitting. I remember them coming like twice? And then we were required to go to an outside tumbling class. Half of our girls went to the dance studio that many of them danced at and our coaches taught at. They didn't have any real equipment just a standard blue tumbling mat that is like 5 feet long. Others ( including me) went to a local gymnastics gym. After summer most of the girls dropped so the two months they went didn't make a difference. They didn't understand why they weren't winning at competitions when other teams had full team tumbling and we had like 5 girls with back handsprings or higher.

For ours you signed up by skill level. The first was beginners, then intermediate, which you had to have a back handspring for, and then advanced which was a at least a tuck (or very close).
We started with someone who I think was just someone who was friends with our coaches (and had previously coached I believe. I think she coaches at an all star team now) and I loved her--One of my favorite tumbling coaches I've ever had. And then they brought in some more gymnastic guys once she left who I did not like at all. Then I think just the coaches ran it with help of another person who used to coach at our school. I didn't mind that since I loved my high school coaches and also took tumbling at an all star gym (loved my tumbling coaches there too) at the same time. Now I think they bring in some people from that same all star gym but they're new and I never worked with them.

 

[cmghas3]

I guess I am lucky that middle CP's all star owner is an alumni of HS CP's school and we use their tumbling coaches. I'm all about safety!


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[Official OWECheer]

@tumbleyoda Just curious, is the use of a tumble track absolutely necessary for safe progression when learning back handsprings? Or should their use start with tucks?

 

[tumbleyoda]

Not absolutely necessary IMO for learning BHS. In some cases it can definitely do more harm than good, especially when you are just learning, or if it is not used in balance with other surfaces (wedges, panel mats, 8 inch mats, etc)