All-Star Covid-19 / Varsity Response

[CLynn]

Business 101. You, nor I, know what their contracts look like and those contracts effect thousands of workers. To assume they, or anyone else, can just back out of contracts is ignoring basic business and we have no idea how many years those contracts cover. Our court systems are bogged down with lawsuits trying to determine whether or not their contract language covers pandemics. The ridiculous part, is the Karen in us really believes it's simple, as if these people haven't thought of and pondered over every single idea possible dealing with their industry. Heaven forbid, we have regular folk, new and seasoned employees, without crystal balls, that have never lived through a pandemic doing their jobs and knowing every single decision they make effects thousands health and finances. I can think of nothing more arrogant than to tell workers in a pandemic "time for them to step up" while typing away in a cheer blog.

There is little evidence to suggest they have actually. Delay the season? no. try something outdoors? no. Talk up virtual comps and reward gyms for following cdc protocols and not travel? nope. I have other children in other travel sports and they have somehow managed to cancel the spaces so maybe someone else should be negotiating contracts for Varsity. Call me names all you like but if anyone is being an arrogant Karen it is Varsity insisting in going with the usual plans in the stark face of unusual.

 

[quitthedrama]

- Limit travel immediately. This could happen by actually enforcing that teams follow state rules (many of which limit travel or require quarantines that may or may not be followed when trying to re-enter the state). But a better way to enforce it would simply say every live event needs to be in your home state and then the event is much more fair because everyone there has been following the same rules. Spectators will be based on state law but I would feel much safer knowing a flight is not required and neither is a hotel stay.

I am stuck on this. You seriously want a corporation to enforce state laws? And actually you are asking them to go beyond that and tell people they cannot attend an event if they live in a certain state because they may not follow the state guidelines. Varsity is not mandating that anyone attend any of their events. I have a lot of issues with Varsity but I have no issue with any company who is trying their best to survive and is doing so in accordance with state and federal guidelines.

 

[CLynn]

I think all events should be limited to in state, no cross state travel. I do not think that is too much to ask at all in this situation. BUTBT was by many accounts safe and really most of the teams were from GA. There was a comp held in NJ that was only NJ teams and that was by all accounts safe. But the idea of flooding cities with out of towners doesn't seem wise. Just my opinion by did they even try to monetize virtual? what an awesome opportunity for teams who don't get to compete against each other to do so!

 

[CheerItFullOut]

Business 101. You, nor I, know what their contracts look like and those contracts effect thousands of workers. To assume they, or anyone else, can just back out of contracts is ignoring basic business and we have no idea how many years those contracts cover. Our court systems are bogged down with lawsuits trying to determine whether or not their contract language covers pandemics. The ridiculous part, is the Karen in us really believes it's simple, as if these people haven't thought of and pondered over every single idea possible dealing with their industry. Heaven forbid, we have regular folk, new and seasoned employees, without crystal balls, that have never lived through a pandemic doing their jobs and knowing every single decision they make effects thousands health and finances. I can think of nothing more arrogant than to tell workers in a pandemic "time for them to step up" while typing away in a cheer blog.

I know when my HS team cancelled an overnight master camp in July due to Covid we wrote a letter for our state director that we could not attend due to health department directives because the venue was trying to stick Varsity with a FULL BILL for ALL Rooming and ballroom space regardless of cancelling the event within the perimeters of the cancelation windows.
The resort was bleeding money and was basically trying to clutch onto as much money as they possibly could.
I’m a Disney Premier Pass Holder (pass for both Florida and CA because I travel so much for cheer between both parks between HS & Allstar cheer I’m at Disney at LEAST 4/5 times a year) I formally requested my refund in May 2020 after Worlds was cancelled and have YET to see a dime yet my pass is no longer active.
It’s crazy out there - even for a big company like Disney

 

[WhatAmIDoingHere]

Business 101. You, nor I, know what their contracts look like and those contracts effect thousands of workers. To assume they, or anyone else, can just back out of contracts is ignoring basic business and we have no idea how many years those contracts cover. Our court systems are bogged down with lawsuits trying to determine whether or not their contract language covers pandemics. The ridiculous part, is the Karen in us really believes it's simple, as if these people haven't thought of and pondered over every single idea possible dealing with their industry. Heaven forbid, we have regular folk, new and seasoned employees, without crystal balls, that have never lived through a pandemic doing their jobs and knowing every single decision they make effects thousands health and finances. I can think of nothing more arrogant than to tell workers in a pandemic "time for them to step up" while typing away in a cheer blog.

But Varsity is a company that can set it's own rules regarding how athletes and spectators act during competitions in this pandemic. Uniforms are already regulated, as well as shoes, jewelry and a multitude of other things. It is literally nothing for Varsity to stand up and say Masks are Required. If a spectator is seen without a mask you'll be asked to leave. If an athlete is seen without a mask the team will be asked to leave.

This isn't an novel idea. Disney does it. There park regulations far exceed any other business I've been to. Varsity controls Varsity events. Plain and simple. They are just choosing not to make rules and enforce them.

 

[123jump4!]

But Varsity is a company that can set it's own rules regarding how athletes and spectators act during competitions in this pandemic. Uniforms are already regulated, as well as shoes, jewelry and a multitude of other things. It is literally nothing for Varsity to stand up and say Masks are Required. If a spectator is seen without a mask you'll be asked to leave. If an athlete is seen without a mask the team will be asked to leave.

This isn't an novel idea. Disney does it. There park regulations far exceed any other business I've been to. Varsity controls Varsity events. Plain and simple. They are just choosing not to make rules and enforce them.

At Double Down they threatened to have no spectators if parents didn’t start obeying the mask mandate. Day 2 was much better. So they are enforcing somewhat, in their defense.

 

[CheerItFullOut]

But Varsity is a company that can set it's own rules regarding how athletes and spectators act during competitions in this pandemic. Uniforms are already regulated, as well as shoes, jewelry and a multitude of other things. It is literally nothing for Varsity to stand up and say Masks are Required. If a spectator is seen without a mask you'll be asked to leave. If an athlete is seen without a mask the team will be asked to leave.

This isn't an novel idea. Disney does it. There park regulations far exceed any other business I've been to. Varsity controls Varsity events. Plain and simple. They are just choosing not to make rules and enforce them.

We don’t have any live events here, so this is a genuine question/wonder... so for the live events taking place where they are allowed to take place there aren’t any real guidelines presented with attendance/participation and if there are they really are not being enforced or are they just not being encouraged? Are they just not being acknowledged by the participants and Spectators or is the staff themselves not following the state guidelines and protocols, or both? (Sorry if that sounded confusing)
Like what exactly is not being done and by whom? Because Varsity could have a strict set of policy but it’s up to staff to implement or encourage it... and in turn up to each Team to take responsibility of their participants to follow said policy. Just trying to understand where the break down in responsibility is. If you go to Disney and an individual in your party isn’t wearing their mask they won’t ask you to leave, they will politely ask you to make an adjustment and put it on... regardless you’ll still find multiple individuals throughout the park not wearing their mask from time to time and you’ll have no idea if that individual just hasn’t been “caught yet”.
Is it that there are individuals just completely disregarding the rules completely and a blind eye is being turned to the behavior entirely or no attention is being paid to safety protocols implemented by the state?

 

[catlady]

There is little evidence to suggest they have actually. Delay the season? no. try something outdoors? no. Talk up virtual comps and reward gyms for following cdc protocols and not travel? nope. I have other children in other travel sports and they have somehow managed to cancel the spaces so maybe someone else should be negotiating contracts for Varsity. Call me names all you like but if anyone is being an arrogant Karen it is Varsity insisting in going with the usual plans in the stark face of unusual.

Finish your sentence, "There is little evidence to suggest they actually...?" What? Have contracts? Know the details and constraints they work under? It's obvious with college football, these sport contracts and state guidelines vary drastically state by state. I understand venting, frustration and opinions, but to tell workers at Varsity "they need to step up" during a pandemic when every state has different guidelines, venue contracts and you have no idea what their obstacles are...that's no longer venting, frustration, or opinion, that's just arrogance.

We don’t have any live events here, so this is a genuine question/wonder... so for the live events taking place where they are allowed to take place there aren’t any real guidelines presented with attendance/participation and if there are they really are not being enforced or are they just not being encouraged? Are they just not being acknowledged by the participants and Spectators or is the staff themselves not following the state guidelines and protocols, or both? (Sorry if that sounded confusing)
Like what exactly is not being done and by whom? Because Varsity could have a strict set of policy but it’s up to staff to implement or encourage it... and in turn up to each Team to take responsibility of their participants to follow said policy. Just trying to understand where the break down in responsibility is. If you go to Disney and an individual in your party isn’t wearing their mask they won’t ask you to leave, they will politely ask you to make an adjustment and put it on... regardless you’ll still find multiple individuals throughout the park not wearing their mask from time to time and you’ll have no idea if that individual just hasn’t been “caught yet”.
Is it that there are individuals just completely disregarding the rules completely and a blind eye is being turned to the behavior entirely or no attention is being paid to safety protocols implemented by the state?

In Atlanta, depending on the venue and number of participants, the spectator rules differ. Example, the GICC is much smaller than the GWCC, so the spectator rules have been different. Some having wristbands for sessions, some limiting tickets, others preventing spectators. From the comps I've watched on Varsity TV, the emcee is reminding spectators to have their masks on or they will be asked to leave. I'm sure they've had their share of defiant people. The problem, and again this is a false ideal spread by Karen's that think they know the outcome of some very complicated court cases, is that "enforcing" comes down to whether or not states actually have the statutory authority to enforce things such as mask mandates. Private businesses, however, have the authority to require them or ask you to leave. Police can definitely be called and people can be slapped with trespassing or disturbance.

 

[UCFKnights07]

There is little evidence to suggest they have actually. Delay the season? no. try something outdoors? no. Talk up virtual comps and reward gyms for following cdc protocols and not travel? nope. I have other children in other travel sports and they have somehow managed to cancel the spaces so maybe someone else should be negotiating contracts for Varsity. Call me names all you like but if anyone is being an arrogant Karen it is Varsity insisting in going with the usual plans in the stark face of unusual.

im sure varsity has sat down and had multiple meetings about how to proceed with the season, just because they dont release every detail to everyone doesnt mean things arent going on behind closed doors. Travelling sports have probably suffered the greatest in all of this, its easy to down size a in county/state sport. But i have friends and mom friends who have kids in travel sports and its not as simple as regulating everything down into state/county lines. From travelling employees, to contracts, and the amount of money involved in it all. You cant just pack your bag and say oh well to all that. Just like any business that has travel involved have had to adjust, but i doubt they have grounded EVERYONE, or their business would be done for. There are still people out there traveling for business because thats what keeps it afloat.
to add, outdoor comps for the majority of the US is beyond unrealistic in the winter...

 

[Knowcheering]

I think it’s unlikely that used air from one building would go into another building. Usually buildings have separate systems. I’m not too worried about that. I’m more worried about athletes & others hanging around without masks. Hopefully that will not be allowed.

Agreed. Mask wearing needs to be enforced, but I don't think the virus will leap through brick walls/vents/across streets and into other buildings. There are people who literally live next to hospitals, and even they probably aren't feeling this level of paranoia. A sporting event in the same convention center as a Covid makeshift hospital sounds rather bad, but in actuality, I imagine the competition would be able to run in Building B/C without even knowing what is happening in Building A; otherwise why would the venue even allow it to happen? At the very least, it would be delayed.

Also, someone mentioned the other convention center further removed from the city, Georgia International Convention Center where BUTBT was held. It's smaller, but if spectators aren't allowed/kept to the bare minimum, would a switch to this venue be possible? I have no idea about the logistics of venue switching, but it sounds like a good alternative on paper.

 

[Knowcheering]

There is so much overall emotion right now - stress, anger, depression, fear etc - and imo Varsity has done little positive that I can see. I am not suggesting they are not working hard, I know many have lost their jobs and they are in poor financial shape (that is nothing new for them). But the lack of leadership and vision is beyond disappointing. They never should have believed that things could continue as "normal" when nothing is close to normal.

Varsity hasn't put out a statement about Covid since September, correct? Even if they're doing a lot of work behind-the-scenes, some public updates/reminders could go a long way and would give people some reassurance. If they put out regular statements that you must wear a mask while walking around at competitions or face consequences (getting removed from the venue, etc), more people would follow the rules. Also, how about some general guidelines about cheerleaders' well-being, like---- Perhaps having Showcases with kids packed in your gym alongside the mat (especially without masks) isn't the greatest idea for this year?? If everyone does their part to minimize the spread, there's a better chance of having events like Worlds. There's been limited guidance as to how to get the cheerleading community through this situation both effectively and safely. Varsity is a competition company not a governing body.

- Limit travel immediately. This could happen by actually enforcing that teams follow state rules (many of which limit travel or require quarantines that may or may not be followed when trying to re-enter the state). But a better way to enforce it would simply say every live event needs to be in your home state and then the event is much more fair because everyone there has been following the same rules. Spectators will be based on state law but I would feel much safer knowing a flight is not required and neither is a hotel stay.

That might work for a huge state like Texas, but for many states, there's no competition in many divisions unless they leave their home state. Local competitions have practically been phased out of All-Star, which is why competition schedules these days require heavy travel. Also, it would be much easier for a team from, say, Philadelphia, to cross the border and compete in New Jersey than it would be for them to trek to Pittsburgh for an event. I believe one of the World Cup gyms in PA is like 5 minutes from NJ. I don't get the fear about crossing state lines. If a California gym goes to Nevada for a comp (it's easier for a SoCal team to get to Vegas than Northern Cal), it's not like they're going to bring a cloud of Covid with them.

The majors realized this early on and I have heard very little backlash.

To me, the Majors feels a little like a Parade of Champions more than a really intense competition, so I'm not surprised they made it virtual without much complaint. Divisions are combined and it feels more showy. It's interesting that it's virtual, but Jamfest Indy is happening in person like normal.

 

[Knowcheering]

-strongly encourage every program who is legally allowed to practice to participate in something virtual soon. It is upsetting to have live events canceled at the last minute and these kids need the opportunity to perform. Maybe it is time we get back to grassroots and realize we don't need everything to be instagram worthy.

-Shorten the submission window for virtual video submissions, potentially following something similar to Cheer Match. They came out of nowhere and from the limited amount I've seen it is a nice product. No reason why Varsity can't create equally compelling content.

-Re-imagine the end of the year entirely. It won't be World's because probably nobody from outside the US can come. By April/May a year end trip to Florida does seem entirely feasible for those inside the US and that is one thing I would sign up for today. So make it open, no bids no anything. Same for Summit. It could be an amazing is a final year end competition potentially adding another day to allow for more prelims but if you haven't traveled all year that should not be a major obstacle if the dates are available at ESPN.

Yes, it's becoming more apparent that At-Large bids don't really make sense for Worlds this year. The west coast teams have nowhere to earn these bids, and you can't have a Worlds unless the whole country has a chance to qualify (and basically every Level 6 team ultimately qualifies anyway). And other countries likely won't be able to travel, which will keep the event smaller. Even Canada has been very strict with their Covid rules and won't be able to get to Florida easily. Worlds will be a true Nationals this year. And maybe there could be a virtual component for other countries. I'm reluctant to give up Paid World Bids though because it helps so many teams with expenses.

I was referring to the elevated sense of self, so much so that we are putting others at risk. It's selfish no matter what words we use to define the concept is still there. Our medical professionals told us what we needed to, and so many made the decision to put their wants before the health of society. I have an issue with that.

The US accounts for 23 percent of the COVID cases yet we make up a 4.2 of the world's population so I can say

With a population of 1.43 billion people, compared with about 329 million in the United States, China has a population that's more than four times the size of the U.S. population. China had a total of 87k cases, America has 20 million cases. The US accounts for 23 percent of the COVID cases yet we make up a 4.2 of the world's population so I can say with confidence that America has not handled this well by any stretch of the imagination.

I get your frustration and agree that Gender Reveals are unnecessary, but it doesn't feel fair to call the US a failure based on China's Covid numbers. Firstly, China knew exactly where/when the virus originated and was allegedly able to immediately contain it to that one small region (Perhaps the somewhat slow response from other countries was in part due to how effortlessly China seemingly eradicated the virus from their own country). Secondly, China has a history of basically doing whatever they want to make themselves look good. For example, in the past, Chinese gymnastics gave their gymnasts different birthdates to make them age-eligible for the Olympics. Their government had no problem printing up new birth certificates for the sake of winning medals. To the rest of us, this sounds insane, but in China it's normalized. So I would take their reported Covid numbers with a grain of salt. They have half the number of reported cases as many tiny countries in the middle of nowhere. It would be more fair to compare the US's numbers to a country like Brazil (21 million cases vs 7 million cases; Brazil is smaller, less of a travel hub, etc). The US's numbers don't look nearly as alarming when you do that. I'm not saying the US has done everything right, but most people are indeed taking precautions. You can't go to a store without a mask on in every place I've seen.

 

[california cheer mom]

If a California gym goes to Nevada for a comp (it's easier for a SoCal team to get to Vegas than Northern Cal), it's not like they're going to bring a cloud of Covid with them..

Have you seen the numbers for Los Angeles County? 1 in 5 have Covid right now.

 

[Knowcheering]

Have you seen the numbers for Los Angeles County? 1 in 5 have Covid right now.

Yeah there were 13,000 new cases today. There are 10 million people in LA County, so that's 0.1%. There are way more cases in LA than the rest of the state. How many cheer gyms are actually in downtown Los Angeles? Any? If I lived in Nevada and California All Stars competed in my state, I really wouldn't be concerned. And like in other areas, the numbers in CA will probably peak and then taper off hopefully sooner than later. There are teams from a lot of different states going to Jamfest Indy next week, hopefully it goes off without a hitch.

 

[CLynn]

Varsity hasn't put out a statement about Covid since September, correct? Even if they're doing a lot of work behind-the-scenes, some public updates/reminders could go a long way and would give people some reassurance. If they put out regular statements that you must wear a mask while walking around at competitions or face consequences (getting removed from the venue, etc), more people would follow the rules. Also, how about some general guidelines about cheerleaders' well-being, like---- Perhaps having Showcases with kids packed in your gym alongside the mat (especially without masks) isn't the greatest idea for this year?? If everyone does their part to minimize the spread, there's a better chance of having events like Worlds. There's been limited guidance as to how to get the cheerleading community through this situation both effectively and safely. Varsity is a competition company not a governing body.

Yup. This is what I am saying. If they've played out all the scenarios let's hear it. People have asked in multiple venues how they plan on running NCA and Cheersport with all those people attending and they still have not said. Last year Cheersport used building A so instead of spreading out more they are doing it less. Is this because fewer teams are attending etc? would love to know.

I don't get the fear about crossing state lines.

Well it isn't exactly fear of state lines, lol. Just don't love the idea of flights, hotel stays, eating in the restaurants etc. Picture Cheersport, if you can't stay in the building all day what are you doing? packed restaurants, hanging out in hotel rooms etc. All of that could be preventable if comps were local(ish).