All-Star Covid-19 / Varsity Response

[Keep_Believing]

I took the COVID test to visit my Mom in her nursing home. The nursing home requires it. No symptoms. When the test came back positive I was shocked. Quarantined, but I also took a second one (nose swab & wait 3 days for results). It came back positive. I was shocked since I had no symptoms, wear a mask, practice social distancing, and not around anyone (that I was aware of) that had COVID. My 19-year-old daughter had COVID before me. She got very sick & was sick for a little over 3 weeks. She lives 2 1/2 hours away from home. We were never around each other. Crazy that I am 47, have asthma, and some other small health issues had zero symptoms, but my 19-year-old daughter is the one that got sick.

 

[quietmom]

Or perhaps it is not even worth the time or energy to report anything. Varsity doesn't even truly enforce their sex offender policies. They are a joke safety wise. I have no reason to believe that they would care to do anything meaningful here. The maskless selfies were posted on social media publicly. The gyms posted their unmasked group pictures publicly. The parents who brought their known covid positive kids from other states to the competition were pressured by the coaches because the kid "felt fine". The positive athletes and parents coming to competitions anyways was communicated to me from a friend of a mine with a child on the team who told me first hand. It is up to my friend to report it and deal with any retribution and retaliation to her child for her report. This behavior towards illness has been a long time thing with sports that goes beyond cheer. Georgia doesn't enforce anything about contact tracing. Varsity moved the competition to Atlanta for a reason. Georgia has very lenient policies for covid. You can call me a Karen and name call me all you want. The real problem is the toxic culture here that enables this behavior in the first place.

This is likely the last I'm going to say anything about this here. I stuck around for a while after my kids retired. I'm truly saddened to see the direction all star cheer has taken. It was very very positive at one point. Now, I don't recognize it.

Best of luck everyone. I wish everyone nothing but good health and success.

 

[quietmom]

I took the COVID test to visit my Mom in her nursing home. The nursing home requires it. No symptoms. When the test came back positive I was shocked. Quarantined, but I also took a second one (nose swab & wait 3 days for results). It came back positive. I was shocked since I had no symptoms, wear a mask, practice social distancing, and not around anyone (that I was aware of) that had COVID. My 19-year-old daughter had COVID before me. She got very sick & was sick for a little over 3 weeks. She lives 2 1/2 hours away from home. We were never around each other. Crazy that I am 47, have asthma, and some other small health issues had zero symptoms, but my 19-year-old daughter is the one that got sick.

I hope you and your daughter are doing well and make a full recovery with zero long term issues. I'm so sorry that happened to you.

 

[Keep_Believing]

Thanks, I am out of quarantine. I never had any symptoms. My daughter is better but feels fatigued/gets tired really easily.

 

[WhatAmIDoingHere]

Now Some Travelers Won't Be Able to Visit Disney World Without Quarantining | Inside the Magic

This new travel restriction will put a damper on any international teams that could've come to the states for World.

 

[catlady]

Or perhaps it is not even worth the time or energy to report anything. Varsity doesn't even truly enforce their sex offender policies. They are a joke safety wise. I have no reason to believe that they would care to do anything meaningful here. The maskless selfies were posted on social media publicly. The gyms posted their unmasked group pictures publicly. The parents who brought their known covid positive kids from other states to the competition were pressured by the coaches because the kid "felt fine". The positive athletes and parents coming to competitions anyways was communicated to me from a friend of a mine with a child on the team who told me first hand. It is up to my friend to report it and deal with any retribution and retaliation to her child for her report. This behavior towards illness has been a long time thing with sports that goes beyond cheer. Georgia doesn't enforce anything about contact tracing. Varsity moved the competition to Atlanta for a reason. Georgia has very lenient policies for covid. You can call me a Karen and name call me all you want. The real problem is the toxic culture here that enables this behavior in the first place.

This is likely the last I'm going to say anything about this here. I stuck around for a while after my kids retired. I'm truly saddened to see the direction all star cheer has taken. It was very very positive at one point. Now, I don't recognize it.

Best of luck everyone. I wish everyone nothing but good health and success.

Quietmom may or may not see this since she's says she's bowing out, but when referring to "Karen" in my post it was not directed at her. However, since she assumed it was since I'm the only one that has called out Karen's recently, I will point out just because a picture happens does not mean those people weren't talked to by their gym or Varsity. That's an assumption. No, I don't know how any incredibly concerned person can make excuses for not doing the right thing while at a comp or before hand, but somehow justifies putting it out on social media afterwards by stating "they wouldn't have done anything anyhow." Concerning sexual offender policies, there are fifty different state laws concerning sexual offenders and their policies on relief or duration on that list. The NCAA was recently in court on this very issue <click here>. Here's the 50 state comparison on relief from sex offender registration <click here> There are actual laws concerning relief from sexual offender lists and I'm not about to assume that a person can just be banned because Karen and her posse said they should be. Cheer is the same great activity and is still very positive. The toxic culture is the alarming anonymous masses that continues to grow on social media, spewing things without regard to facts, proof, law or who/ what they are harming in the process.

 

[UCFKnights07]

varsity and others within the industry cant even control the large amount of sexual predators and offenders that are in the cheer industry, havent been great in the past about minors consuming alcohol and partying at worlds... so i dont know why the heck people expect them to be vigilant about masks.........
as far as keeping the masks on during certain times, im gonna throw in the ridiculousness of how restaurants require masks to walk around, but then allow them to be off while physically sitting (eating or not). honestly i dont see a huge difference in taking a maskless photo while stationary and sitting at a table maskless...
(i get the whole science behind it, so i definitely dont need the lecture behind the point of masks, but its just a weird thought that came to mind)

also i feel like youth sports no matter how much they do, cant prevent the spread if it happens, this isnt pro sports where they can afford or enforce everyone to be tested, quarantine athletes at hotels, etc.

 

[catlady]

varsity and others within the industry cant even control the large amount of sexual predators and offenders that are in the cheer industry, havent been great in the past about minors consuming alcohol and partying at worlds... so i dont know why the heck people expect them to be vigilant about masks.........
as far as keeping the masks on during certain times, im gonna throw in the ridiculousness of how restaurants require masks to walk around, but then allow them to be off while physically sitting (eating or not). honestly i dont see a huge difference in taking a maskless photo while stationary and sitting at a table maskless...
(i get the whole science behind it, so i definitely dont need the lecture behind the point of masks, but its just a weird thought that came to mind)

also i feel like youth sports no matter how much they do, cant prevent the spread if it happens, this isnt pro sports where they can afford or enforce everyone to be tested, quarantine athletes at hotels, etc.

Agreed, but why would Varsity be responsible for athletes drinking and sexual predators while these kids are under a parent or chaperone's watch? I 100% agree that Varsity takes on that responsibility when they don't allow parent/chaperone access or a parent can't send someone to check on their child, but this stuff isn't happening in warm up rooms. These predators are gaining access, grooming and blackmailing primarily via social media and phones. Varsity and the USASF are obligated to notify the authorities if someone tells them about a person of concern, but after that, the authorities take over. If they aren't charged with a crime or are no longer on a predator list, can Varsity still ban them without any type of legal consequence in all 50 states? Anyone? I have no idea. The NCAA is in court right now fighting they have no legal (emphasis on legal) duty to protect athletes from predators, and again, a big portion of their argument is predators have access via social media and phones 24/7 which they can't control and protection is nowhere established in their contract. Bottom line, when that responsibility is determined or established, all governing bodies will follow suit.

When it comes to masks, what exactly are people expecting or wanting? It is my understanding from parents that have attended these comps that if someone doesn't have one on, they ask you to put it on. That's what I have witnessed at most businesses I have been in. Is there something happening at other businesses that I'm not aware of?

 

[oncecoolcoachnowmom]

Not cheer related but I traveled during COVID back in August to Vegas for my brother's wedding:

Every hotel we went to had extra staff literally patrolling telling (not asking) you to put a mask on.
If you refused, you would be asked to leave.
You could not be served at any bar without a mask.
You could not congregate in the bar areas. Get your beverage and keep moving.
No loitering really in lobby areas. They want you to maintain distancing.
All the restaurants in my particular hotel were reservation only to maintain distancing.
No buffets or open community food.

If a cheer comp is running anything like Vegas, I think Varsity is doing okay.

And when I say mask patrol I mean it. They were not asking. It was literally "you need to have a mask on sir."

 

[luv2cheer92]

Not cheer related but I traveled during COVID back in August to Vegas for my brother's wedding:

Every hotel we went to had extra staff literally patrolling telling (not asking) you to put a mask on.
If you refused, you would be asked to leave.
You could not be served at any bar without a mask.
You could not congregate in the bar areas. Get your beverage and keep moving.
No loitering really in lobby areas. They want you to maintain distancing.
All the restaurants in my particular hotel were reservation only to maintain distancing.
No buffets or open community food.

If a cheer comp is running anything like Vegas, I think Varsity is doing okay.

And when I say mask patrol I mean it. They were not asking. It was literally "you need to have a mask on sir."

I went to Disney World in August and had the same experience there. They are really serious about it there, too. Main reason I felt perfectly comfortable going.

 

[kayemm]

Now Some Travelers Won't Be Able to Visit Disney World Without Quarantining | Inside the Magic

This new travel restriction will put a damper on any international teams that could've come to the states for World.

I feel like I can say with around 90% confidence that no international teams from the UK will make it to Worlds this year. A 10 day quarantine isn't a massive issue, as many teams go over that early anyway to adjust to the heat and the time zone etc - those days are usually used for training/team bonding/some park days so they would have to lose out on those, but it's more the fact that gyms in the UK are currently closed with no fixed date on when we can reopen. I doubt any Worlds teams are anywhere near Worlds ready at this point. The other issue is that over 18s currently face the most restrictions when it comes to training and stunting. In Scotland over 18s haven't been able to attend any form of group training since October. All the UK Worlds teams have a high percentage of adults as more people come to cheer here later in life and don't leave the sport at 18.

If teams could enter virtually and our restrictions on training are lifted they might be able to pull something out of the bag, but to travel to Worlds? Unlikely.

 

[quitthedrama]

I went to Disney World in August and had the same experience there. They are really serious about it there, too. Main reason I felt perfectly comfortable going.

I think this is a perfect example of different people have different comfort levels and each does what they feel is right for them and it's really unfair to judge anyone else for their choices.

 

[WinstonsGirl]

I feel like I can say with around 90% confidence that no international teams from the UK will make it to Worlds this year. A 10 day quarantine isn't a massive issue, as many teams go over that early anyway to adjust to the heat and the time zone etc - those days are usually used for training/team bonding/some park days so they would have to lose out on those, but it's more the fact that gyms in the UK are currently closed with no fixed date on when we can reopen. I doubt any Worlds teams are anywhere near Worlds ready at this point. The other issue is that over 18s currently face the most restrictions when it comes to training and stunting. In Scotland over 18s haven't been able to attend any form of group training since October. All the UK Worlds teams have a high percentage of adults as more people come to cheer here later in life and don't leave the sport at 18.

If teams could enter virtually and our restrictions on training are lifted they might be able to pull something out of the bag, but to travel to Worlds? Unlikely.

Same for Canada. Ontario has had about 1 week of stunting this season, a many provinces have been shut down since Oct/Nov. I think a few are starting to go back, but not for regular training in any way. And many areas still have no end in sight for gym closures. There's no way teams can be ready for the level of Worlds in 3 months or less, not at what is normally expected. Add a potential 2 week quarantine to get to Florida, and 2 weeks after back in Canada, plus a week for Worlds, and there's 5 weeks of being out of school/work just to go to Worlds. Not happening.

I've heard chatter of IASF Worlds in the fall, but that's coming pretty quick, and also into the 2022 season for North America/Europe. I don't know if my gym will bother with trying to go with that either. It's a mess logistically, and gets expensive if you're going to plan on April 2022 as well.

 

[Cheermom1979]

Our gym did a match and are planning another one before the end of the season (once our upgrades are solid). I like that you have only 2 tries and are on the clock once you log in.
I really like output. I like that we can live stream on Friday nights from Facebook or YouTube (for no cost). It’s frustrating to me that you need to have a subscription to watch varsity TV for virtual events. They are streaming at the gym for the girls but no parents due to covid limits (which I agree with).

Oh wow, I didn't realize that at all! We haven't done one yet but a friends daughter did and I watched a couple of teams. In that case I will say I really prefer watching a routine with any background music vs. silence!

 

[catlady]

I went to Disney World in August and had the same experience there. They are really serious about it there, too. Main reason I felt perfectly comfortable going.

That makes sense, and I'm sure why most people that have actually been to these comps feel comfortable returning, as well.