All-Star Worlds 2014: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

[quitthedrama]

I don't know that the problem would be solved if international teams weren't there. There's still older siblings and young coaches. There's not always a way to tell which of those are and aren't athletes.

I am doing a terrible job of explaining my thoughts lol. I am not blaming the International teams in any way. The point I was trying to make was in response to people saying the partying and drinking was allowed by staff/security and that it should not be happening and was trying to say that many of the athletes are of legal age and have every right to be drinking, and it is up to the gym staff and/or chaperones and parents to make sure the underage athletes are not drinking. I will blame my poor writing skills on the rain and my cheer hangover!

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[youbetterwork]

My favorite moment was also my very last moment before leaving. I sat in the media section at Worlds, and during the awards ceremony for large senior the coach of Orange Rays sat next to me. Watching his reaction when they won is something I will always remember.

From my stand point, the event was extremely well-run. ICU felt unsafe because people were sitting everywhere, and sooo close to the mat (the security did their best to make people not sit there, but it was just too many people in front of the mat rushing to the front when their team came on). USASF Worlds was very "calm" compared to ICU.

I especially enjoyed medium coed and large coed - a lot of great teams hitting their routines.

The outside venue was very cool. As some people mentioned already, the backdrop was very busy + the delays were exhausting. But other than that it was simply just cool. The fireworks were fun.

 

[youbetterwork]

For people who competed at Worlds from international teams, how long did it take you to get used to the time change while in Florida?

Well, I did not compete, but for me it took about 2-3 days to get used to Florida time. It's a 6 hour difference for me, but as an night owl it's not that much different It's actually quite nice with the jet lag when you get there, because you automatically wake up early and are able to enjoy the whole day. Much worse jet lag when you get home.

 

[Cheermom1969]

My favorite moment was also my very last moment before leaving. I sat in the media section at Worlds, and during the awards ceremony for large senior the coach of Orange Rays sat next to me. Watching his reaction when they won is something I will always remember.

From my stand point, the event was extremely well-run. ICU felt unsafe because people were sitting everywhere, and sooo close to the mat (the security did their best to make people not sit there, but it was just too many people in front of the mat rushing to the front when their team came on). USASF Worlds was very "calm" compared to ICU.

I especially enjoyed medium coed and large coed - a lot of great teams hitting their routines.

The outside venue was very cool. As some people mentioned already, the backdrop was very busy + the delays were exhausting. But other than that it was simply just cool. The fireworks were fun.

Wow, great pics of his reaction! I'm always in awe of people who can be quiet and reserved with their reaction, seriously. I'm such a spaz that I would be jumping and screaming and crying and making a fool of myself.

 

[Fiercecheermom]

We just got home and after talking it over with my CP, I can honestly say that even though the girls didn't like the wait and the "re warm-up" the overall impression was AMAZING. My CP said she feels so lucky to have experienced the venue, fireworks, and the feeling of support from the other teams. Her team and coaches were so proud of their performance and how special USASF made them feel after, that the wait was worth it. She is hoping they can do it all again next year.
I met some wonderful people this past weekend including quite a few of the people working the competition from USASF. I will say they really tried to reach out to the athletes and parents to make sure we had a great experience. Were there some glitches? Of course, when you plan anything of this magnitude there will always be "issues". I feel certain they will learn and change things for next year. They listened and moved the two divisions to the ball field and everyone had a great seat. I did not experience any of the waiting in line on Monday night, so I cannot answer to what some were describing. I will say that I arrived at 6:15pm and walked right into the stadium and got a seat in the 3rd row section 109.....FABULOUS seats. I did not care for the lines at the Milk House from 5p-8p on Sunday night, but that was my fault as I left that morning after LAG semis. I knew I would have an issue getting back in, just didn't think it would be as bad as it was LOL. Even that had it's upside as I ran into old friends I had not seen in so long. I feel bad for the parents who were not able to see their kids, but there was a VIP viewing area that they could have accessed. Not sure if they did not know about it or chose not to partake. I heard about it prior to the competition from our gym and from personnel while we were in line.
I will say that the purchase of the daily and individual session tickets needs some change. On Sunday night, people were in line 2 hours prior to the opening of the sales and there were still people in line at 10:30pm when I left. I imagine they finished selling tickets that night about midnight. Hopefully there will be an online option next year. One thing to think about...if you purchased both days and all of the sessions you would pay $200. The 3 day hopper including all days/sessions at WWOS was only $210. Not only would you get 3 days in the parks for $10, you also would avoid those lines for the weekend. Additionally, from what I heard (but did not see) you would have gotten priority admittance to session 4.
All in all, we had a great experience and look forward to an even better one next year!

 

[xomckenzieee]

I just really have a problem with this "it happens, just deal with" approach to anything. If every problem was handled that way we would never get anything done.


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The problem is you can combat it to a point but most kids when you tell them no, still look for ways around the system. It's natural teenage/young adult behavior. You tell kids they can't drink until their 21... they find someone to purchase alcohol for them. You tell a kid they can't stay out past curfew, they're looking for ways to sneak out. I'm not saying everyone does this or even close to everyone but unfortunately it's part of growing up.

 

[russmin]

The problem is you can combat it to a point but most kids when you tell them no, still look for ways around the system. It's natural teenage/young adult behavior. You tell kids they can't drink until their 21... they find someone to purchase alcohol for them. You tell a kid they can't stay out past curfew, they're looking for ways to sneak out. I'm not saying everyone does this or even close to everyone but unfortunately it's part of growing up.

I can accept its a common and widespread problem but I refuse go believe you can assume a defeatist attitude towards any type of issue no matter how dismal it may be because you've already conceded control to the opposition. Surely whatever they do at home is their business but if there needs to be some type of actual consequences imposed by someone. You can't just have a turn a cheek policy.

 

[quitthedrama]

From a personal standpoint, the good was the medium coed division. The teams came to play! The crowd during semi finals was so fun, and my CPs were thrilled to compete in front of such a supportive crowd and against such amazing teams! There was such good sportsmanship displayed throughout Finals. I know the issue happened during the awards pictures, (of which I have my own opinion that is probably not popular and better left unsaid), but with that exception, almost all of the teams were cheering each other on and sitting together at awards and genuinely happy for the winners!

 

[mecheermom]

The funniest part of all these post to me is that the people I see drinking the most at Worlds, NCA, Cheersport and every other national competition is the parents. I flew to NCA with a team of parents that were completely trashed by the time we landed in Dallas. I have literally watched parents walk around the competition with Starbucks cups filled with booze and every bar within a 20 mile radius, hotel bars, and lobbies are filled with drinking parents. Drunk parents has become a huge part of what I expect to see at national competitions. If I see it, I'm sure the athletes do as well, and maybe, like me, they have gotten the notion that drinking is a part of the whole All Star Nationals experience. I think that if we want to have a huge influence on drinking at worlds we should start with us. Yes I realize we are grown and it s legal but I think its far fetched to say this desire to drink at worlds is implanted by other athletes.

ETA: This was not towards @mecheermom but to everyone posting regarding alcohol

No problem @juscheerthatisall. I have had a few drinks at competitions

My point was more in regards to:
"As a parent, you have to ask if you're willing to put your child on a team within a program that allows drugs/drinking (because if you do nothing or you have kids unsupervised, you're allowing it) just to say she's on a World's team."





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[Klynn641]

I thought it was because they made the announcement of who made finals before a team that re-competed score's had been tallied. That second team was then in like 6th place and rather than being like oh, jk you didn't make finals to the 11th team, they just let them stay?

That's exactly what happened. The determination to allow Rockstar, The Beatles to perform again was made after the final 10 had been announced. The Beatles performed well yet they already had their final 10. Thus, the final 11. The final 11 was not due to a tie. There was no tie.


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[Miialovescheer]

Good:

• Lady Jags winning gold and making me a fan of them.. really well done..
• Coed Elite taking the bronze GO AMYS ARMY!!
• Smoed taking home the threepeat (Happy for them and mostly for eddie and orby.. yeah i am a big fan.. dont judge me..)
• Louisiana CheerForce taking the bronze.. so well deserved
• Just like the gold to Great whites!! Good Job girls and GO CANADA!!
• The concept of competing outdoors
• SO. MANY. MALE. FLYERS.. (yeah i like them. again dont judge me..

Bad:

• The concept of winners performance.. poor kids..
• NIGHT COMPETITIONS...
• The dj..
• People having haters comments in their mixes
• USASF over all.

Ugly:

• Having to go and warm up again.. Poor girls..
• Underrotated fulls and double fulls..
• Busted tumbling in general
• TOO. MUCH. COREOGRAPHY..
• Disney in general. i think its time to move.

 

[Klynn641]

Well, I did not compete, but for me it took about 2-3 days to get used to Florida time. It's a 6 hour difference for me, but as an night owl it's not that much different It's actually quite nice with the jet lag when you get there, because you automatically wake up early and are able to enjoy the whole day. Much worse jet lag when you get home.

Melatonin is the answer to jet lag. It's natural and over the counter. It aides in the regulation of your internal clock. It could do a lot to help athletes traveling across time zones. And it can be taken, even if you drink without any risk to the individual, unlike traditional sleep aides.


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[Klynn641]

The funniest part of all these post to me is that the people I see drinking the most at Worlds, NCA, Cheersport and every other national competition is the parents. I flew to NCA with a team of parents that were completely trashed by the time we landed in Dallas. I have literally watched parents walk around the competition with Starbucks cups filled with booze and every bar within a 20 mile radius, hotel bars, and lobbies are filled with drinking parents. Drunk parents has become a huge part of what I expect to see at national competitions. If I see it, I'm sure the athletes do as well, and maybe, like me, they have gotten the notion that drinking is a part of the whole All Star Nationals experience. I think that if we want to have a huge influence on drinking at worlds we should start with us. Yes I realize we are grown and it s legal but I think its far fetched to say this desire to drink at worlds is implanted by other athletes.

ETA: This was not towards @mecheermom but to everyone posting regarding alcohol

I personally don't see a problem with a parent having a drink or two while away at competition as long as they handle themselves with decorum. The parents need to recognize that they are role models as well. And not just to their own child but others as well. Being of legal drinking age isn't license to act a fool. Especially with impressionable children around.

I feel the same way when it comes to sportsmanship and the parents behavior. Just because they can exemplify poor sportsmanship and not get called out, doesn't mean they shouldn't hold themselves to a higher standard and set an example worthy of athletes modelling.


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[Klynn641]

The problem is you can combat it to a point but most kids when you tell them no, still look for ways around the system. It's natural teenage/young adult behavior. You tell kids they can't drink until their 21... they find someone to purchase alcohol for them. You tell a kid they can't stay out past curfew, they're looking for ways to sneak out. I'm not saying everyone does this or even close to everyone but unfortunately it's part of growing up.

If no doesn't work with your child you don't give up you simply move on to Plan B. It is still my child and my responsibility. I recognize a lot of teens are behaving like this but, a lot of teens do a lot of things. That doesn't mean I want my child doing all of them.


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[xomckenzieee]

If no doesn't work with your child you don't give up you simply move on to Plan B. It is still my child and my responsibility. I recognize a lot of teens are behaving like this but, a lot of teens do a lot of things. That doesn't mean I want my child doing all of them.


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I'm not saying that you should give up. I'm just stating that it happens. It would be a perfect world if we could prevent kids from doing everything you don't want them to but that is impossible so we have to adapt and do the best we can.