[Last year’s Cheer Clinic]
Who rocks the house?
The Islanders rock the house!
And when the islanders rock the house,
They rock it up
And down
And all the way around!
This Sunday it wont just be current CHS cheerleaders chanting and moving to this beat but also tons of boys and girls from kindergarten all the way through seniors.
Sunday, September 13th is the third annual Cheer Clinic, an all-day event designed to raise funds for the high school cheer team and also raise awareness and participation for cheer as a sport. Money raised from this event goes to pay for the coaches, equipment, and helps with the cost of cheer camp for the Coronado High School cheerleaders.
[The 2015-2016 Coronado Cheer Team won Top Banana at Cheer Camp this summer which is the highest award a cheer team can earn during camp]
The Cheer Clinic this year is orchestrated for the first time by Tandee Scott, who is currently a member of the Coronado Pop Warner Cheer Board. Based on the feedback received from last years Cheer Clinic, a number of changes have been made to the day. Perhaps the most prominent change in the schedule is allowing a middle school only clinic to take place during the first half of the day. The middle school only session is a great opportunity for middle school students to have a preview into what cheer is really like at the high school level.
A common misconception of the clinic is that cheer experience is necessary. Tandee is quick to clear that up, explaining No cheer experience is necessary. This is for anybody who might just want to come out for a day with friends, for exercising, to enjoy activities such as Zumba, yoga, and break out dance sessions. Anybody can come at any experience level.
The Cheer Clinic is also a great opportunity to show the community the capability of these students. Cheerleading was officially recognized in the 1970s, but there is still this idea that cheer is not a sport. Tandee advocates for cheerleaders, classifying them as what they really are- athletes.
The clinics activities throughout the day will be run by a combination of the coaches and the Coronado High School cheerleaders (including members from the Varsity team, Junior Varsity team, and Competition team). The Cheer Clinic also has a number of local Coronado vendors coming in to lead activities throughout the day. Shea Hawthorne from Coronado Training Center will be getting into the grove with kids with Zumba instruction and Mary Farley from Coronado Fitness Club will be leading the group through a post workout yoga flow.
Students can expect to walk away learning two cheers, a chant, a dance, stunting, and how to make more friends with a variety of other students at different age levels and experience levels. Following the Cheer Clinic, all members are able to participate a dance as well as a cheer during the CHS football game on September 18th. This also provides an opportunity for students to see the football field on ground level and check out the cheer boxes with each cheerleaders name and graduation year painted on it.
[Last year’s Cheer Clinic]
Noel, a 7th grader at CMS, moved this summer to Coronado from Cabo san Lucas. She is signed up for the Cheer Clinic and says that she is most excited about, being with all the high schoolers and learning more about cheer because this is my first year [on the Pop Warner team]. Noelle says that she was drawn to the cheer sport because she is loud, peppy, and loves to cheer people on! Her favorite part of cheer leading is the stunting and making new friends.
One of the CHS varsity cheerleaders who is helping to run the Cheer Clinic is Claire who just began her junior year at Coronado. Claire has been a Coronado cheerleader for over a decade and has spent majority of her cheer career as a flyer. Claire says that what she loves most about the Cheer Clinic is that, it brings the whole community together, and it helps get younger students interested in high school cheer leading. This year Claire is looking forward to the clinic incorporating the older students more. To students who are thinking about coming but have not decided yet, Claire has a message for you: Come and see! It is only one day and will be a good exposure to see if you want to do cheer later on in life. You only are committed to one day instead of an entire season to try it out.
There is still time to register for this event, but walk-ins are also welcome. Students should have their hair pulled back, a water bottle, exercise clothes, tennis shoes and be ready for an exciting, fun-filled day. From 10 AM 12:30 PM is the middle school only session and from 1 PM 4 PM all ages are welcome. There will be a lunch break and parents have the option of sending their child with a packed meal or taking advantage of the sandwhich bar.
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Alyssa Ballard
Staff Writer
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