Cheer Coaches: Here’s What To Expect At Competition

Check out the Complete Cheer Competition Guide For Coaches! Cheerleading competitions are intense! Likely, your squad has been preparing for competition since summertime when you attended cheerleading camp. During competition season, the chatter and preparation gets even more intense, and you start to hear more and more about how to prepare your team with special routines, competition uniforms and stunt group conditioning guides. But what should coaches expect once they actually get to the competition? Whether you are going to a local or off-site competition, for one day or a couple days, start preparing with these quick tips: When You Get There Get to know the facility. If there isn’t a tour being provided or a map available, take a few minutes to step away from your group and familiarize yourself with the general layout and note any important locations, like practice areas and the floor deck. You’ll be dealing with a lot and it might be hard to remember things later, so jot down a couple notes too. Make sure you know and point out the emergency exits to your team. Finalize any and all meeting places and times with your team. If there is travel involved for your team to get from the competition space to a hotel, go over that as well. Discuss your emergency plan. Be as prepared as you can in an emergency situation by developing and passing along a “to do” list to your team. While an emergency is unlikely, if one does happen your team will be in a better position to help themselves and others if they are calm and prepared. Arrive in time to check-in at your scheduled time. If you don’t have all of your paperwork done prior to arriving, or if some of your paperwork has been misplaced, you may need to spend some time filling out forms. If you arrive the day of the event and are running late, you might not be able to get your team registered and checked-in on time. Expect a little bit of organized and unorganized chaos. Remember, this is where the loudest and proudest gather to show off! There will be teams everywhere, and they will all be practicing and pumping themselves up for their routine. Some teams will be experienced and know exactly what to do, but other teams will be competing for the first time and might stumble through the process a bit more. If you get headaches easily, be sure to bring some medicine! While You Are There The days will be long and packed. Be sure your team is where they need to be, when they need to be there. Most competitions will have a very specific schedule for you to follow, and you could face disqualification if you can’t stay on schedule. The day(s) are going to be long, so make sure you are there to offer support and encouragement to your team. Coaches may have an opportunity at competitions to network and take classes, or they may have to attend meetings that are required by the competition. Get any information that you can ahead of time to make your planning easier. Chaperones are especially useful for situations like this, so someone is with your team when you can’t be. The decision of the judges will be final. To keep up with the pace of the competition scene, the judges have to make quick decisions. You may not agree, but you have to respect their decision. This goes for your team and all of your supporters as well. No one should make direct contact with the judges during the competition. This includes notes, signs and direct face-to-face interaction. In the event that you team does not place, it is important that they take the opportunity to show good sportsmanship. Your squad should cheer all the winners in all circumstances. There is no excuse for a squad jeering a competitor. Are you a coach attending competition for the first time? Leave a question in the comments for our readers and us and we’ll help you prepare! Are you an experienced coach that has compiled pages of competition tips and tricks? Share them in the comments!