The cheerleaders are spinning off this year with a combination of air tosses, cross-extension liberty stunts, and a bright, dynamic attitude.

This team is working hard, for next Thursday is the cheerleaders’ first game—The BP Top of the World tournament.

“Right now, we’re going over complex partner stunts, since we are a collegiate team,” said team captain, Margo Owens.

To prove her point, several of the cheerleaders put together the “extension liberty stunt” where one cheerleader is hefted up by two others (the base), where she balances on the palms of one base member, first with two feet, then (by bringing up her knee) with one foot, throwing her arms out to either side of her body in a perfect “T”, before she is guided down to the floor, landing gracefully on her feet. They pulled it off fairly well, considering they’d only done it a few times before. By casual observation, one could tell that this was a quick-learning and determined team, eager to please the crowd.

Normally, the team starts out with a series of dance moves or cheers, before moving on to the full-body movements. Coming up with moves is a collaborative effort. Casey Ginley said, “We have a lot of different levels of experience. Everyone just brings what they know and we combine that [in the routine].”

Cheerleading is not considered a “real sport” by many funding programs, though it is listed as a UAF club, the team has received no funding this year, despite its attempts be granted funds by ASUAF.

“We’re technically a club, so we don’t receive funding. Most of what we get comes through fundraising,” says Owens. She added that the team receives some funding from the Alumni Association. “We have a couple hundred bucks, so we can buy uniforms. We also might want a specialist to help put together routines, such as tumbling and, you know, stunts.”

Every cheerleading team must abide by the restrictions of the rulebook, which says that all teammates must respect the integrity of other teams, must maintain high safety awareness, display “proper conduct”, and retain a sense of dignity.

Adrianne West said the rules were, “T very strict about stunting.” Ginley added that this was because a lot of cheerleaders had been hurt in the past. One injury had led to the idea of using mats on the floor, so as to soften a fall.

“The main thing is safety,” says Keele Owens. “For example, Winston [one of our male teammates] has a lot of experience, so he helps us with stunts.”

The Nanook cheerleading team for this year is small, but packed with team loyalty and cooperation. The cheerleaders all agreed that when one of their teammates fell behind, the others wasted no time in helping them regain their footing. All-in-all, it’s a well-coordinated team, led by a warm and encouraging team captain.
           
In their first game, which will be taking place very soon, this group of cheerleaders is confident that their hard work will prove successful.