Cheerywayeeeeee!!!!!!!!
PT2
These gridiron glamour
girls are not the products of the American High School. They are
just Scottish lassies who love to dance.
Their ranks include students,
dentists, lawyers and teachers.
Twice a week they prepare
themselves for the gruelling season ahead.
And when they pick up
their pom poms and run out on to the field, their professionalism
is there for all to see.
I had one major handicap
working against me. I was grossly overweight. I looked like a distant
relation of Mr Blobby (Only UK visitors will know who I am talking
about there) and the last time I hit the dance floor, John Travolta
was King of the Disco.
My Wife, a former fitness
instructor, gave me some advice - get myself in shape, and always
remember to work my gluteus maximus. In other words don't forget
to shake your butt!!!!!!
For the next two months,
I went on a crash diet (again) and danced to my daughter's
Spice Girls records at night in an effort to capture my lost rhythm.
And when I finally turned
up at the Cheerleaders training base in Glasgow, I was full of confidence
and was convinced that this was going to be a Yankee Doodle Dawdle.
It was not long before
the real work started, when the girls began their first routine
of the evening.
I stood between two of
the girls determined to pick up the moves as I went along.
But as the music played,
I sensed an ever increasing between the girls on either side of
me.
I kept turning in the
wrong direction and I think that they were worried that I was going
to hit them in the face with my pom poms, which I was using like
a pare of Knuckle-Dusters.
Even when I thought I
was getting the hang of it, the message had not reached my feet.
I didn't injure anybody.
But as I tried frantically to keep up, many of the girls were struggling
to keep their concentration.
And when the Isley Brothers
hit, Twist and Shout started to blast over the loudspeakers, I was
ready to shout myself - for help!
Being a Cheerleader is
certainly not a walk in the park.
But I thoroughly enjoyed
the experience, but I am not quite up to the standards of the girls
yet.
And even
though I was complicated for my efforts, according to squad member,
Gillian Hill, she does not see any male cheerleaders joining their
ranks in the future.
We
are not being sexist or anything like that, but everyone regards
cheerleading as strictly for women, "she said.
"And
besides, I do not think that they would look good wearing the Leotards
and skirts."
Fans
of the Claymores Cheerleaders can expect a new look for this year,
with some new faces, new outfits and new routines.
"With
the new outfits, we will be sticking to the original Claymores colours,"
said Donna Lindsay from Bearsden.
"But
let's hope that the weather is nice and warm on the day of the game."
"And
we are going to have work very hard to make sure they fit," she
added.
At
the end of the session, Claymores star player, Scott Couper appeared.
Couper
last year's World League National Player of the year also earned
the accolade of performing the worst ever touchdown celebration
dance.
I
was wondering if he was looking for some dance tips himself. He
only has to ask and I will be happy to oblige.
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