Most recent edit on 2005-09-15 16:47:29 by EschaTon
Additions:
My palms were sweaty from my best friend's death grip on my fingers. We were in a circle, each of us looking at the others, trying to promote some sense of hope. Trying to keep away the feeling of failure until after we performed. The announcer said our team name, and I realized that it didn't matter if I wasn't ready. I had to force my feet onto the competition floor and perform. I faked one more confident smile to my peers before I turned around, hustled through the curtains behind the stage, and gracefully found my spot in front of a stadium of screaming fans, cameraman, twenty judges, and[, of course,] plenty of other competitors. [Of course,] [ <- this is repititious (see previous sent.)] that's what I wanted to happen [this is confusing]. I actually stumbled over the mat and almost caused a domino effect behind me. I regained my balance, though, and dodged my squad members as I searched for my position in the opening eight-counts.
[This is very good work]
Deletions:
My palms were sweaty from my best friend's death grip on my fingers. We were in a circle, each of us looking at the others, trying to promote some sense of hope. Trying to keep away the feeling of failure until after we performed. The announcer said our team name, and I realized that it didn't matter if I wasn't ready. I had to force my feet onto the competition floor and perform. I faked one more confident smile to my peers before I turned around, hustled through the curtains behind the stage, and gracefully found my spot in front of a stadium of screaming fans, cameraman, twenty judges, and, of course, plenty of other competitors. Of course, that's what I wanted to happen. I actually stumbled over the mat and almost caused a domino effect behind me. I regained my balance, though, and dodged my squad members as I searched for my position in the opening eight-counts.
Edited on 2005-09-08 20:03:27 by TrinFuff
Additions:
Using that as my motivation, I went through the last few eight-counts of the routine and my stunt group and I managed to hit every liberty, every extension, and every twist-down cradle. I actually lost the false hope and, for thirty seconds after the performance, believed we had a chance at winning. Christine always taught us to cheer to the crowd after the routine was done for no less than thirty seconds, no matter what stunts fell or who got hurt. This way, we could show the crowd that we bounced back from any hardships on the floor. It’s supposed to boost our confidence and show that we still believed in ourselves. As the ending pyramid was brought down, I ran to the front of the mat, hands in the air, screaming support for my team and State College High School. After ten seconds, I thought it odd that I couldn’t hear the other members of my squad barking support from behind me. It was then that I looked around and realized I was alone on the stage. I gave one last false smile to the crowd and met my teammates behind the curtains.
There were smeary black puddles under many of the girls’ faces from the layers of mascara that were applied prior to the performance. Three stunts fell, and a girl that was flown fifteen feet in the air (on purpose) landed on another girl’s head (not on purpose) causing the one whose head was stomped on to pass out. Needless to say, we didn’t win. Although we went home with heavy hearts, I’m still proud of what my fellow teammates and I accomplished throughout that season, even though we didn’t come in first place at the United Cheerleading Association’s National Championship.
Deletions:
Using that as my motivation, I went through the last few eight-counts of the routine and my stunt group and I managed to hit every liberty, every extension, and every twist-down cradle. I actually lost the false hope and, for thirty seconds after the performance, believed we had a chance at winning. Christine always taught us to cheer to the crowd after the routine was done for no less than thirty seconds, no matter what stunts fell or who got hurt. This way, we could show the crowd that we bounced back from any hardships on the floor. It’s supposed to boost our confidence and show that we still believed in ourselves. As the ending pyramid was brought down, I ran to the front of the mat, hands in the air, screaming support for my team and State College High School. After ten seconds, I thought it odd that I couldn’t hear the other members of my squad barking support from behind me. It was then that I looked around and realized I was alone on the stage. I gave one last false smile to the crowd and met my teammates behind the curtains.
There were smeary black puddles under many of the girls’ faces from the layers of mascara that were applied prior to the performance. Three stunts fell, and a girl that was flown fifteen feet in the air (on purpose) landed on another girl’s head (not on purpose) causing the one whose head was stomped on to pass out. Needless to say, we didn’t win. Although we went home with heavy hearts, I’m still proud of what my fellow teammates and I accomplished throughout that season, even though we didn’t come in first place at the United Cheerleading Association’s National Championship.
Oldest known version of this page was edited on 2005-09-08 20:03:12 by TrinFuff []
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My palms were sweaty from my best friend's death grip on my fingers. We were in a circle, each of us looking at the others, trying to promote some sense of hope. Trying to keep away the feeling of failure until after we performed. The announcer said our team name, and I realized that it didn't matter if I wasn't ready. I had to force my feet onto the competition floor and perform. I faked one more confident smile to my peers before I turned around, hustled through the curtains behind the stage, and gracefully found my spot in front of a stadium of screaming fans, cameraman, twenty judges, and, of course, plenty of other competitors. Of course, that's what I wanted to happen. I actually stumbled over the mat and almost caused a domino effect behind me. I regained my balance, though, and dodged my squad members as I searched for my position in the opening eight-counts.
The music started and I regained my composure right before the first pyramid of the night. Giving a quick smile to the judges, my squad and I changed our formation for the dance. Although every muscle was tired from practicing this dance for four hours the night before, I willed myself into the motions and stuck with it. Five minutes before we went on the stage, my coach, Christine, reminded us that we had two and a half minutes of our lives to show a year's worth of work and effort. After it was over, we could relax. But not until then. Through the blaring lights and the flashing cameras, I could faintly see the expressions on our opponent’s faces watching our routine from the front row. They had performed right before us, and although our coach refused to allow us to watch, we could tell from the crowd's reactions that they were good. As we were performing they appeared confident, if not conceited. I focused me attention, then, on the next minute and a half on that floor and how badly I wanted to see tears on that team’s faces as we accepted the first place trophy.
Using that as my motivation, I went through the last few eight-counts of the routine and my stunt group and I managed to hit every liberty, every extension, and every twist-down cradle. I actually lost the false hope and, for thirty seconds after the performance, believed we had a chance at winning. Christine always taught us to cheer to the crowd after the routine was done for no less than thirty seconds, no matter what stunts fell or who got hurt. This way, we could show the crowd that we bounced back from any hardships on the floor. It’s supposed to boost our confidence and show that we still believed in ourselves. As the ending pyramid was brought down, I ran to the front of the mat, hands in the air, screaming support for my team and State College High School. After ten seconds, I thought it odd that I couldn’t hear the other members of my squad barking support from behind me. It was then that I looked around and realized I was alone on the stage. I gave one last false smile to the crowd and met my teammates behind the curtains.
There were smeary black puddles under many of the girls’ faces from the layers of mascara that were applied prior to the performance. Three stunts fell, and a girl that was flown fifteen feet in the air (on purpose) landed on another girl’s head (not on purpose) causing the one whose head was stomped on to pass out. Needless to say, we didn’t win. Although we went home with heavy hearts, I’m still proud of what my fellow teammates and I accomplished throughout that season, even though we didn’t come in first place at the United Cheerleading Association’s National Championship.