Frequenty Asked Questions

At the beginning of every school year we host our try outs for the season. Watch carefully for announcements about orientation and tryouts.

When and Where do you hold your practices?

Competitive cheer: Practices are Tuesday and Thursday nights from 9p-11p (to avoid interfering with classes) at Kawartha Gymnastics. We are able to utilize their mats and equipment in order to be able to properly work on our jumps, stunting, and tumbling safely and accurately.

Pom Team: Practices are Monday and Wednesday nights ffrom 9p-11p at Kawartha Gymnastics, to familiarize our dancers with the competition mat and better aide their jump technique!

What's the difference between Pom and Cheer?

Our cheer team operates like that of a competitive cheer team. Similar to All-Star style cheer, we focus on stunting (skills done through lifting and throwing people), cheer jumps, running and standing tumbling (looking mostly at handsprings, tucks, whips, and layouts), and a dance section. We try to compete in three competitions a year against other universities and colleges in our level.
Our Pom team choreographs and performs a three minute routine comprising of mostly dance (including leaps, and turns), but also including cheer jumps and incorporating pom poms. The 2017-2018 season included cheering on teams and doing a performance at our homecoming (Head of the Trent), and two competitions. As the team is newer this may mean the upcoming season may have different opportunities for performances/competitions.

How is cost broken down?

Costs are different for each team. 

For the cheer team it can be expected to pay just under $200 for uniform if bought new, but it is often possible to buy used from previous members which can bring down cost. It should also be expected to pay roughly $20 for bow, $30 for safety insurance in the gymnastics studio, the cost of time/rent in the gymnastics studio, cost of acquiring cheer shoes, a team jacket. and cost of competitions and travel should also be taken into account. These numbers are more subject to change, thus aren't given exactly.

For the pom team it is expected to pay over $200 for the uniform, plus cost of pom bow, jazz shoes, travel, use of gym, and competition fees.

Keep in mind that we do a lot of fundraising to help cover the cost of these fees, that we try to participate in competitions that don't require a great amount of travelling, and that it is possible to get very inexpensive or used cheer/jazz shoes. It isn't required that athletes pay all fees up front, and working out payment plans is a possibility. Please contact us if you have any questions or concerns about costs.

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What is the time commitment like?

Both teams practice four hours a week. That being said there are of course competition dates, and team members are expected to participate in team bonding activities and fundraising events whenever possible. We understand team members have school, home, and potentially work to consider. To accomodate this we give all dates and timeswell in advance to give the chance to make arrangements. We also host practices at night to avoid infringing on class time (and on the off chance it does, it is understood that the athlete is to choose class time over practice time), Christmas break, exam time, and reading breaks are also times we put practices on hold to do our best to accommodate the lives of students.

Is the team varsity?

Unfortunately, no. But this has nothing to do with our teams themselves, so much as Ontario University Athletics (the league for competitive university sports) doesn't offer cheerleading as one of their sports. We are recognized as an Associated Club, under the Trent Central Student Association Clubs and Groups. For more information on what that means, and on the TCSA in general, click here.

Do you ever perform or cheer on-campus or at games?

Currently the answer is unfortunately not. Trent University has specific safety guidelines regarding both their affiliated clubs and stunting on school property. So, while we hope to remedy this someday, our teams are currently only practicing, showcasing, and competing where its safest: over spring loaded mats. That doesn't mean you can't watch our teams though! Keep an eye on our social media pages and the Competitions & Events page of the website for regular updates on when we have showcases and competitions, both of which we encourage spectators to attend!