Here in hyoo's town, I often see people with stickers on the back of their SUVs advertising their kids' participation in whatever suburban prestige hell activity the kids are subjected to.
Today, the SUV in front of me advertised that Mike played baseball with the A's, and that Richard played baseball with the Astros. And Katy was in the Tomball Sophisticates. A cheer team. Who compete with other cheer teams in leading cheers for no team to no fans.
It is really not uncommon to see cheer team stickers.
Which illustrates the point I want to make, which is that it's pretty easy for you not to notice that something is just completely bufguck insane, if enough other people are doing it too.
Posted by Greg at April 19, 2007 9:35 AM
Cheer competitions are broadcast on telelvision, and it is a division I scholarship sport. Thank title IX, if you must.
Actually, my wife and I are friends with a couple whose teenage daughters are involved in exactly this, cheering for no-team. They (the daughters) got involved for two reasons:
1) You can go higher, i.e. girls lifting girls lifting girls rather than just girls lifting girls. Thus if you derive satisfaction from cheering alone, the independent teams are a better match for your aspirations.
2) Scholarships are VERY available for these teams. The competitive cheer teams in Houston are sending a few free-ride girls to college every year, and the percentages are significantly better than if you were playing volleyball or doing gymnastics.
(Insert your own "free-ride" joke here.)