Hello Hellcats!!
We are so excited to be back in the gym for season 7 of Hellcats and we are even more excited about how much our Hellcats pride has grown this year!
We have expanded to 7 competitive teams and 5 stunt groups across 2 locations and we loving welcoming so many new faces to our family.
This season, our Chichester squad is offering 2 competitive teams; Cheetahs (Youth Prep Level 1) and Pumas (Junior Level 1). We also have our Recreational team which is open to those who don't want to compete but still want to cheer.
All 3 of our Chichester teams are coached by Program Director and Chichester Head Coach, Rachel.
Cheetahs train Tuesdays 5:00-7:00 and Pumas are Tuesdays 6:30-8:30. Our Rec Squad trains Thursdays 5:00-6:30pm.
You may have noticed your cheerleader bringing home their tumble books. Please ensure these are brought with them to every tumble session as this is how we can mark off new skills. There are some homework tasks inside the books that we ask the athletes to work on at home to help improve their overall fitness and tumble ability and we would appreciate your support in encouraging the girls to do the exercises.
If your Hellcat is a flyer, you may also have seen our Flyers Stretch Guide which has been introduced this year. Again, this includes a lot of stretching exercises that we require our flyers to do 3-4 times a week at home. Each session should take around 20-30 minutes. We have chosen to set flyer homework because a lot of other teams offer Flyer classes in addition to regular training and tumble training. As a club, we feel that your athletes are already spending a lot of time (and money!) in the gym and we want to keep this as low as possible for you. Therefore we feel setting homework is more beneficial at this stage. Again, we would appreciate your support in making sure they are doing their stretches as flyer flexibility is something we always receive comments on at competition. We have asked the girls to take pictures of their stretches at the beginning of each month and send them to us so we can see the progress they're making and there will be a prize for the most improved flyer at the end of the season!
We have been very busy over the summer sourcing new merchandise to add to our pro-shop and we have some very exciting products that will soon be available!
The thing we are most excited about though is our new HELLCATS STARTER PACKS! We are now offering bundles of merchandise perfect for new Hellcats or those wanting to stock up on their swag!
Our Bronze Starter Pack includes your competition bow and new Hellcats water bottle which can be ordered here.
Our Silver package includes everything from the Bronze package, plus your choice of Hoody or Sweatshirt and can be ordered here.
Our Gold Starter Pack includes everything in the Bronze and Silver packs as well as one of our brand new Elite customized training crops which can be found here.
These bundles are great for the start of the new season as well as making great gifts for Birthdays or Christmas! Keep your eyes peeled for more bundles coming to our online store soon!
For those of you that are new to Hellcats this season, you may have had your cheerleader come home saying they need cheerleading trainers. This, unfortunately, is true. All cheerleaders are required to wear plain white, smooth-soled, indoor trainers for training and competitions. This is particularly important if your child is a flyer. Thankfully, we do not require you to purchase proper cheerleading shoes (these do exist) as these can be very expensive. You can find links to suitable shoes across all price points further down this newsletter. The sooner these could be purchased, the better as they are essential for training.
Finally, we are going to be doing our annual photo week next week in training (week commencing 7th October) so please inform your cheerleaders that we will be taking their headshots and team photos for this season if they would like to come to training with their hair/makeup done (though this is not essential!)
We are so impressed with all the progress our teams have been making so far, getting to know new people and learning new skills and we can't wait to see where this season takes us!
See you at training! Rachel and Laura x
COMPETITION INFORMATION
Our first competition will be ICE Blast in Crawley on 23/24th May 2020.
We do not know the running order for the competition until about 1-2 weeks before the event and for this reason cannot specify which day/time your cheerleaders will be needed for. We ask that you keep both days of the weekend completely free for competitions.
Payment of entry fees for this competition is £30 per athlete and will be due after February half term. Your entry fee will be added to your February invoice. Please ensure this is paid promptly so we as a team avoid any late payment fees.
Our second competition of the season will be FC Into The Future in Brighton on 6/7th June 2020.
Again, we will not know the running order for this competition until a couple of weeks before so please keep both days of the weekend completely free. We will let you know arrival times etc closer to the time once we know the details.
Payment for Into The Future entry is £32 per athlete and will be due after Easter. The cost of this entry fee will be added to your April invoice. Please ensure this is paid promptly so we as a team avoid any late payment fees.
All three of our teams, including Rec, will be performing in our annual Razzle Dazzle Showcase.
The showcase will take place on Sunday 28th June (location TBC).
All cheerleaders will be required to attend an afternoon rehearsal before an evening performance. We will let you know more information closer to the time but please keep this date free in your diaries.
Tickets will go on sale after Easter.