So back in September we began our training for Nationals…months on and many late night training sessions later and we have made it!
The girls and guys of our team were up before the sun to leave Cheltenham at 6:15am to head to the town of Nottingham. The coach was filled with tired faces but so much anticipation and wonder over the weekend ahead of us. We arrived to a chilly Nottingham ready to support our dance team, ‘Annihilation’, as they took on the hip-hop division. Once we had found our seating area the Dynamites were straight into action to get the girls performance ready, army paint were decorated on the girl’s faces and they were ready to go. Now it was show time, the girls took to the stage with an air of definitive strength, the music begins and their presence is electrifying. The rest of the Dynamites were on hand to scream and cheer as the girls rocked their moves on the stage. When the girls had finished the room was filled with the joyous screams of the Dynamite girls and guys, the dancers themselves so full of adrenaline and excitement as they leaped off the stage. Soon it was the dance award ceremony, anticipation filled the room as the girls all held hands as they awaited the result….
7th place!!! SUCCESS the girls had come and it was celebrations to be had for the rest of the evening!
With the afternoon free to enjoy the wonders of Nationals, the girls watched as the Elite all-star teams competed to qualify for the world championships. This only fuelled the excitement of the day’s performances to come on the Sunday. As tradition goes our overnight accommodation is provided by a local church who allow us to use their facilities over the weekend. With sleeping bags, snacks and cheerleaders everywhere there was only one thing missing….the yearly ritual of watching BRING IT ON! Who doesn’t love that film?! Finally the girls reside to their sleeping bags and the lights go out, a few hours asleep ready to begin the next day’s excitements.
Sunday morning comes and it’s off to the arena for a day of cheerleading antics! Once again a sea of Dynamites fill a section of the arena, ready to start the day, slowly but surely we become a mobile hairdressers…quiffs…plaits…backcombing...a cloud of hairspray fills the (h)air as we start to become the University of Gloucestershire Dynamites. Lunchtime passes and the bows are starting to appear, make up is going on and there is glitter everywhere. As the mid-afternoon approaches the first of our team’s head off to warm up, only 45 minutes away from the beginning of the action! As the clock ticks by the finishing touches are being made to the girls until finally everyone is ready and we take to the seats to cheer our girls on!
Level 2 All-Girl, Flares, take to the floor giving 100% from the moment they run onto the floor, this is the first time we’d entered a third team into this competition and at this level so it’s all very new and exciting! The supportive cheers fill the room as the girls hit every move with all they can give, their stunts hit the air and the flyers look full of exhilaration! Their pyramid takes a tumble but the girls get back up and keep going without blinking an eye! The true professionals step it up a notch, drawing the audience into them to show off their skills and finish the performance with a bang! The Dynamites go nuts as the final beats of the music hit and clap them off the stage.
Level 3 All-Girl, Detonation, were up next, if their rehearsals in training were anything to go by the ICC were about to be amazed! Again this is the first time we have competed in this division. The music begins and the presence the girls have on the stage encapsulates the audience, their flips and flicks on point with every move. Cheer faces were out in force as the girls sassed their way through their routine, each stunt that hit was welcomed with a roar from the other Dynamites. The girls were putting in their all as the routine continues, bows sparkling in the lights, a few wobbles but the girls didn’t even flinch as they smoothly covered them and continued to sass it through the routine! As the dance section began there were shouts from the Dynamites as every move hit and they showed all their competitors exactly how a level 3 routine should be done!
Level 2 Co-Ed, Explosion, were our final team up to the mat, excitement filled everyone’s faces as the guys and girls get into their positions. The music starts and the sass goes from 0 to 100mph in an instant, they dazzle their way around the floor and hit every stunt in the routine. The first stunt has some tiny nervous wobbles that the flyers cover with expert moves, after that every stunt hits solidly and with smiles upon the flyers faces. Once the pyramid section is finished it’s the final dance part of the routine, everything has gone so well you can see the energy in their eyes as they hit their final moves! Jordan takes centre stage giving a better twerk than Miley Cyrus, then they reach their final positions and BOOM the Dynamites erupt as the routine finishes and they jump with sheer elation.
AWARDS!!!!
So after counting the hours down the girls and guys of University of Gloucestershire Dynamites are sat on the mat in each team waiting for them to be announced! Butterflies fill the stomachs of the teams as we hold hands awaiting the results.
The first award is the Level 2 All-Girl division….
8th PLACE!!!!! AMAZING!!!
The second award is the Level 3 All-Girl division….
5th PLACE!!!!! MORE SUCCESS!!!
Last but not least it’s the last award, the Level 2 Co-Ed division…
Suddenly the team realise as they go up the ranks their team hasn’t been announced yet…the realisation sinks in that they are either 1st or 2nd….could it be??
YES!!!!!!!
The Co-Ed level 2 division NATIONAL CHAMPIONS are the University of Gloucestershire Dynamites Explosion!!!!!
The team are going crazy as we realise the incredible success once again at Nationals 2015, every single member of the team gave everything they had and we are all incredibly proud of our team!!
What a magical weekend it has been for us all as the celebrations continue on the coach back home filled with Blue and Blue spirit!
Bring on our next competition in a few weeks! Let’s bring home some more trophies!