Badger Cheer hungry for competition
Just as their team shirt says, Bonners Ferry High School cheerleaders aim to “leave it all on the mat” Dec. 10 at the Lakeland Holiday Classic, a North Idaho cheer competition with schools from 2A to 5A classifications.
The Badgers will compete in four categories: show, pom, sideline and stunt.
The show competition consists of a cheer, stunt, dance and tumbling. The pom competition is a high-paced routine; sideline consists of a cheer and high level stunting. The stunt competition includes a stunt routine allowing only five girls and one alternate to compete for the squad.
Badger cheer has been pushing in practice, whether it is going through every detail in a pom routine to wow the judges or testing their grip and leg strength to launch their flyers. The girls are ready to show North Idaho what they are made of.
“We want to be the squad to beat,” said head coach Christina “Chris” Gaffield. “We want to represent Bonners Ferry and Boundary County and bring home some trophies.”
Gaffield told the Herald the cheer squad hasn’t competed since 2019, when there were only four girls on the squad. The Badgers last trip to state was in 2017.
Now the squad is three times the size with 12 girls. Gaffield said, with the additional girls, Bonners Ferry is able to do stunts they haven't done in years giving them an incredible chance to win competitions.
It is likely the squad will bring home some hardware in at least two categories, Gaffield said.
Co-captain Rylee Myer said she is most looking forward to seeing their competition.
“The hardest part of cheer this year is (the team) spending a long period of time away from each other and losing the bond that we had,” said co-captain Trinity Gaffield.
She said after Thanksgiving break the team has had to work to bring back the strong bond they formed over the summer break.
Badger cheer has five competitions on the schedule this year and they have their eyes set on state and preparing to compete against teams such as Weizer, the seven time state champion.
The team thanks Iron Mike’s Family Fitness for providing practice space. BFHS Cheer is always taking donations in order to invest in the program by updating safety mats and providing uniforms to accommodate the growing team. Reach out to the BFHS front office at 208-267-3149 for information on how to donate.
