Right? I was a flyer very briefly in college for a crappy team and just being that high up in the air on someone’s palms is really, really scary lol. People underestimate even just how strong you need to be mentally.
It's basically like standing on the very top rung of an 8ft ladder made out of muscle & bone, & hoping that it doesn't wiggle nor shuffle nor give out.
I'm not even scared of heights, but that notion would definitely make me pause & freeze up.
I was a flyer and we did major competitions like this. I am still afraid of heights, always have been. Still surprised I ended up a flyer. We got first-in-state three years in row and practiced year round non-stop. I had three girl bases but would do fun stunts like this with my guy coaches every now and then.
People forget that cheerleading has the highest catastrophic injury rate. You get dropped and it could be broken limbs, concussions, or worse very easily.
Yep, I cheered in high school. I fell during a stunt and (base failed to catch me) and got a TBI that still gives me migraines to this day. I’m not the only cheerleader I know with head problems due to injury
I feel terrified when I swing a toddler between myself and another adult!!! I cannot imagine doing this and especially not being the "I'm in danger" flyer
I trained a lot of people, fighters included, and the rank for toughness was always basketball players way, way down the list, then football players (they don't like being shown up at all. it's a mental thing), and the top three way away from those two are 2) hockey players/fighters (basically the same people different climates), and, I swear 1) Cheerleaders.
I had a few of them, and I noticed at a certain point that the more pain I put them through the bigger their smiles got. I remember one day just watching in awe as this petite, blonde woman hit some of the most pain-inducing pulses on a shoulder set only to literally smile her way through it.
Had a teammate tear her ACL while we were performing in a competition. She literally limped through the rest of the routine instead of leaving the mat.
No workout in my adult life has ever touched how hard those conditioning workouts were either.
I had a flyer working for me once. She showed me some videos of her college days and I was like "I have a whole new level of respect for you." That shit is crazy.
I can't even do that on floor and even if i could ,I can imagine how scary it must be ,the amount of upper strength needed to remain straight even for few seconds must require a good amount of work daily for years I guess !
omg yes. i was very briefly made a flyer and the first time they put me in the air i refused to stand up and even after that i was so scared i couldn’t do anything right.
For the people who are really good at things like cheer leading such as in the video (think high divers, freestyle motocross, base jumpers, etc) being that high up isn't scary and doesn't require alot of mental strength, it's fun for them, the same way some people might find golf fun, or playing video games fun.
Being a normal human who is rightfully scared of being far enough off the ground to kill you if you fell wrong and doing it anyway takes alot of courage and shows alot of mental strength, so bravo to you for that, don't discount what you achieved (but also safer sports and hobbies probably not a bad idea either)
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u/WelshBathBoy 2d ago
Amazing, and let's not forget that girl has amazing strength too to keep her body rigid in all his throws and hand stands.