Straight Talk with Maryland Twisters’ Tara Cain

judging, Maryland Twisters, Tara Cain August 14, 2014

As home to the premier F5, the Maryland Twisters are no strangers to high expectations. Pressure from industry leaders, judges and fans to “keep delivering and over-delivering” can be intense, but gym owner Tara Cain insists that championship titles (of which they have many) are not the end goal for a Twister—it’s having fun. “At the end of the day, the kids sacrifice two to three days a week at practices, all year long, because they love what they do,” says Cain.

In the Industry/ Two Sides/ Web Exclusives

Two Sides: Too Many Nationals?

becky woodson, judging, ron swanson, Two Sides July 14, 2014

It’s a question of objectivity—can judges “turn it off” when they take the stand? Some gym owners and coaches say “no,” taking issue with event producers who allow judges that have some form of past or current affiliation with programs on the competition roster. Others say that because of the prevalence of cheer gyms, it’s almost impossible to find a whole panel of judges that don’t have some sort of knowledge or background with at least one of the gyms involved; they also argue that judges should be trusted to be professional and impartial. So who’s right? We spoke with Ron Swanson of Kansas Gymnastics & Cheer and Becky Woodson of Daytona Xtreme to explore the issue.