Every so often, I have to wish for a cloning device. There are times that a major Jills event coincides with a Bandits game and I have to make a choice. Last night was one of those times and, given how close I am with the Jills and the fact that the photos I take usually end up on the Jills' site, the choice isn't tough to make. That being said, I do feel bad about making a choice like that and I do intend to make up for it with more high quality pics the rest of the Bandits season, especially considering the Bandettes' performances will overshadow the team's performance the way they've been playing thus far. Obviously that doesn't help with last night's game, which was a poor showing by the team to say the least, but there is a little something I can do.
Unlike the Jills, the Bandettes are sponsored by the team they represent and the Bandits' team photographer, Bill Wippert, gets a number of Bandettes pictures for the website. You can see all of his work in the multimedia section of the Bandits' website but here are links to his Bandettes photos at http://www.bandits.com/photo.asp
Saturday featured a pair of Jills appearances to be covered, both featuring a performance by Jackie, Loren, Eileen, Omarlla, and Ayeshia.
First up was the Day of Dance appearance at the Eastern Hills Mall. Unfortunately, road and traffic conditions caused me to just miss the dance performance that the Jills were joined in by a few members of the Jr Jills. Day of Dance, sponsored by Kaleida Health, was an event designed to help teach families about staying healthy through dance. Besides the Jills performing as well as handing out info on the Jr Jills program and on Jills auditions coming up, other groups performed dances as well. One of those groups put on a West African dance routine and invited several members of the audience up on stage to learn and participate, including Lisa and Valerie, on hand to cheer on their squadmates.
The evening's appearance was a little bigger, the annual Buffalo Jills Adult Comedy Show at Club Paradise in Blasdell. In addition to the above-mentioned performance, there were 3 comedians who took the stage to entertain the crowd. First up was local comedian Dan Pordum, who put on a show talking about, among other things, how much better Buffalonians handle bad weather than other people around the nation. Check out his website at http://www.danpordum.com/ The 2nd comedian onstage was no stranger to Jills fans as he's been running the 103.3 The Edge Away Game Parties the past 2 seasons. I'm talking of course about Edge DJ and Program Director James. You can check out a little more about him, as well as see him perform a few of the jokes he performed at the Comedy Show at Skunkpost, who sat down with him last month at Mode Restaurant. Check it out at http://www.skunkpost.com/news.sp?newsId=1407 The final comedian, Jocko Alston, is from Montreal and touched on a variety of topics including how similar dance styles actually are and raved about how beautiful Buffalo women are, based on the solid representation from the Buffalo Jills. Jocko has a few DVDs out on the market and, at the end of the show, sold some with a portion of the sales going to the Jills Calendar Shoot fund, helping cover some of the costs of the Jills' trip to Jamaica in May to shoot their 2010-2011 Swimsuit Calendar. Take a look at Jocko's site, complete with clips, DVDs, and tour dates. http://www.jockoalston.com/
This year's Jills Comedy Show also featured a few extra celebrities of a sort in the audience. One thing that I, as someone who's gotten to know many of the Jills over the years, looks forward to with these events, is when Jills alumni show up to support their former squadmates. I'm not alone in this by any means as current members of the squad get pretty excited to see former squadmates show up as well. This event featured longtime Jills Ambassador Captain Kelly (2002-08) as well as a pair of 2005-07 alumni in Autumn and Rachael, all of whom posed for pictures as if they had never left the squad. There was also one more extra celebrity in the crowd as Pro Bowl Dan made the trip up from Virginia to take in the show and take some photos. For anyone who's not sure who Pro Bowl Dan is, he's been going to every Pro Bowl for the past several years and has been getting a lot of good shots of all the Pro Bowl Cheerleaders for UltimateCheerleaders.com You can check out his most recent batch of photos, including the vivacious Christina, at http://ultimatecheerleaders.com/2010/02/pro-bowl-cheerleaders-game-time/
While the focus of the night was comedy, there was one saddening aspect as well as it was the last Jills appearance for a pair of the Jills in attendance as 2nd year vet Lynn and Swimsuit Calendar Covergirl Katy have decided to move on from the Jills. Hopefully they, along with other departing vets like Stephanie B and Liz, still make the appearances at events as several other alumni do frequently.
There is one other medium-sized appearance left for this edition of the Buffalo Jills at next week's Buffalo Men's Show, which takes place at Seneca Niagara Casino's Events Center. Check out all the details at http://www.wedg.com/Article.asp?id=640206&spid=22409
Jills tryouts are fast approaching and they start off with an optional prep class for aspiring rookies on Saturday, March 6, at Gold's Gym in Williamsville. Get all the details including registration info at http://buffalojills.net/appearances/details.php?recordID=79
Skunkpost.com, a Buffalo-area site that shows off a lot of what's happening and hot around Buffalo recently sent one of their reporters to a Bandettes practice and came back with this video.
This week, we feature 4th year vet Beth as our Bandette of The Week. Like some other Bandettes the past few years as well as a few Jills, Beth took some time away from the squad before returning to the squad she missed. Before coming back this season, the last time she danced and cheered at HSBC Arena was when the Bandits won the NLL Title. Despite the team's rough start this year, she's hoping that she can bring a little luck back to the team to win it all again. She's not coming back as like a rookie, though. With Danielle moving on and Melissa moving over to Meghan's line to fill that co-captain slot, Beth is filling the co-captain slot on Justina's line. Dancing and cheering since the age of 4, she turned her passion for cheering into a role as a coach and with a past that included national competitions as well as her current role as a Bandette, she's sure to have the undivided attention of her proteges. You can read more about Beth at http://www.bandits.com/profileB.asp?bandetteID=201002
Looking at another one of our 2nd year vets, we come to Lynn. She anchored one end of Christina's line this year next to Gabrielle. Lynn is a very outgoing and independent young woman which makes sense. Lynn waited until she finished college to join the Jills, which has made things a lot easier for her to juggle things in her life so that she can make all the practices and appearances required as a Buffalo Jill. As a Jill, her quiet and easy-going demeanor may not get a lot of notice but her dancing definitely does. That's no big surprise with 11 years of dance prior to joining the Jills and, with the Jills, she's danced at events and was one of an elite group of 6 Jills, along with Jess, Valerie, and captains Omarlla, Eileen, and Christina to dance at the Budweiser Tailgate Party prior to the game in Toronto. You can read more about Lynn at http://buffalojills.net/roster/lynn.php
With Jills tryouts coming up, we shouldn't forget about the accomplishments of the 2009 squad. The Jills just had their end of season banquet and, as is custom, handed out numerous awards.
Captain of the year: Omarlla Outstanding Ambassador Jill: Keisha Rookie of the year: Kelly (dance) & Alyssa (Ambassador) Veteran of the year: Lisa Miss Congeniality: Stefanie & Courteney Highest Calendar sales: Laura w/ a close 2nd by Katy Perfect attendance: Katie K., Jennifer & Kelly Most Appearances: Alyssa & Keisha Jr Jills Captain: Jennifer (and you probably thought I was making all that up in her Jill Of The Week feature, didn't you?)
The last couple of years, they've also named their captains and co-captains at this time. Well, captains have been named but the ambassador squad was the only one with a co-captain named. Dance co-captains will be named after practices get going for the 2010 squad. This is pretty similar to how they did it prior to the 2008 squad. Without further ado though, the captains for the 2010 Buffalo Jills will be Omarlla, Eileen, Christina, and Keisha. Obviously Omarlla and Eileen need no introduction to anyone as they've both been with the squad since 2000, going into their 11th season as Jills. Christina making captain is no surprise as she was named co-captain her 3rd season in 2008 and finished this past season in Miami representing the squad in the Pro Bowl. There's also the fact that she, like Keisha with the Ambassador Squad, was an acting captain most of the season with the departures of Nicole and Danielle. Keisha, winning the Outstanding Ambassador award and always going the extra distance for her squadmates, was an easy choice for Ambassador Squad captain as well. Joining Keisha in heading up the Ambassador Squad will be 4th year vet Amanda. Detail-oriented, experience in management, and a plethora of ideas to bring to the squad are just some of the reasons why this blonde bombshell was a great choice for the role.
This Saturday, make sure to congratulate all the award winners and captains at the Buffalo Jills Adult Comedy Show. It takes place at Club Paradise in Blasdell with the doors opening at 7pm. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Also, some of them will be at Eastern Hills Mall Saturday late morning for the Kaleida Health Women's -Day of Dance event from 11-noon.
After all that, you have one final chance to see many of the 2009 Jills before tryouts get going...at the 2010 Buffalo Men's Show. Anyone who was there in 2008 knows what a fun event it was. This year's event promises to be bigger, taking place at Seneca Niagara Casino and Hotel. Among the celebrities in attendance, we'll have former Bills greats Andre Reed, Thurman Thomas, Ted Washington, and Ruben Brown as well as current greats Paul Posluzsny and Fred Jackson as well as Mark Steenhuis from the Bandits. Add former Sabre Mike Peca and Dudley Hart from the PGA to the mix, and the 2008 Men's Show should pale in comparison. See the whole list at http://www.97rock.com/Article.asp?id=1706180&spid=21992
This week, we take a look at 2nd year vet Lauren S as our Bandette of The Week. This future RN is known for many things, including her goofy nature and her love of the camera, especially when Alexis or Amanda (her 2 closest friends on the squad) are nearby. Beyond that though, she's also the type of girl who's outgoing yet easygoing, spontaneous, and enjoys putting smiles on friends' faces. She's also the type of girl who makes friends easily and will go out of her way to help someone she doesn't even know. These are definitely traits that will help her in her career field. There are a few things that have changed about her since first joining the Bandettes last year. I'm talking about things beyond simple career goals and the added confidence that comes with the veteran status. One of the most noteworthy changes, in her bio that is, is her serious love of Disney. While we're sure she's always loved Disney (and truth be told, who doesn't), the fact that she brings it up in her bio makes us think she's spent a lot of time with Bandettes head choreographer Erin Y as well, whose devotion to Disney and Disney World is near legendary. You can read more about Lauren at http://www.bandits.com/profileB.asp?bandetteID=200903
This week, we feature 2nd year dancer Jennifer as our Buffalo Jill of The Week. She spent the season dancing on Christina's line between Kaitlin and Ayeshia and besides her outgoing and friendly nature, perhaps her strongest trait is her dedication. That dedication goes to a lot of areas in her life, too, including friends, work, the gym, and of course, the Jills. Even as a rookie, she was working to help organize get-togethers for the squad and has been known to throw herself into every aspect of the squad. Considering the friendships she's made by being on the squad, that's not exactly surprising. Probably her closest friend is 3rd year vet Ayeshia, who she's danced alongside both years she's been on the squad and even auditioned with, in matching outfits. Beyond all that though, she's been cheering and dancing since the age of 3 and also has done a considerable amount of teaching in both areas, and that's even before she joined the Jills and started working with the Jr Jills, one of her favorite parts of being a Jill. That's not something just gleaned off her bio, either. Watching her interact with the group that she, Jill, and Lisa taught at the Open Practice the Jills held this past September showed how much she enjoyed teaching dance and cheer. You can read more about Jennifer at http://www.buffalojills.net/roster/jennifer.php
This is an exciting time of year in NFL Cheerleading circles with tryouts getting into full swing. A few squads have already started while most, including the Buffalo Jills, are coming up in the next month or so.
All audition dates, with the exception of March 20th, are closed to the public
First up is a voluntary prep class at Gold's Gym in Williamsville from 3-5pm on March 6th. The prep class will afford prospective Jills an advance opportunity to learn the NFL cheerleader look, what to wear, expectations at auditions, dance style and more! Learn directly from Jills management and team captains! Get more details on registration and prices at http://buffalojills.net/appearances/details.php?recordID=79
After that, the real fun begins with the mandatory Open Workshop at the Conference Center of Niagara Falls on March 14th starting at 10am. It's advised you show up early for check-in and bring along a healthy snack. Ending time will be determined by the number of attendees but expect to be finished between 1-2pm based on past years' workshops. In this workshop, dancers will learn the new routine that you will be expected to perform on March 20th and dancers and ambassadors alike will get a chance to learn about the requirements and expectations of being a Jill along with the benefits that the squad provides through its sponsors. There will be a short question-and-answer period as well so if you have questions, that will be the time to ask them.
March 18th will be another voluntary workshop from 8-10pm at Gold's Gym in Williamsville. This is a great opportunity to rehearse with the Jills Captains and learn helpful interview, attire and makeup techniques.
1st cuts, the only audition date open to the public, will take place Saturday, March 20th at 10am at the Conference Center of Niagara Falls. There is a $5 admission fee for the general public to attend and the $45 registration fee is due at this date before you'll be allowed to audition. For the public, we ask that you be respectful as the young ladies are up on stage and while dancers are performing, no flash photography.
Finally, 97Rock is holding an online contest for a judge's position. Norton in the Morning is accepting on-line applications now through March 12th. All candidates will be eligible for an on-line voting contest. The winner will travel to the Buffalo Jills try-outs on March 20th in an Advantage Limosine and participate as a celebrity judge! Get all the details as well as how to apply at http://www.97rock.com/Article.asp?id=1703967&spid=21994
Buffalo is a city well-known for its tailgating prowess, annually ranked in the top 3 in the NFL with Green Bay and Kansas City. Besides their devotion to tailgating, the foods that are served at Buffalo tailgate parties are spoken of around the league. In honor of this, the Buffalo Auto Show, with the aid of radio station 103.3 The Edge, hosted a contest in which 5 contestants put their recipes up for judging. The winner got a large group of prizes including Bills tickets, a new grill, an autographed football, and many more. No contest like this works without judges and Amanda and Kaitlin of the Buffalo Jills put aside Valentine's Day afternoons with their boyfriends to help judge the contest along with a pair of NYS's finest.
Coming up next, the Jills have a pair of events scheduled for February 27th as a number of them will be at Eastern Hills Mall from 11-noon for Kaleida Health's Day of Dance event. They'll be there to perform, sign autographs, pose for photos, and hand out info on becoming a Jill or a Jr Jill.
That evening, Club Paradise in Blasdell is the place to be as the Jills hold their annual adult comedy show. Tickets are $20 in advance through the Jills or $25 at the door with doors opening at 7pm with raffles, food, and drink available.
This year, we're going to go totally random on the Bandette of The Week feature and will start it off with rookie Lonna. The reason we're starting with a rookie is because she was an early departure from the squad unfortunately because of so much else going on for her at the moment. Among those things going on are beauty pageants and even won the most stylish award in last year's Miss NY USA pageant. It's sad that she couldn't stick it out for a few reasons. One is the fact that the Bandits faithful won't get to see her perform anymore and another is because of how much she was looking forward to joining the squad, having started watching for news for tryouts last spring. Even though she was a rookie to the Bandettes, she's no rookie in the eyes of the Buffalo Pro Cheer Blog as she was a member of the 2008 Buffalo Jills as well. For the future, she hopes to continue in modeling and pageants, as well as work in law enforcement, either as a NY state trooper or in Homeland Security. If it's state trooper, it's highly unlikely any guy would try to argue his way out of a ticket with this beauty pulling him over. You can read more about Lonna at http://www.bandits.com/profileB.asp?bandetteID=201004
This week, we take a look at 3rd year vet Laura as our Jill of The Week. If you're into archery very much, you really need no introduction to the Martin Archery girl. This happily married (sorry guys) woman has been working with Martin Archery for the past several years but she isn't just a model. She's also a 3-time National Archery Champion, an avid hunter, and also into fishing, cooking, working out, and spending time with her husband and their pets when she gets the chance to relax at home. She's constantly on the go and probably spends more time on airplanes than anywhere else with the many hunting shows she attends. She even had to meet up with the squad in Canton for the HOF game as she had been at a hunting show until the day before in the Midwest. While the squad arrived via limobus a few hours before the game, Laura made sure she'd be there to meet them, getting to town the night before and showing up where the bus arrived before it got there. She describes herself as trustworthy, thoughtful, driven, and honest. Her dedication is probably one of her strongest qualities, though. Only thing about her self-description is...she's not always that honest. But I'm certainly not saying that in a bad way by any means. On occasion, she will call herself chunky or something but I think I can guarantee that if you took a poll of all the girls on the squad, they'd all say she's one of the most physically fit women they know. Take a look at some of her pics on 97Rock at http://97rock.com/Article.asp?id=1374487&spid=21993 and read more about her at http://buffalojills.net/roster/Laura.php
Even though we're only about halfway into February 2010, car companies are already starting to unveil some of their 2011 models at various auto shows across the nation. To bring in car enthusiasts and potential customers, the Buffalo Auto Show has special features at the Buffalo Convention Center each year. This year, just one of those features was a Sports Star day with appearances by former Bill Ruben Brown, former Sabres Rob Ray and Gilbert Perreault, and current Bandits superstar Johnny Tavares. With the Bandits star in attendance, it's only fitting if some of the Bandits dancers, the Bandettes, were in attendance as well. On hand for this event on Wednesday evening were Meghan, Amanda, Alexis, and Lauren B. They spent some time checking out some of the cars and posed in a few as well. After posing with some fans, they joined Tavares as he signed autographs and posed for pictures with the fans.
If you missed seeing the Bandettes at Wednesday night's appearance, you can still see the Jills at the Buffalo Auto Show on Sunday as they help judge The Edge Tailgate Contest as 5 finalists compete to show off their best tailgate meal. Go to http://www.buffaloautoshow.com/ for all the info on the Buffalo Auto Show.
The Bandettes are next in action as they return to HSBC Arena on February 27 as the Bandits host the Philadelphia Wings, the same team the Bandits are visiting this Saturday night.
The Bandits' season isn't getting off to a good start this year as the Bandits dropped a heart breaker to the visiting Toronto Rock at HSBC Arena last night. Some questionable officiating and a porous defense were keys in a game that still lacked the great John Tavares.
Like the Bandits, the Bandettes have had to adjust to a teammate not being able to perform. However, unlike the Bandits, the dance team has performed outstandingly. Head choreographer Erin Y has stepped in on select performances and captains Meghan and Justina have helped the squad adjust to routines and performances with 1 fewer dancer.
Prior to the game, the Bandettes greeted fans, posed for photos, signed autographs, and handed out information on their Jr Bandettes program. If you missed this info, you can fill out a form online at https://www.formspring.com/forms/?822830-NMAlnArOar . During the game, the Bandettes unveiled something special, some hot new uniforms and performed a pair of performances in them as well as a performance that 3rd year captain Justina put together in her free time. After the game, most of the squad spent some time at Pearl Street Grill and Brewery with fans and players alike as everyone wound down from a tough evening.
Coming up next for the Bandettes, a number of them will be putting in an appearance at the Buffalo Auto Show on Feb 10, Wednesday evening from 6-8 but they won't be alone as even though he hasn't been able to play yet this season, superstar John Tavares can still put in appearances and will be on hand for photos and autographs. Get the details at http://buffaloautoshow.com/
The Bandettes next take the floor at HSBC Arena on February 27 as the Bandits play host to the visiting Philadelphia Wings, in a game which the Bandits hope to have Tavares back in the lineup
This week, we take a look at rookie dancer Caity as our Jill of The Week. This Rochester native was found dancing on Eileen's line next to Stefanie this season and actually caught our eyes at 1st cuts when she and her friend Riley came in matching outfits. While that's not exactly new as 7 pairs of vets did the same thing this year, it is notable that two aspiring rookies did it. Unfortunately, unlike the vets, Riley and Caity weren't able to reserve their numbers and ended up dancing separately which didn't hurt their chances as they both made the final squad. Riley left the squad early during the summer while Caity stuck it out and was one of only 2 rookies, along with Joya, on Eileen's vet-heavy line. Some Jills, once they leave the squad, aspire to leave the area. In fact, a pair of this year's rookie ambassadors have already made their plans for leaving. Thankfully, Caity won't be one of them. She places a high importance on her family and enjoys the winter sports like skiing she can get involved with here.
