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Flyer for Bismarck High School cheer team

Being a flyer is scary and all about trust.
Alivia Zablotney, J1 Student • April 22, 2024
Toe Touch. Bismarck High School Cheerleader Jasmyn Burtness demonstrates a cheer toe touch jump. She used all her might to be able to get up that high and legs that far. When explaining how she practices, Burtness said, “In the Knaak, we take out mats and we do it on the mats, granted the mats are not that thick but, it’s better than the gym floor.”

Cheerleader Jasmyn Burtness is a Freshman who attends Bismarck High School. Burtness is a flyer for BHS. She somehow manages the stressfulness from cheer and school at the same time

Being a flyer is terrifying for most. Flyers have to make sure that their whole body is tight to keep the build balanced. A build for cheer is when several girls go up into a stunt. There are usually two

State Stunt. Jasmyn Burtness is being held up by three of her team members during a stunt. The stunt that Jasmyn performed was called a hitch and she did it during the state basketball tournament. “But once you build that foundation, it feels really nice being in the air, it kind of feels like you are flying,” Burtness said. (Alivia Zablotney)

or three bases, one flyer and one back spot.

“One of the flyers main jobs is to stay tight, lock your knees, lock your arms, clench your butt cheeks, I don’t care. You have to stay tight. Staying tight is how we stay up there, especially in more complicated builds,” Burtness said.

Amie and Jason Burtness are the parents of Jasmyn. Jasmyn is very independent on getting herself ready for cheer and making sure that she has what she needs for her practices and games.

The Burtness Family. Amie and Jason Burtness, the parents of Jasmyn Burtness are very proud of their daughter. They have both gone to almost every one of Jasmyn’s games. “Very proud and I love to see her fly. Because I know she really enjoys it but as a mom, it scares the crap out of me because it’s like what if something happens to her?” Amie said. (Alivia Zablotney)

“I tell her she’s gonna do great sometimes,” Jason said. “I send her inspirational text messages.”

Jasmyn also does gymnastics, which helps with her cheerleading. She has been doing gymnastics for around 10 years. Amie and Jason were pretty certain when Jasmyn was young that she would go on to do cheerleading.

“One of the things that really makes Jasmyn a good cheerleader is her gymnastics background,” Jason said. “Between her flexibility and her strength, the things that she can do as gymnast translate really well into being a cheerleader.”

Cheer is all about trust, especially for flyers. Flyers have to be able to trust that the girls below them will be able to catch them because they aren’t looking down at the bases and the back spots.

“I would say that is one of the main things of being a flyer, you have to trust that if you fall those people will catch you because most of the time you are not watching them,” Jasmyn said. “You are looking forward or you are paying attention to where your hands are. You are not watching to see if they are catching you and so you have to trust and make sure they’ll catch you.”

Being on the cheer team is like being in one big family. BHS’s varsity and junior varsity teams only change during tryouts and when girls get moved up. Jasmyn is on the varsity team and she has made very good relationships with not only the other girls but also the coaches.

“Cheerleading with the squad it’s kind of this group of people that – only those people can relate to you,” Jasmyn said. “It’s not like there are outsiders. There is only that group of people and you build relationships with them because it’s the same squad over and over.”

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About the Contributor
Alivia Zablotney
Alivia Zablotney, Photographer
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