By Marty Gordon
NRVsports@ourvalley.org
Austin Harris has always enjoyed tumbling and back-flips. He was on his first cheerleading team as a seventh grader at Christiansburg Middle School in 2007, and that continued at Christiansburg High as the school’s first and only male cheerleader.
Christiansburg native Austin Harris (far right, second row) takes a break during a recent cheerleading competition to smile for a photograph with teammates of the Cheer Extreme Raleigh squad.
Now, he is taking that talent to the national stage with the upcoming world championships in Orlando, Florida.
Harris now competes as a member of the Code Black with Cheer Extreme Raleigh. The group recently won a national event in Georgia, which gives them an opportunity at the worlds.
Code Black has 24 very different individuals ranging in ages from 13-31. They are classified as an All-Star Cheerleading Team, traveling to competitions this season in Atlanta, Orlando, Indianapolis, Dallas and Myrtle Beach.
“I grew up going to gymnastic open-gyms and tumbling classes, which were usually female dominated. Along with having a mom and older sister who carried me around when I was younger, being on a team full of girls was just like being at home,” he said recently
High school was interesting, he recalls.
Most people thought it was really cool that he could do so many flips, however the immaturity of high schoolers would arise with name calling or someone ready to say something about the male cheerleader.
“Honestly it never really bothered me as much as it did most of the girls I cheered with. I felt bad for anyone who did say anything within ear’s length of a teammate,” Harris said.
After high school, he attended New River Community College and was able to cheer on the Virginia Tech’s Club Competitive Cheerleading team its first year going coed. The group competed at the Battle at The Capitol (National Harbor, MD), Cheersport Nationals (Atlanta Georgia) and at the Jamfest Nationals (Louisville, KY).
When he was 18, Harris also cheered for Iconix Allstars (Roanoke), which is now Cheer Extreme Roanoke. That group also achieved the same bid for worlds as his current team did in Atlanta recently.
“The feeling has not changed, you want to laugh, cry, smile and scream. You’re getting a chance to be named a World Champion and get a pretty sick ring. You work so hard just to be told you are good enough to come and compete with the best. It’s the same feeling as getting a new job – Great you’ve got it. Now come in next time and be even more impressive. It just makes you want to be better,” he said.
He attended Alderson-Broaddus University in West Virginia on a cheerleading scholarship.
After spending three months there, he realized that was not where he was meant to be and returned to Christiansburg and enrolled at NRCC.
Last year, he moved to Raleigh with the drive to join another squad he found at Code Black.
While his current team practices only twice a week, each athlete is in the gym usually four to five nights a week.
“Tumbling passes or stunts will change, and you are held accountable by your teammates to make sure when we do come together for practices, we are able to perform a routine flawlessly while making it look effortless, which is not the easiest of task,” Harris said.
The smallest mistake can affect the overall score.
“We’re judged in the sport all the way down to if your fingers are touching together when your hands are by your side, how many steps you take after you flip and spin your body around, and how uniform you look next to your team. Practice makes perfect, a lot of repetition and drilling the basics was what this past summer consisted of along with camps that you left in tears from pain, but couldn’t wait to return the next day,” he said.
Tryouts are held in May. All summer each person is evaluated. Rosters are finalized in August with the team season starting in October. Worlds are set for April.
“We drill our routine at our practices, replacing any implements that do not flow like water. Once you start to hit your routines it’s all on you to keep yourself growing as an athlete,” he said.
Harris was center stage in the front of the team this past month doing a typical back flip as they won the national event.
Just like those early years, he continues to attend tumbling classes, camps and clinics. The group sends videos, workouts and countless selfiesto each other via group chats, making sure they’re always making good choices and being healthy and becoming stronger for the team.
His ultimate goal would be to return to Christiansburg and bring the knowledge, love and passion for cheerleading back to my hometown high school.
“I remember begging my mom to move my school district my senior year to a school that had a better cheer program. I’m glad that she kept me at CHS. After I graduated, I returned to help with the teams whenever I was able. Our program was always overlooked and not appreciated like a real sport, so it’s always been a dream to bring Christiansburg High School Cheerleading to life,” Harris concluded.
For now, he has his eyes on a world championship.