Pop Warner and cheerleaders at moderates, too!

[crazyforgoofy]

We returned from POFQ on the 11th. The Pop Warner football gang and the cheerleaders were packing the place starting the end of the day on the 8th. There were tons of them at Riverside too and the noise level was getting high when we left. Plus the last night we were there we were tormented by phone calls and hangups (we had a 4 year old with us and was continually awakened) until I called the operator and asked her to block our phone to incoming calls. They seemed like good kids, but not too many chaperones were evident and they were loud and up very late! So if you think you can avoid them by going to a moderate think again!

[vicb]

My niece is a cheerleader and her team will be at CBR Feb. 6-9 and they put 4 girls per room. Chaperones/parents are supposed to be in adjacent rooms ;) .

According to her itinerary, they are pretty tied up during the day and have most of their free time in the evening.

We were there in early Feb. last year and didn't find them to be a problem in the parks but must say we were glad not to deal with them in the resort. Our plan going home was full of them but by then they were too exhausted to do much!:D

[AnnetteWI]

What is this cheerleader running event at WDW? Are they there all the time, or are there non stop competitions all winter? We are going early February and we get the prank phone calls and noise, the chaperones will have some SPLANING to do!! LOL!

[vicb]

I'm not sure what the Dec. Pop Warner stuff is but I know that WDW sponsers a cheer thing for the Citrus Bowl on NYDay and the Feb. thing is the cheerleading association's Nationals. Apparently it is a lucrative thing for WDW!

[aurora19]

The National Pop Warner Playoffs are held at Disney each December. It is true that the football players and cheerleaders are generally busy during the day but are free late afternoon and evening. For the most part they are great kids but I noticed about 1 adult per 6-8 kids and some of the kids were as young as 8-9 yrs old. They just get high spirited.

We noticed a definate bump in evening park attendance after they arrived (and entire football teams were going on Test Track in the single riders line - but then I have issues with that ride)

[Luv2Roam]

Even last January, as we were near the end of our week stay at ASMo, the cheerleaders were coming in.
We were in the Woody building and didn't notice anything, except a few practicing on the grass in the evenings. No problems at the resort.
The parks was getting to be a pain as there didn't seem to be near enough adults around to keep them from taking over whatever area they were in. Sometimes no adults were around period.
We just learned to avoid whatever area they were in the parks. When they show up it's all of a sudden and literally an invasion with no concern for any one else, from what we witnessed. :rolleyes: :p

[DisneyFan79]

Do these guys stay at any of the deluxes? My crew and I will be staying at the Beach Club and I know Stromalong Bay would be mobbed if the hotel was full of cheerleaders and football players. I had no idea cheerleaders would be in WDW during December. I always thought it was after the first of the year!! YIKES!!!haha

Thanks for any input!!:)

[BethC1952]

I was at PO Riverside last week, and it was overrun with cheerleaders. We had no problems whatsoever, and didn't notice an increase in the noise level. In fact, I was amazed at how polite most of these kids are! I heard lots of "Please" and "Thank you" and even had some of them hold the doors if I was behind them. One young lady even offered my FIL a seat on the bus!

It was nice to see so many kids involved in some wholesome physical activities!

Beth

[LorieR]

We were at Riverside from 12/11 through 12/16. Noise level at the food court was unbelievable for the first few days we were there. Breakfast time was packed and loud! I must be getting old and cranky, but really enjoyed the peace and quiet and was grateful when they were gone!! Will definitely check the dates they will be there before I go again in early December!

[poohsdoodle]

Is there a "Calender of Events" somewhere? I would reall like to know what I'm getting into if I change my plans to mid Feb.

[DisneyFan79]

I know for fact starting the middle of January through Febuary the National Cheerleading Competition is going on. I was down there in 98 for it and that place was like the middle of summer as far as crowds go. That was my first time in Disney and I really felt as though I didn't get to see anything. Luckily I went again on my own shortly after that and then I felt I got my money's worth. I think we waited around 2 hrs for Tower of Terror @ MGM. That was before Fast Pass was around. Not very fun. I would check the UCA Cheerleading site. They might have a roster of what events are going on and the dates!! Hope this helps!!:)

[AnnetteWI]

We already have our ressies and plane tickets. I'm sure there are many husbands that absolutely don't mind leering at teen girls with short skirts! LOL! Even MY husband cant wait to see the ...ummm... sights. He said..."Haven't heard ME complain, have you?":p

[Smac]

I just checked the UCA Cheerleading site (I was curious, as I'm heading to Disney at the end of January).

Competitions are scheduled on the following dates:

January 9-12
January 31- February 2
Feb 7-11
March 14-18

You can look at the site (here's a link to the page where the competitions are listed):

http://www.varsity.com/index.asp?section=21&category=1&article=821

and get an idea for their schedules. For example, they arrive on my full day there (in January) and are spending the evening at MGM. I know to avoid that park!

I hope that this helps!

--Sarah:D

[Uncleromulus]

The behavior (especially at the resort hotels) of these "young people" has come up on the boards several times before. The interesting thing is that Disney CM's seem to be absolutely unwilling to do anything about it. Quite simply, if you are staying at one of the resorts where they are housed, you are out of luck.

[SeaSpray]

Please don't start assuming that having cheerleaders at your resort is automatically a terrible thing, or that it means you will be harrassed during your vacation!!! Besides, generalizing about ANYTHING, especially people, is never a good idea and shows how closed-minded some people can be.

Believe me, I have very low tolerance for other people's kids...lol...But I have to say that the cheerleaders I encountered this past February during my stay at CBR were very well behaved. There were a lot of them, but it wasn't a problem at all. They were guests there, just as I was.

These particular girls were from the south. I could tell by their accents. They acted very lady-like. Maybe that was the difference, I don't know. I'd like to think that not ALL young people are idiots when they're away from their parents. We heard absolutely no noise from them at all. At CBR, I know they located them in many of the rooms and buildings that were the furthest away from Old Port Royale (food court and main pool area).

I'm sure that many times the cheerleaders or other large groups can be a disturbance if they're not properly supervised, but this is not always the case.

[ShaneV]

I can say I wasnt generalizing about all cheerleaders, but the ones I encountered at All Star Movies from the 6th - 13th. These girls should have NEVER been allowed to practice in the middle courtyyard until 2:30 am and another group start at 5:00 am. Management seemed to have the attitude of we are making more money off them then you so complain all you want , but it wont do any good!

[Wildcard]

We just returned last night from POFQ , and there were football players and cheerleaders EVERYWHERE at first. As the week went on it seemed to die down. This was our first trip at a moderate, and the noise level was much higher than any deluxes we have stayed at. This may just be normal, but it was irritating at times. My gf almost was hit by an errant football one night. Nothing personal to the resort, but I think we will stick to the deluxes if we visit in december again. I had thought that the school groups stick the the AS's when visiting.:confused: As a side note, it was nice to see so many younger people having fun in the parks at night. Its just that we enjoy a little more peace when we get back to our hotel after a long day.:D

[plutojudy]

Pop Warner and the cheerleaders are the reason we did not go to WDW this December. The kids we encountered the last three Decembers were enough to convince us that we do not want to be there during football time especially. Sorry to say CMs will not tell you when you make ressies or at check-in that they will be there also. They always tell us "They are coming later" which turns out to be in a day or two.

[Luckymommyx2]

Smac, thanks for the link.

I'm new to this part of the boards (usually DCL) but now I'm looking to find out info for December 2003. I wasn't even aware before these boards that anything took place in December. Is this Pop Warner thing held the same dates every year or any way to find out now what will be going on when? I really want to book something for the beginning of December next year and really would like to know how I can avoid these very large groups. Thanks in advance!!

[lonestarstatelady]

We were just at WL 12/10-12/15. There were absolutely no cheerleaders or football players there, but they were ALL OVER the parks, especially on Saturday. During the week, we encountered many cheerleaders, especially young ones around 8-10 years old, who were polite for the most part. Most of them were accompanied by chaperones in a 1:3 or :4 ratio and behaved well. Near the weekend, we encountered more football players and older cheerleaders, and for the most part they were NOT accompanied by ANY chaperones and some of them were outright rude. I would say that for every bad encounter we had during the week we had a good encounter, but that's not very good odds. We were only affected on Saturday really, because the crowds were so bad and the boys and girls in line were raucous, "mugging down," etc. I won't let these groups keep us from going at this time of year again, because for the most part the crowds were very low and the Christmas decorations are fantastic, but we will start our trip on a weekend and end it on a Friday, or not go to the parks on Saturday. We also will stay at WL, but that is mostly because we just love the resort.

[CrzyforPiglet]

We were at WL Dec 7-14 and I too was concerned about Pop Warner. Aside from seeing small clumps of cheerleaders & players here and there I barely noticed them. And to answer a previous question - they weren't staying at the WL!

[DisneyFan79]

My crew and I will be in the world the 2nd week of December 2003 specifically the 6-12. Anyone who went the 2nd week of this year encounter any of these people? I wonder how the Magic Kingdom is on a Sunday with them there? Thanks for the help!! I have never been to WDW during December so am curious to know what it will be like as far as crowds. Thanks!!:)

[lonestarstatelady]

Disneyfan, for all of the crowds that we encountered on Sat. 12/14, the crowds were pretty light on Sun. 12/15. I think most of the groups have competition through the week, are done by Saturday and get it as a "free day," and leave by Sunday. I saw many more players and cheerleaders on Saturday, some with medals, so I assume the competitions were over by then. Also, though it was especially easy to notice loud behavior on Saturday, I think you might get this at any time of year, and I would still highly recommend this time of year, just maybe avoid the parks (especially MGM) on Saturday when these groups are most visible. Unfortunately, loud behavior is much more visible than polite, quieter behavior, so the loud teenagers can overshadow the polite, quieter ones. It was pretty noticeable just on the one day.

[DisneyFan79]

Thanks a lot!!

Fortunately, we will be going to MGM on a Tuesday so maybe they will be competing then. I know when I was there one Febuary the UCA Championships were going on and it was horribly crowded. I am sure we will be able to tour leisurely if the parks are not that crowded throughout the weekdays!! Thanks for the tid bit!!:)

[Tarheel Tink]

We were at POFQ also from 12/8-12/14- lots of cheerleaders!!! The pool was full, the hot tub was full, the food court was full....
They chanted in line, they practiced outside our room, they chanted and chanted and chanted, LOL!

Actually, the worst was the chaperones on our bus once day (from Freehold, NJ). The "adults" talked so loudly to each other in the back that we could barely hear each other sitting together up front. One was bragging about how a man on their bus the previous day had gotten more and more distraught when the cheerleaders did actual cheers on the bus- by the time they got to the 6th cheer the man was nearly in tears. They all laughed at the story like it was sooooo funny. My husband kept muttering "Don't they know the term inside voice?".

[jaysmom4285]

We'll be at the Poly January 9-12 for the land part of our land/sea vacation. I'm presuming the cheerleaders won't be staying there, but does anyone know where and they're scheduled to be in the parks, so we can try to avoid that? Anyone know their schedule (competition time vs. free time)?