Kimberly Kyger believes she can fly. And twice a week, she does.
The cheerleader was once launched so high into the air during a routine that she knocked a couple of tiles off a 27-foot-high ceiling. So they moved her outside and she flew even higher. Kyger, 15 years old, has been measured at 32 feet in the air.
“At the collegiate level, I’ve seen them go higher than that,” said Kyger’s coach Nicole Levelsmier. “But here in state, I haven’t see any higher.”
Kyger’s aerial acrobatics have landed her in the ABC Christmas Day Parade, which will be broadcast at 9 a.m. Mountain Standard Time on Christmas morning. She traveled to Disney World in early December for the parade’s prerecording.
In Florida, Kyger danced and performed alongside more than 300 of the nation’s top All-American cheerleaders. She was the only Montanan and, according to Levelsmier, the only invitee from all of the Northwest United States. Competitive cheerleading is largely a southern phenomenon, Levelsmier said, so Kyger is in many ways a trailblazer.
“It was fun,” Kyger, a freshman at Glacier High School, said.
Three years ago, Levelsmier opened up Northwest Athletic Cheer, the all-star cheerleading gym in Kalispell where Kyger trains on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Kyger is one of 15 kids on the team. There are 12 others who take classes but aren’t on the team, Levelsmier said.
Levelsmier moved to the Flathead from Dallas, where she was involved with “Cheer Athletics,” an internationally known competitive cheerleading organization. She brings expertise and a first-hand view of elite competitive cheerleading to Kalispell, knowledge that she tries to share with her students at Northwest Cheer.
Levelsmier owns the gym and Jeremy Michels is the head coach. It is the only Level 5 gym in the state, she said. Levelsmier said she has reduced her prices because of the economy. It now costs $40 per month for one class per week.
Cheerleading’s popularity in Montana is a fraction of what it is in southern states like Florida, Texas and Alabama, Levelsmier said. While some states have hundreds of kids striving for All-American status, she said Kyger is one of only a few All-American cheerleaders in Montana.
“This state has 10 (competitive) teams total,” Levelsmier said. “In other states, they have 10 in a 30-mile radius.”
Kyger qualified for the All-American team at a National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) camp in Portland, Ore. Her performance was so strong that NCA officials asked her if she would be an instructor when she turns 18, the legal age to be an instructor. Levelsmier said it’s rare for the NCA to ask that of a 15-year-old. Kyger also placed third at a national individual competition.
“She’s an incredible, incredible athlete,” Levelsmier said.
It takes both athleticism and boldness to be flung 30 feet into the air. Then once in the air, these “flyers” contort their bodies into 360-degree twists and double down maneuvers. But Levelsmier said Kyger isn’t only a flyer. She uses her athleticism to adapt to any position the team needs.
Levelsmier takes her team to competitions across the nation, where the kids are judged by their dance, tumbling and all other aspects of the routine. Some of the competitions have more than 20,000 spectators and 100 teams. Northwest Athletic Cheer placed fifth at a national competition.
On her trip to Florida, Kyger, a two-time All-American, met Kelly Ripa, who Kyger’s mother describes as “wonderful.” Kyger had qualified for other national events, Levelsmier said, but her family chose the ABC parade. Kyger plans to eventually do cheerleading in college.
For more information on Northwest Athletic Cheer, call (406) 871-6542, e-mail [email protected] or log on to www.nwathleticcheer.com.