Photo courtesy of Rachel Johns
Hayden Johns
Hayden Johns is a junior at Strawberry Crest High School where he cheers for the Chargers on the traditional comp team.
How long have you been cheerleading?
I have been cheering for 4 years.
What’s your favorite thing about cheerleading?
My favorite thing about cheerleading is the bond you create with your teammates through the year.
Do you and your team have any pre-game rituals before you cheer?
Before every comp we always have to play our music to get hype and have a dance circle, as well as we all have special handshakes within our own stunt groups before we go and compete
If you could give advice to someone that’s wanting to get into cheerleading, what advice would you give them?
If I could give advice to anyone who wanted to start cheering I would say that you must always stay open-minded to coaching and trying new things and to also remember the path to success isn’t straight, sometimes you go down and sometimes you go up.
Has cheerleading taught you any life lessons? If so, what are they?
Something cheer has taught me in life is that everything is worked for never given to you so you must work and try as hard as you can to better yourself and others around you.
What’s your favorite thing about your team at SCHS?
One thing I really love about our team at SCHS is how we are so well united that we can all laugh and have fun together and be great friends in and out of cheer.
If you could eat from one place for a week straight, what would you pick and why?
If I had to eat from a place for a week straight I would definitely pick Taco Bell! They have a special place in my heart and everything there has so much flavor and a wide variety of options.
When you’re not
cheerleading, what are you doing in your free time?
Well cheerleading takes a lot of time and energy so most times after practice I go home do school work if I have any and then shower, eat, and hit the sheets but maybe once or twice a week I hang out with friends and family.
Who’s an artist that you’d like to see at the Strawberry Festival this year?
If I had to pick between the artists coming to the Strawberry Festival this year I would like to see Sara Evans because I LOVE her early 2000s country music; it brings me back to when I was younger. But if I had to pick someone to play at the Strawberry Festival, I would say Megan Moroney because I love her voice, she’s gorgeous, and she has no tour dates in Florida.
What are your favorite songs to get you hyped for comp day?
To get hyped for comps I normally don’t listen to any “hip-hop” music but I listen to “Kiss It Better” by Rhianna.