Gam-Gam got her pom-poms and she is lighting up the crowd! Retracting: okay, maybe it’s cute in a sentimental kind of way, but this is not what you want to see when you look at cheerleaders. Some cheerleaders might collect their first social security check before a paycheck.
But not by much. This week, the New Orleans Saints added a new member to their cheerleader squad, the Saintsations. Kristie Lewis is a 40-year-old mother of two who tried out for the squad as a birthday present to herself. Maybe it’s because she’s been a dance instructor, and maybe it’s because she’s smoking hot, or maybe it’s a combination of the two. But whatever it is, she made it to the team in a gig where most of the competition is between 18 and 30.
And while she’s rare, she’s not totally unique. About two years ago, a 42-year-old woman made the team for the Cincinnati Bengals. It’s the kind of thing that’s unusual enough that there are even plans to make a movie about it.
There was also a 55-year-old woman who tried out for the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders a couple of years back, although she didn’t make the squad. And although all those women were absolutely beautiful, some might say cheerleaders are there to be not just beautiful, but also young. And think about the damage all that activity could do.
So we got our Man on the Edge, Robert Wilder, to ask if there should be an age limit for professional cheerleaders…
