Cheerleaders return from Down Under

Six young Pahrump residents learned what it was like to spend the Fourth of July in two different countries.

They learned about kangaroos, koalas, Tasmanian devils, wallabies and dingos up close and personal. And, they learned about rugby football.

In fact, they learned about a different part of the world in a way that one can only learn about being there. Local cheerleaders Natalie Dodd, Ashley Light, Allison Watson, Niki Arimura, Nikki Brown and Walt Turner spent more than a week cheering and touring the Land Down Under, Australia.

They cheered at two football games, including the Down Under Bowl, and gave three other performances. At one venue, they were besieged by young autograph seekers. At another, Australian girls their ages asked them to teach them how to do cheers. It was foreign to the Aussies since they don't cheer at the football games.

Even the rugby football games were different. There were no helmets or pads used, it was rougher and the ball was a different shape, Arimura explained.

Dodd, Light and Watson are seniors at Pahrump Valley High School. Brown is a junior. Arimura is a recent PVHS graduate who will continue her studies in the Navy. Turner will attend Columbia University.

The six of them joined coach Stacie Gittleman and were part of a contingent of 22 Nevadans who left Las Vegas on June 26 and returned July 8. The group that visited the Gold Coast included cheerleaders, flag girls and coaches.

"It was very pretty," Dodd, 16, said. "We got to see a lot of places. We went to an amusement park, a water park and we stayed right across from a beach."

"It took a while to get used to the accents, but it didn't seem like I was completely across the world," said Light, 17, whose only previous forays outside of Nevada were to touching states. "Still, there were differences like the tax included in all prices. The beaches were real pretty and the sand was white and fine. I took a picture of my feet stuck in the sand."

While playing tourist was a big part of the trip, there was also a purpose behind six months of fund-raisers that included car washes, spaghetti dinners, raffle tickets, pumping gas and parental financial support. There was a purpose behind three intense seven-hour days of training.

"We got to know the other girls (from throughout Nevada) which was a real plus," Arimura, 18, said. "I personally made some good friends."

"One of the (most fun) things was meeting all the new people," Watson, 18, said. "Most of the football team was from Nevada and Washington. We hung with all those guys along with the other football teams we played against."

Light was amazed at all the people from different countries they met just in their hotel.

"The New Zealand football team was there," Light said. "There were Scottish people in the hotel and girls from India. That was really good. I never thought I would be meeting people from all those countries. We even taught the New Zealand team a cheer and they tossed a football player in the air."

There were all types of bonuses for the Pahrumpians. There was a photo shoot on the Fourth of July with Green Bay Packers running back Ahman Green, who played in the Down Under Bowl during his senior year in high school.

They were on a plane later that day and were in Hawaii the next day, on the Fourth of July. Because of the time change, Australia is always a day ahead of the United States.

There was the game when the little kids milled around the cheerleaders seeking their autographs. "I thought it was so cute," Akimura said.

Akimura and Dodd sang the national anthems at the first football game -- Akimura the U.S. version and Dodd the Australian version.

Just as important as the good times, there were some excellent lessons to learn. The most obvious point wasn't lost on Gittelman.

"It was a once-in-a-lifetime thing," Gittelman said.

"It was a great opportunity to learn something new about another country," said Watson, Gittelman's daughter.