Recently returned from Daytona Beach, FL for the NCA college nationals. It was a great trip, but as college cheerleader I had a unique experience or competing at both. Post my college career, I’ve visited UCA and coached a team at NCA. Each competition has it’s own experience and deciding where to go can be difficult. While both NCA and UCA are owned by varsity the events has it’s own character. Here are some of the factors that are relevent for my team when deciding between the two:
| Category | NCA | UCA |
|---|---|---|
| Date | Early April | MLK Weekend January |
| Schedule | ||
| Tryouts | April | April |
| Summer | Starts early August | Usually Weekend a month, Full outs in February |
| Taping | December | October (+crowd tape) |
| Thanksgiving Break | Full Week Break | Five Days |
| Winter Break | Starts Before Finals, come back mid January | ~5 days for Xmas, 24 hours for NYE |
| Spring Schedule | 5+ days a week | Light practices |
| Spring Break | Doubles | Off |
| Missing school | Miss days of school (usually Wed through Friday) | Miss days of winter break |
| Cost | $600+airfare, due in spring | $600+airfare, due much earlier |
| Post Comp Event | Stunt Fest | Block Party, Disney World Access |
| Grades | First semester grades counted | First semester grades not counted |
| Location | Daytona Band Shell | Disney, Orlando |
| Number of participants | 20 Coed (max 11 men) | 16 Coed (max 9 men) |
| Format | 45 second cheer, 2:15 music section | 2:30 with cheer included |
| Dance | Full Team Dance section (5+ 8-counts) | Small number of participants, only a couple 8-counts |
| Jumps | Own Category on score sheet | Not scored in coed |
The factors listed above are specific to my team which is currently a large coed program. All girl teams have different score sheets and number of participants.
Do you have preference on nationals? If so, which one do you prefer and why?