Impulse Elite has arrived in Bend, already taking home state championships
Tracee Tuesday
BEND, Ore. [KTVZ] — Here at Impulse Elite in Bend, it’s all about combining cheer, dance, tumbling and gymnastics.
In fact, this team, they’re already state champions.
Fresh off of their big win this year, where 2 of their teams won the state championship at the Pinnacle Cheerleading Championships in Las Vegas, on May 11th
And get this, the ladies had only been practicing with one another, less than a year.
In the heart of Bend, a new cheerleading facility is making waves—Impulse Elite, the region’s first and only all-star cheer gym, redefining what it means to train like a champion.
Addison Chancellor, Impulse Elite champion:
“I think we all know we need to put in the work to become that. So, so obviously that hope that we will win, but we know to win, we have to do the work.”
Averie Unruh, Impulse Elite champion:
“And I feel like we could really see that at practices just the way that we’re like okay. Oh we didn’t hit that in routine. Let’s do it again. Like let’s get this going because you know we want to go to the comps and have fun. But we want to go to the comps and win…. We want to bring home banners for our gym. That’s the end goal.”
Charlie Lininger, Impulse Elite champion:
“Yeah. The goal angle is always to win. But it’s also like supporting each other and just being a family and doing it like for each other.”
Becoming champions is no small fete.
Owner and Head Coach, Julee Vadnais says, their mission is not only to build champions but to instill values that athletes carry beyond the gym, and executing that confidence in front of hundreds of spectators.
“We have 2.5 minutes to go out there on a 42 by 56ft spring floor as a team and try to execute all of these acrobatic skills with absolute precision and drivers and wow the judges and be graded against other people from all over the country. That’s what’s phenomenal about this club sport.”
The drive and passion these gymnasts and cheerleaders exude are contagious – so much so, as a former cheerleader myself, I had to get in on the action!
With its dynamic programs and community spirit, Impulse Elite is not just building champions—it’s building a family.
Julie says her school isn’t just for the elite, in fact beginners as well. Kids join as early as five years old all the way up to 18 and over.