In this episode of the Cheer Biz Podcast, Dan Cotton shares what he learned after judging at a competition in Fargo, North Dakota, and how cheer gym owners and cheer coaches can design, clean, and train routines to score higher. We break down why “readability” affects execution, how stacking sections too tightly can cost you tenths, and why giving judges a breather can help your team get the credit you actually earned.

Dan also explains what judges are really trying to track in real time, plus the execution drivers that get hit the fastest: uniform flexibility, locked legs, base movement, transitions, and synchronization. If your athletes don’t understand the score sheet, they’ll make “safe” choices that can quietly drop you out of range and wreck your score.