Masked Spirit: Mascots becoming sport staples at Cleveland and Rio

RIO RANCHO — “It’s not who I am underneath … but what I do … that defines me.” — Christian Bale, 2005’s “Batman Begins.”

Rio Rancho may not require saving like Gotham or any other fictional superhero town, but the City of Vision does have masked characters uniting the community.

At Cleveland High School and Rio Rancho High School, students have taken school spirit to the next level by dressing up as their respective mascots.

Cleveland’s “Bolt” and “Stormi” can be seen hyping up the crowd at Lightning Bolt Stadium, while down the street, “Rowdy” and “Rowdette” parade the sidelines at Ram Stadium to support the navy and green.

“It is amazing to see Stormi and Bolt interact with the crowd and the community,” said Cleveland Activities Director Kathy Shallenberger, who also serves as mascot coordinator.

It takes a herd of Storm to put on the two-lightning-bolt act, a collaborative effort between student government members. The list of “Stormis” and “Bolts” includes: Amy Aquino, Evan Dimas, Carla Ortega, Matthew Fischer, Valerie Romero, James Reed, Addison Magana, Taylor Sprague and Aspen Stapleton.

This long list of names isn’t because students don’t want to do it, but rather because more of them want a chance at the opportunity. The “StuGo” members discussed the joy of making a kid’s day or energizing the crowd on game days.

Shallenberger even said that the Cleveland community has had such positive feedback on the mascots that even some parents have volunteered to become a lightning bolt for a day.

Over at RRHS, the two-ram show is truly a two-ram show. Senior Jesse Throgmorton and junior Mila Huber are the names behind the horns for Rowdy and Rowdette, with two different journeys leading these students to mascotting.

“I kind of started, as a freshman, just doing it because the seniors didn’t want to do it anymore,” Throgmorton said. “And then sophomore year is when I really started to take it over.”

“I started mascotting back when I was in seventh grade. I’ve always been really into mascots,” Huber said. “Freshman year, I got volunteered to be the mascot. And then sophomore year, I got really into it; it just became an every Friday thing.”

When talking to both schools, both parties referenced the early awkwardness of the position. Running around as a lightning bolt or as a ram, in front of large crowds in busy environments, isn’t exactly a common practice.

“It was definitely a little awkward for me at first because I didn’t really know what to do,” Throgmorton said. “I didn’t really know how to get people excited about me being out there.”

Tricks like dusting off some old dance moves or taking photos with the student section turned that awkward energy into adrenaline, as now these mascots are mainstays at both high schools when a sporting event comes around.

“It’s been amazing,” Throgmorton said. “A lot of little kids want to take photos with us. We’re able to get posted a lot through social media. Our season never really ends. Being a mascot is an all-year thing.”

You can catch these characters on the football field, in the gymnasium or just out and about in the community. This past summer, both schools were invited to attend Albuquerque Isotopes’ mascot Orbit’s birthday party at Isotope Park. On top of special appearances, the mascots will often make the rounds at fundraisers and charity events.

For Huber, she hopes this is the beginning of a career in the industry.

“I do want to do something with mascotting. That is my dream job,” Huber said. “I’ve always wanted to set up events, but ever since I started being the mascot, I’ve gotten really close with the people from the Road Runners and the people from the Isotopes, and I’m trying to get closer to the Goatheads now.”

Future endeavors or not, this experience has taught these high schoolers lessons that they can carry with them, in and out of the costume.

“I would say my biggest piece of advice is to be yourself,” Huber said, pitching mascotting to the students next in line. “Be goofy, because no one’s going to judge you. Being in the costume gives you that huge advantage.”