Run a program
that lasts.
Building Good Cheer is a weekly video podcast on the business of youth sports, told from inside competitive cheer. Hosted by Tara Rall, founder of Maryland Twisters, and Kevin Pedini.
For the person keeping the lights on
Most youth sports content is drills, highlights and hype. Almost none of it helps you run the place.
Building Good Cheer is for gym owners, club directors and coaches. Tara Rall built Maryland Twisters from 40 athletes into a program of nearly 800 across two locations and two franchises, and she spent 28 years as an owner having the conversations most owners find difficult. Team placement. Coach pay. Copycat brands. Parents in your inbox at midnight.
Every week, Tara and Kevin dig into one part of running a program well. Branding that fills your gym. Keeping great coaches when the hours are short and the pay is thin. Growing into a second location without losing your culture. Protecting the name you built.
And every episode ends the same way: one thing you can apply to your gym or your teams this same week. That is the promise of the show.
Meet the hosts
Tara Rall
Founder and former owner of Maryland Twisters, home of F5
Co-Host. Allstar Cheer Consultant & Speaker
For nearly three decades, Tara built a small gym of just 40 athletes into one of the most respected programs in the country, growing it to nearly 800 athletes across two locations and two franchise locations. During her 28 years as an owner, her program earned six World Championship titles while establishing a reputation for excellence, innovation, and integrity.
Beyond her own gym, Tara has been instrumental in advancing uniform standards, contributing to the development of age grids and divisions, and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the U.S. All Star Federation (USASF).
Now, Tara is bringing the lessons she learned as a business owner, leader, and mentor to studio owners everywhere. Through honest conversations and practical strategies, she’ll share the philosophies that helped her build a thriving business: from why repetition leads to retention, to approaching difficult conversations with kindness, protecting your brand, and building a business that lasts.
Kevin Pedini
Co-Host and producer. Co-Founder, OnsideHero.
Kevin Pedini has spent 27 years inside creative and marketing agencies as a designer, developer and creative leader, producing work for clients including The Wall Street Journal, Comcast, Nationwide Insurance, Land Rover and Haribo. He is currently at work building two mobile apps that close the coordination and communication gaps families face in youth sports.
Worth the drive home
Real experience, not theory
Twenty years of gym ownership. Every lesson on the show was paid for the hard way first.
One takeaway, every week
No vague inspiration. Each episode delivers something you can put to work in your gym within days.
The whole business
Branding, retention, growth, parents, coaches and the conversations in between. If it touches your program, it is on the show.
Never miss an episode
New episodes every week.
About OnsideHero
OnsideHero is a youth sports app built around how teams, coaches and families actually communicate. It launches this fall. Building Good Cheer is our way of giving something useful to the people who run youth sports, starting now.
Learn about OnsideHero