Cheerleader chat with Kelsey Lauren, a former TCU Showgirl and finalist for the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders

Name: Kelsey Lauren
Age: 23
From: Eden Prairie, Minnesota
Lives: Fort Worth
Alma mater: TCU, degree in PR/advertising
Profession: Marketing for a law firm in Fort Worth
Favorite movie: Heavyweights, with Ben Stiller. Oceans 11
Favorite song: Anything by Taylor Swift
Favorite place visited: Istanbul, Turkey
Where do you want to go next?: The Taj Mahal in India
No. 1 on your bucket list: Travel to every country.
Favorite book: I just finished The Hunger Games series and really enjoyed it.
Favorite place to eat in Fort Worth: Tim Love's Loveshack

The Big Mac Blog: How old were you when you started dancing and performing?
Kelsey Lauren: Pretty much my whole life. I grew up doing this. I danced in high school, and one of the reasons I went to TCU was to do Showgirls.

The Big Mac Blog: Most embarrassing moment performing?
Kelsey Lauren: One time during a routine my top came undone. I felt it coming loose and I had to re-tie it during the routine. It was really embarrassing.

The Big Mac Blog: Was it during a TCU football or basketball game?
Kelsey Lauren: A basketball game.

The Big Mac Blog: So nobody saw it?
Kelsey Lauren: This is true

The Big Mac Blog: Ever been injured during a routine?
Kelsey Lauren: Twisted my ankle a few times. Sorry I'm so boring.

The Big Mac Blog: How did you go about pursuing the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders?
Kelsey Lauren: After graduating from college I found out that I really missed it in the year off. I missed the adrenaline from performing. I missed dance so I sought this. This is the next step.

The Big Mac Blog: What is this process like?
Kelsey Lauren: It starts with prelims with about 500 or 600 girls. Then it's down to 80 for the finals. Then you compete agianst the other veterans, and you do a solo routine and do the kick line with the rest of the squad. Then they cut it down to 50. Now there are 42 of us left. They don't say what the final number is going to be. We could be cut between now and any time before the first game. You find out of the day of the squad photo if you've made it.

The Big Mac Blog: You feel more pressure doing this than any other previous performances?
Kelsey Lauren: Yes. You know every move is covered by the media, or a camera. Every move is broadcast so it makes it a lot more nerve wracking. It has been really tough emotionally and physically, but it is a lot of fun.

The Big Mac Blog: Have you thought about the possibility of making it this far and maybe not making the final cut?
Kelsey Lauren: Yes, and I do think if I don't make it it will be really hard. That just means this chapter in my life needs to close and I'll need to continue down my career path. If I make it, that means I completed this dream I do have.
Since I came to Texas all I heard about was the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders. I went to my first Cowboys game when I was a freshman and I said, 'I want to be a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader'.