1-on-1 with DP – 93.7 The Ticket KNTK - Makayla Curtis (Nebraska Womens Gymnastics athlete): February 22nd, 10am

Episode Date: February 22, 2022

How did outscoring the #6 team in the country feel?How does it work switching up lineups?Early season strugglesAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

It's time to go one-on-one with D.P. Coming at you live from the couple Chevrolet GMC Studios, here is your host, Derek Pearson, presented by Beatrice Bakery, on 93-7 The Ticket and the Ticket FM.com. Tuesday morning, one-on-one, DP, Rico. We will have a guest here shortly. She's on the way, so we can relax with that. that four to four six four five six eight five a couple of things that we want to get done um I gave

away a care package yesterday but I also need to give away one today for Beatrice's bakery we want to thank them for supporting this hour of radio and the station across the board um we did have there are a couple of things in place me Steve Taylor talked about how good the the fruit cake was we have the snacks so I want to give away a care package of the of the fruit cake snacks today to somebody go to the ticketfm.com, find the Beatrice Bakery banner, click on it. Just pause for a moment in your day. Put down whatever venom and angst that you have. And think of the person who smile you want to see today. Think of somebody that you want to see them smile today. And we will put together a Beatrice's

Bakery Care package. You can come by and pick it up or they can come by and pick it up. whatever way we want it done. But do that. And you can, in fact, put it on the Sarder-Hamman text line. So if you want that, we prefer it be done through the ticketfm.com and that you provide all that information on there because you can give more information, contact information, on the banner.

That's information you can't put on the text line. So go to the ticketfm.com, find the Beatrice Bakery banner, and just tell me about the person who you want to see smile today. Tell me what it is that they do. Are they a teacher? Are they a lawyer? Are they a doctor? Do they work 18 hours a day, too many days of the week?

Are they sacrificing for others for the greater good of everybody in space? Last week I got to speak to the folks at the Rotary. We had a nice little get-together down at the garage. I took a care package down there, and that was a great event from great folks. So for Jerry Christensen and Wayne and those guys, thank you for having me down there. there last week. Those speaking engagements are always fun because it helps introduce me to people in the community and it allows me to be around good people. So it's good, it's a good situation. But today it's the people that you want to see smile. Who do you want to see smile?

Who's your team? Who's your squad? And go on the website, click on the banner for Beatrice's Bakery, we put the information in, and before the course of the day is over, we will pick. As a matter of fact, I'll probably pick it throughout this hour if you guys can get that done so that RICO can handle it after I'm gone. Oh, I got to handle it. Yeah, because you're my guy. Oh, now I'm your guy. You're my guy.

You're short, but you're my guy. Like, I mean, that's okay. Why is I just got to go to height with you and Jay? I don't talk about the depth of your heart, Rico. You have a huge heart. I know. You have a huge heart. It's a metal cook.

It's a container. It's an empty vacuum. It's a big beer vat just filled with love. It used to be a big beer vat. And then I left college. So you left college and you had kids and you got married. Now it's a big juice vat. You are a walking juice box.

Yeah. My blood is just Mountain Dew. It's really a problem, actually. You know, you figure it out. And I do want to wish young Nicholas, happy birthday. He's 21. He's legal now. He's not a young boy.

Look, he's legal now. He's just a not man yet. Yeah, he's still. He's not a boy, but he's not a man. Yeah. In that weird middle zone. Yeah, he's, he's, he's, a moie? A man.

Man boy, something like that. Man boy, man. Man child? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, that's probably close. We'll go with that. That's probably close. We have company, so we have to behave now.

Hey, how's your gummy bear back? It's not, it doesn't hurt. It does hurt. It does hurt. It doesn't. swear. So let's bring it Michaela Curtis from the gymnastics team off their best performance of the season. And it's good to watch and it was good to see you guys kind of grow and involved with this thing. You guys outscored the number six team in the country. Like that's a pretty big deal, young lady.

How's it feel? Good. It was one of those things that when, because we kind of explained it yesterday on our show. So this wasn't just a dual meet. It was a five meet. I don't know how you explain that. So they were the teams that we haven't competed against yet or we won't see in a dual meet. So it's called big fives. And so it was us, Rutgers, Minnesota, Penn State, and Michigan State. And coming in, we didn't have the expectation of we're going to do this.

We're going to, like, we just wanted to literally just be simple, be chilled, just do what we. know how to do um you know we've been doing stuff in the practice that like looks good feels good so you know we've been really pushing those small details but not trying to make major changes because i think when you focus on those major things like it makes it harder because then you're like oh i need to do this i need to do that so i think by us going in and being simple was the best thing for us to do. And so when I said that it's the five teams, we started on beam. We sat out, which is called a buy. So we sat out for 15 minutes, which sometimes it's hard. Sometimes it's, I mean, it is what it is at that point. Like, you can't control it. So normally, the normal order

is vault bars beam floor. But for this, like, depending on how you're ranked is like where you start. So we started conference ranking or is that just? Yeah, conference ranking. accumulation of points for the five teams that are there. No, it's just conference ranking for your session. So depending on where you started, like, I don't know. I think best team, like highest ranked team, not best team. Highest ranked team out of the five started on vault because that's the Olympic order is what they call it. Vault and then vault bars beam by floor and we started on beam.

So we went through the rotation, we went through the session. and we ended on bars, and a freshman ended for us. That's kind of rare, right? Yeah, it can be. Well, the lineups changed. We had three lineups that changed out of the four. So it was just kind of like, I'm trying to think of a way to explain this. So it's, you kind of go in knowing roughly what a lineup is going to be

because you have the six people, but a lot of times they have. have seven people warm up just in case if something happens or if somebody's warm up is off or they need to swap people in, whatever it may be. And I'm pretty sure Beam, Floor and Bars had seven people warm up and changed all seven, like around. Is that because Heather sees something or the athlete sees something or somebody's having a bad day and can't hit what they need to hit? How's that work? So it might just be anything, any of those factors can come in because beam I was the seventh person to warm up I wasn't even supposed to be in the lineup and then I came in and was put in the third spot second spot whatever I was put in one of those spots so I came into

the meet not even thinking I was going to compete I knew I was going to warm up I knew that it was like a potential in case of something happened but I was I don't want to say thrown that's not the word at all I was prepared, I would say, just in case, like I was there to have that person's back in case of something needing to fill in. And so it was between me and a freshman to be put into a spot. And then stuff got changed around and me and freshmen were both in and somebody else got taken out. And that was solely based on she felt more comfortable at that point in time Heather did to put me in. and because the other girls warm up wasn't the greatest. And then when the bar situation happened,

it was just one of the girls just wasn't ready in the sense that she just kind of, she was just going through her own head, yeah. And she just, not that she wasn't ready. I don't want to use that term, because everybody on this team is more than ready and more than capable to be thrown into any situation that we have. It was just, it wasn't her day.

I would say that. So then that led to our friends. You've had those days, so you understand it. Oh, yeah. Right? Yeah. Like, it's, you go through. I say you're your worst critic.

Yeah. Like, you're your worst critic. You're your toughest critic. You have conversations with yourself that I wish you had a thought bubble above your head most of the time. It would be interesting. It really would. That could be dangerous. Oh, absolutely.

But absolutely necessary that the conversations that you have, so you talked about it last night, there are conversations that you have. you have with yourself right before you perform. Well, I learned, too, that if I'm a little more vocal about it in the sense, like, so when I'm on beam, obviously gymnastics is a very mental sport. Beam is four inches wide. But I've learned that if I talk myself through it, like literally, like you can see, like, we're however far apart right now, you could see my mouth moving.

I'm talking to myself. Like, I'm not physically speaking the words, but I'm saying them is so much better than me just speaking it in my mind. because I think when I say it in my mind, I can contradict myself. And I've learned that if I kind of like mouth the words, those are the only thoughts that I can have. I don't know if that makes sense.

It does. I mean, you and I have talked about it all fair. Like I said, look, you are a great personality profile. Right? That you're your greatest competition, inspiration, elevation, and that you will talk yourself into a stress that does not exist. Yeah. And so I've watched you over the course of the year kind of evolve into the version that showed up last week.

Yeah. And I'm glad that you're aware that you're evolving. Well, and at that point, I had two alleys that could kind of go down in that moment. I could, you know, let – because we kind of talked about it. it last night too it was on podium so we were competing on a stage so it was a different atmosphere obviously it was different equipment like we were in a different state like everything was different we have never been on this equipment before in this past year um so like everything was different so i could either go you know down this alley where it's let the pressure to come and and let me just okay

i'm gonna fall i'm gonna be every other way or i could be like this is your opportunity and that's what i kept thinking to myself i was like okay you have an option right here she gave you this option for a reason and you just need to show up and at that point um i did what i needed to do and i got my highest score of the season so which is like kind of crazy because like i know i've been in the exhibition spot so i've been in that seventh spot and exhibition you compete but your score doesn't count and this meet i knew that that wasn't an option so the only determining factor i mean there's two there's depending on how your practice went this past week which me and that freshman who she was trying to decide against i had one good day well not good day but like her day was a little more off mine was

better mine was a little off hers was better so going in it was an even playing field and so the only thing i could control at that point and heather is a very big advocate for control what you can control like that's the only thing you can do is control what you can control so the only thing at that point in time that i could do was have the best warm-up that I could. Because by having that, I confirmed my spot. And that was, for me, that was like a really, not an eye-opener, but like, it felt good because the past two or three weeks, I've been in that exhibition spot.

So I haven't really been needed because it hasn't been counted towards the score. But as of right now, what I contributed to was the highest beam score that we've had, which was a 49-3-5. You were active. So the question is whether you're going to be on one event, two events or three events. Yeah. Right. So you know you have, it's a go day.

Yeah. You're just not sure what events you're going to be in all ways. I know like for sure it's at least two vault and floor. Okay. Beam is always kind of the question mark, but in a good way. And I'm a very competitive person. We could go bowling and I would get agitated because I want to win. Yes.

Like we could do anything. Yes. And I want to win. Yes. Yes, Miss Curtis. So I think. Well, I don't lose. Yes, Ms. Curtis.

Yeah, we can be anything. And I'm like super competitive. This is a Wendy's, Miss, Miss Curtis. I want my order first. Like through this. So I always pay attention to the evolution, right? Where you were versus where you are. Yeah.

And I was worried about you early in the season. I mean, right? I mean, I think it's fair, right, for us to say, I was worried about you. said okay Michaela here's what I see and I felt awkward in saying it but then I felt like I had to say but I think it's helpful because like I can only feel my gymnastics I can't I mean I can see it but I like it's different when you have an outside perspective in the sense that like yes you're a coach but like you're also not involved so I think for me when I'm hearing it from the outside if I'm being honest like I think this is why I was supposed to come back and

back a fifth year. Like I wasn't ready to be done physically, mentally, like, gymnastics I wasn't ready to be done. And I think last year, so I keep thinking there's two versions of myself. Last year, there's a lot of factors when it came into it because like we just didn't have the numbers and it was a COVID year. There was no fans. Like there, it was hard in the sense that it felt like it was a practice with a pretty leotard on. Like, you woke up and, and sometimes it felt like you just didn't want to be there because you didn't have that support, We had support. We had plenty of support.

It's the payoff. Yeah. You want the payoff. Yeah. So there was two versions of me. Last year I was literally in tears sitting with Heather, my head coach, begging her to take me out of beam lineup because I was like, I'm not delivering. I'm not doing what you need.

I'm not being the leader, the senior, the beam person you need me to take me out. But she couldn't because she didn't have anybody else to fill that spot. This year, I'm in tears. begging her what do I need to do to be put in because I'm working my butt off I'm doing the numbers I I have the technique I have the skill I what do I need to do I literally had like an hour conversation with her and she goes you already have it it just comes down to consistency so the seeing the two versions of it I was like I obviously prefer this one um but I think it's pretty eye opening for me because it's just like I am never the type of person where I'm like, oh, I am good enough.

It's hard for me to see that. And I don't know why. Well, it was, it was, it was, it was, it was you going through your, your vault prep. That I got the personality for the fault. Because it was, like, I really wished I was on the floor. So I could have said to you, get your eyes up. Yeah. Get your eyes up.

Yeah. Because you're looking. for a reason for something to go wrong. Like, that's the look. I've seen it 100 times in four different sports. And it was the first time I saw it in gymnastics. I went, Michaela, get out of there. Like, you're in a place.

You're in Quixen. Get out of it. Right? How do you address that now? Like, when you go through your prep, hopefully, at some of it, you've got that additional DP voice in your head going. Get your eyes up, young lady.

You got work to do. Yeah, I do. I definitely have a little DP on my shoulder. Like, I mentioned last night, I said, because you had mentioned, I could tell right when, or you could tell, right when I go up to the beam, I'm looking down. And that's how you knew how I was going to perform. And now, even at practice, I'm like, oh, DP said I can't look down at the floor and I have to look up. So I'm like, I'm looking up where like the ceiling meets or whatever, like just up.

And I think that for me now, I have this like little attitude when I get on the beam where I'm just like, I'm good enough. like I am a B word like I'm good like because ultimately that's kind of what you have to do because it's you versus the equipment who like who that's not alive like it can't do anything literally is just sitting there waiting for you yeah so it's like you are the only thing that's going to choose what's going to happen on this event or what's going to happen in the next a minute and a half so for me I'm just like well I'm going to do the dang thing like I kind of do this little head nod I do I get kind of sassy but like not in a like in your face way but the girls can see it and I think that like they're riding with

you yeah but the coolest thing was because they weren't allowed to be on the podium with me they were down like on the corner of it in a corral you guys in a pit yeah literally like they it's an elevated floor yeah so I was probably just off the floor yeah so I had to walk up I had to walk up like stairs so I was probably as high as this table okay and a beam was on here and the girls were standing behind like a curtain with it was like a crowd like it was like they were separated but I could hear them they were banging on the floor they're yelling they're screaming and to me they're not with me but I'm sitting there like there's a smile on my face because I'm like I just hit that not for me I at this point I don't care about me I care about the 17 other people that are standing down there because if it's

the first event I'm setting the tone I wasn't the first person but I'm continuing that so momentum matters yeah it really really does. Well, and not to mention, I had to prove to Heather. She put me in for a reason. She was right. I had to prove to the girl who she swapped me in. I was in there for a reason. I had to prove to myself that. You talked about that last night. Yeah. Talk about that because that swap out can be uncomfortable if the team's not connected. Yeah. So I got swapped out with a junior who has literally come leaps and bounds. She wasn't in the lineup last year. She's done so much, like so much to be where she's at.

And we had to kind of filter the line up a little bit earlier because Kinsey Robey was in Beam. Kinsey Roby is probably one of the most solid people on Beam that I've ever seen. She's just so comfortable. But obviously she has a foot situation going on. So we had to swap out a few weeks ago. So there's been three of us trying to fill two spots.

So it's a very competitive thing. So Clara, who is the, the junior ended up having like this guaranteed spot. And so I think she was second or third, something like that. And her warm up wasn't the greatest. Like we came in and Heather was like, okay, this is my lineup. You and a freshman are going to go for it. So she was like out of the question at that point.

And we get there. Her warm up wasn't the greatest. So with college gymnastics, you go in like two or three hours early and you warm up all the events first and then you leave or not leave but you take a break you go and change until you're pretty leotard and then you come back out and then you have a second warm up that you do so the first warm up that you have is 15 minutes on the event and then you go through all four events the second warm up that you get is just a touch so it's four minutes and the 15 minutes was kind of the determining factor at that point and so I got up for the four minutes and at this point like I knew I was in

my four minute touch was not very good. I was kind of all over the place just because I couldn't get it right in that moment. And all over the place means she has a hundred things elements and two of them she can't nail. No, it was my series. It was the main focus, if you want. Relatively speaking, Ms. Curtis. I feel like you're all over the place and my all over the place might be a little bit different. Well, when you're on four inches wide and you can't stay straight down the beam, like anywhere but down the beam is kind of all over the place.

I mean, that makes sense. Yeah. So, like, and then I was just like, okay, well, there goes my spot. And then I didn't even think about it. You know, it was what it is what it is at that point. And I was getting chalk. I was more like squatted down, like kind of taking a moment to myself because this was also a little bit different than a home meet or a dual meet. Because at a dual meet, it's you go, the other team goes.

You go, the other team goes like you alternate. This meet was just quick because you didn't wait because everybody. All sorts of music, all sorts of noise. Yeah. Everybody was going at the same time, and this was the first time that, like, we have done that. So it was very fast-paced. Maybe you need to do that more often. Well, I was, like, kind of caught off guard because I've obviously done this for five years now.

I know how it goes. But the girl had just gotten off the beam, and I'm taking my sweet time, which is fine. Like, it's whatever. It's, I'm the one doing it. But I forgot how fast it goes. So I'm, like, kind of just sitting there doing my own thing, and the judges are just staring at me. And I was like, oh, my bad. I forgot.

I have to go, like right now. But anyway, like, I'm bent down kind of just in my moment, like, take a deep breath right here. And Clara, who they swapped me out with, she came up to me and she was like, this is your time. Like, she wasn't butt hurt by it. She wasn't, like, off to herself. Like, and I think that it just shows what kind of teammates that we have is we all know what the purpose is. We all know, like, yes, you have six spots to fill. But if you're not on your top that day,

let somebody else do it and be their backbone, let them, like, shine for them and do what you need to do and you can do what you need to do on the other end of stuff. And I think for me, it was like a good moment because she wasn't mad about it. And in my head, I was thinking, you have this opportunity, do it for her. How good would she have done it if she was in your position? So I'm not thinking about, like, oh, let me shake in my boots. Like, don't be scared. Like, because there's so many other factors. You have do it for Heather because she's the one that put trust in you. You have to do it for yourself to show like I can take the reins and do what I know how to do. But you also have to do it for the person that you swapped out with and then the 16 other people on the floor.

And your mom, because your mom is going to text you to see. No, I texted her afterwards because she's been asking. She was like, are you going to be in beam lineup? And I was like, I don't know. Like I've been doing like I've been doing like I've been doing what I needed to do. But it's just not my time yet. It'll come when it needs to come type thing. And as soon as I landed and I go and give everybody high fives. I go down to my phone before the next girl, or maybe it was right before the next rotation, I think. I don't think it was like right after. It was in your buy. Yeah, I text her. I said, did you see that in all caps? And she was just like, I'm so proud of you. And so like to, and I know like the, um, shout out mom. Yeah. And and to me,

like, I think that's the most important thing. Like I always know my mom is proud of me, but just to be at this level and then just. to have other people like I'm so proud of you and like even the freshmen because like they see what you go through every single day and the freshmen like just giving me hugs and they're like that's what we needed and like it's just a moment. And it's a long way from making through COVID to Lincoln, Nebraska and that. And we'll get to the sad part here shortly. Uh, we'll throw it to break. We'll throw it to break. We'll go back, Michaela Curtis from women's gymnastics. She's here. She's bendy, she's twisting. She's all energy. She's a talking

tech. We'll be right back. Download our app by searching 93.7 the ticket in your app store. You're listening to one-on-one with DP on 937 the ticket and the ticketfm.com.