Where can a Raiderette go after she retires?

She May Take the Road “More Traveled” and Go from Network to Network

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”-- Robert Frost,
“The Road Not Taken”

By Larry Garcia (RDL) and Paul Turse (Samurai Raider)

If you have to commute to work each day by car or if you enjoy a Sunday drive, you probably think that traffic is an ugly thing, especially if you have been bogged down in it.  Well, by hiring former Raiderette Aubrey Aquino as a freelance traffic reporter last March for the 5:00 pm and 6:00 pm newscasts, NBC 3 on KNTV has taken a step, not only to make the subject of traffic just a bit prettier, but also to answer the question posed in the title above.  And for Aubrey, contrary to slowing her down, traffic is helping to speed up her career.  In fact, by going from the Oakland “Net” Coliseum to KNTV, you could say that she has gone from one network to another; and by giving a detailed traffic analysis, she is helping her viewers “choose the road less traveled.” 

You see, Raiderettes are more than cheerleaders; many are talented and trained women with college degrees and professional backgrounds, both which they can rely on after their days with the Raiders’ franchise are over.  In fact, many carry on with their regular professions while they do their stint with the squad.  Some of the fields they excel at (aside from that at the Coliseum) are computer engineer, interpreter, lab technician, health education specialist, and ultrasound technician, to name just a few. 

When it comes to having a specialized background, Aubrey, who was born in Santa Clara, is no exception.  In fact, most of her experience is in the broadcasting field.  She graduated from San Jose State University in May 1998 with a BS in Radio/TV Journalism and a minor in Humanities.  While diligently pursuing her studies, she worked on the campus newscast at SJSU, which aired on PBS station KTEH.

 Following graduation, she left her San Jose-based family and moved to Sacramento; and while she danced for the Kings, she worked at a local station there as a TV writer/producer.  After one year in Sacramento, she wanted to pursue an on-camera job, so she moved to southern Oregon and worked as an anchor/reporter.  Then, when she returned to the Bay Area, she had to compromise her career a little and return to a more behind-the-scenes role as a writer/producer.  Since the Bay Area is a Top 5 media market, it means that there are plenty of chances to get a lot of necessary experience.  “So I did what I could to keep my foot in the door while also taking the time to enjoy what I was doing for myself as a Raiderette,” Aubrey said. 

 After making the Raiderette squad for the second time, Aubrey started working for Metro Networks based out of San Francisco and got back into an on-air role.  Her stint at airborne traffic reporting on the radio eventually led to her new job at NBC3.

Although Aubrey was concentrating on studies in college, she took a shot at making the Raiderette squad.  “I had tried out for Raiderettes when they first returned to Oakland and while I didn’t make the team, I was still in school and figured for whatever reason, the time wasn’t right, so I put it behind me and moved on.  When I made the team in 2000, it had been a few years since my first Raiderette audition.”

When Aubrey finally made up her mind to come back to tryout for the Raiderettes, it was as she says, “a total fluke.”  She was living in Oregon at the time and working as a news anchor at the local NBC affiliate there, but she still wanted to move home; however, she “needed a really good reason,” she explained.  When some friends of hers who were auditioning for the squad encouraged her to join them, she had the excuse she had been waiting for.  Aubrey went down to Oakland for the preliminary audition and made the final cut.  She returned to Oregon and thus didn’t attend any of the rehearsals.  “I learned the dance the day before the final cut.  I was doing it for fun, not really thinking my life was about to change and start off in a new direction.  It was a fun time working for Mary Barnes as a Raiderette and being part of the Raider organization.  I was in a position to meet many exciting and important people and get involved with so many worthwhile charities.”  It may very well have been her stint with the squad that helped her climb to success.

Do you remember the joke about the mountain climber whose rope broke while he was scaling a high cliff?  Well, while he was falling through the air, he called out to his guide, “What shall I do now?”  The guide replied calmly, “Look to the left:  the view is extraordinary!”  Now, while the joke is a bit silly, it does make a couple of points about life.  First, in times of trial, many of us do not exercise all of our options and, secondly, we may not see the surrounding beauty in an ugly situation.  Well, even as young as three or four years old, Aubrey was able to make the best out of a bad situation and exercise an interesting option.  It was natural that Aubrey would be attracted to the Raiderettes because they were the first cheerleaders she had ever known.  She recalled those days, watching the Raider games with her parents, who have always been big sports fans and have followed the Raiders for many years.  Although she may have hated football and suffered through the games-- because she was too young to understand the sport-- she did appreciate the beauty of Football’s Fabulous Females.

So,” Aubrey explained, “I’d sit by the TV with my own set of pom-poms and wait for the TV cameras to show them [Raiderettes]!  I never ever thought I would end up being one of those special women!”

Little did she know then that being a Raiderette is more than pom-poms and celebrity, and that long hard hours of work would be expected of her.  “Technically, Raiderettes requires around 8 hours of practice a week,” Aubrey explained, “but that doesn’t include the driving, promotional events, prep time at home.  During the season, it’s a really hectic schedule, with your weekends taken up by Raiderette obligations.  It is different for each Raiderette; some can give more time than others, but it’s 90 percent work and maybe only 10 percent glamour.”

That the Raiderettes are women of substance is something that the Raider fans have noticed and, according to Aubrey, they always made her and the other Raiderettes “feel so welcome and appreciated.”  Aubrey believes that the Oakland Raider fans are the “most dedicated and passionate around the NFL” and that they would do pretty much anything for her and her cheerleader sisters.  “Sometimes I felt like they put us on a pedestal and treated us like total rock stars, when in reality I considered them my equal…I never put myself above a Raider fan because we’re just all fans together.”

While Aubrey will certainly miss the excitement generated when she used to cheer and dance at the Net, she will certainly still long for the camaraderie shared and enjoyed with the squad.  “I will definitely miss seeing all my Raiderette sisters on a regular basis at practice and events,” Aubrey noted;  “however, we still have our nights out and gab sessions, and we e-mail to keep in touch.  I will also miss performing for the fans…but now I can be one and sit back and enjoy the games with everyone else!”  

Although she has departed the Raiderette fold, Aubrey does not look at her moving on as a decision to leave.  In a sense, she had come to a fork in the road as far as her career was concerned and had to make a choice.  “But when I started out,” she explained, “I knew it was something I’d only do for a couple seasons at most.” 

Aubrey’s talent was quite easy to see, even at her tryout that led to making the squad.  It was there that one of the judges, a former Raiderette, approached her and, after noting her special presence, encouraged her to definitely go back to what she had been doing [news anchoring], although she should still enjoy a couple of years as a Raiderette.  “I’ve always remembered her words, and so I made the most of my two seasons, but I never had intentions to stay longer than that.  Although Raiderettes is a wonderful and unique experience, you can only learn and take so much from it before it’s time to move on.  My long-term goals and ambitions reach far beyond this one achievement, and so it’s only right for me to go for my next goal and move on now that the time is right.” 

While her professional background is in the area where verbal skill is important, Aubrey has had plenty of training in the areas necessary for performance in the physical areas.  Aubrey has been dancing and performing all her life.  Whether it was ballet, jazz, gymnastics, or ice-skating, performance has always been part of her life.  She started dancing at the age of four and also started ice-skating, a high-speed hobby she continued until the age of 12.  She then took gymnastics and danced/cheered all through junior high and high school.  In college at San Jose State, she took jazz classes for fun and then decided to audition for a professional dance team.  After going through a few auditions, she finally made her first team in 1998, after graduating from San Jose State, becoming a member of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings Fast Break dance team.  Although she was not involved with traffic then, Aubrey certainly demonstrated that she was able to operate in the fast lane.

Although her dancing and cheerleading days are over, Aubrey is still very fitness conscious, a fact made obvious by her trim, athletic figure.  “I still workout regularly, and actually now I go on my own more than when I was on the squad.  I think it’s really important for me to keep myself physically fit and healthy.  I always want to look and feel my best, and working out and exercising is one easy way I can do that.”  Despite her physical fitness regimen, Aubrey still indulges herself with her favorite foods-- pasta dishes, pizza, and cheeseburgers, and especially cookies.  “My mother will tell you cookie was my first word ever...and I am a real life cookie monster!” 

Her dedication to physical fitness is perhaps one reason that she was considered for and excelled in a recent ESPN series called Beg, Borrow and Deal, a new reality show taped earlier this season.  The ESPN program is basically a cross-country race where teams of four people (2 men and 2 women) race across the country with no money, food, credit cards, transportation-- nothing except the clothes on their backs, their I.D.’s, and their wits.  The teams started off in Times Square, with the goal of making it to the West Coast by getting help from random strangers and friends on the way.  They also had to complete sports-related challenges on the way. 

“Everything we did was on tape,” Aubrey explained, “and we were miked 24/7.  It was a very rough ride…exciting...but so much more challenging than I originally had thought.  I can’t wait until it starts airing September 17 on ESPN… and it’ll run for 8 weeks.”     

I am sure Aubrey’s many fans can’t wait to see her compete and pull away from the “traffic,” so to speak.  At any rate, whether her team wins or not, we will all be proud of her accomplishment.  Certainly, her mom, Rose, and her dad, Ted, of course, will be extremely proud of her, regardless of how she fares in the event or whatever course her life may take in the future.

 “For them, they just want to see me happy,” Aubrey elucidated, “and they have always supported me and given me the tools I needed to go out and reach my goals.  I think in their minds, they have never doubted my abilities; and while some of the things I do may seem like a big deal, anyone who knows me will tell you ‘that’s just Aubrey!’  I always do what I say I’m going to do, and each new opportunity I take advantage of is something I do for myself to fulfill my dreams.” 

One thing that Aubrey loves doing for herself is traveling.  She loves visiting new places and meeting new people.  When she is not spreading good cheer around the world, she especially enjoys spending time with her friends and with her mom and dad, and of course and her siblings.  Aubrey is the oldest of four children.  Aside from the “baby” of the family, Adam, who will be starting his senior year at Deer Valley High School in September, she has two sisters.  Adrienne, the next oldest, is studying abroad in Sydney, Australia, as part of an exchange program at San Francisco State.  Alison, the youngest of the girls, just graduated from high school and is headed for UC San Diego this fall.  The fact that there are two more up-and-coming lovely Aquino sisters has not been missed by “recruiter” Mary Barnes.  Aubrey noted:  “Don’t think she hasn’t asked if they might audition.” 

Having all three talented and beautiful Aquino sisters on the squad at one time would sure give new meaning to the word triple, and thereafter a triple play perhaps might become a cheerleading term, and not restricted to baseball.  If fact, the prospect has certainly caused Aubrey to give the idea some thought:  “I think that’s maybe the one thing that would make me reconsider being on the team...being able to share that great experience with one or even both of my sisters!”  

But for now, Aubrey is content moving on and fulfilling her objectives:  “My future goals include continuing to work in television broadcasting, and I would also like to settle down and find Mr. Right, buy a home, and have my own children.  I plan to continue my travels around the world and cheering on the Raiders to the Super Bowl!”

So, if you wonder were Raiderettes go after they leave the field, just tune in to the 5:00 pm or 6:00 pm traffic report on NBC 3 on KNTV, and you will see just one of the many opportunities that open up for these talented and personable young women.  And now that you know former Raiderette Aubrey, maybe, just maybe, the next time you get delayed in a jam, you will look to the left (like the mountain climber) or you will look deep inside and be thankful for all you have and thus traffic won’t look quite so ugly anymore.  And maybe once you start up again and on your way to success, the momentary time you had for reflection may help jump start your career or supercharge the one you have.  You see, Aubrey stands as proof that sometimes one need not be afraid to take the road most traveled by and with the most traffic; and in terms of accelerating one’s career, that choice can make all the difference.  And, by the way, if she can do what she does for traffic, imagine what she could do to brighten a dark and dreary day—as the weathercaster!