SOUTHEAST STUDENT MOONLIGHTS WITH RAMS

During the week Heather Bowden is student studying interior design at Southeast Missouri State University.

But on weekends she cheers for 55,000 professional football fans at the new Trans World Dome in St. Louis.

Bowden is a member of the St. Louis Rams first cheerleading squad.

"I don't really think of it as a job," she said. "I guess it really is, but it is a fun job."

Bowden has been cheering since she was 3 years old.

"My dad was a wrestling coach for Ritenour High School in St. Louis, and I just ended up being the cheerleading mascot. I also cheered in junior high and high school," she said.

Bowden is no amateur when it comes to cheerleading. She has cheered for other St. Louis teams, including the Ambush and the Storm, both indoor soccer teams; the Vipers, an indoor roller blade hockey team; and the Stampede, a professional indoor football team.

But cheering for the Rams is different.

"The excitement and the people are so different," she said. "Everyone has been waiting for football, it seems like, and finally it's here. There are some crazy people at the games -- I mean crazy."

Bowden began dreaming about cheering for a St. Louis professional football team when word surfaced several years ago that the city might land an NFL expansion team.

"When I heard about the Stallions coming to St. Louis, it kind of got my hopes up," she said.

Her choreographer urged her to try out when the announcement was made that the Rams were moving from Los Angeles.

Making the Rams' cheerleading squad was Bowden's ultimate goal, but she faced tough odds. A thousand applications were sent out and 600 hopefuls turned out for the first round of tryouts. During that session, two cuts based on dancing ability were made.

"Whoever was left -- I think there were 100 left -- had to do a personal interview," Bowden said.

She has taken dance lessons most of her life and said dancing ability was critical in the tryouts.

"They also told us that they wanted everybody to have a similar look,' she said.

Bowden thought that meant a certain height and weight. But she was wrong.

"They were just looking for really outgoing and energetic people, not afraid to get out in front of a crowd," she said.

Bowden is one of 44 members of the squad. Each cheerleader is paid $50 per game and is required to serve at 10 charity promotions.

"We have done work at Cardinal Glennon and Incarnate Ward Hospital," Bowden said. "The kids are really neat. They really look up to us."

Squad members are paid for some promotional events, such as television appearances.

The squad practices twice a week and performs at all home games. Due to a NFL policy, cheerleaders don't travel with the team.

With cheering, her studies and a job -- Bowden works at Maurice's, a clothing store at West Park Mall -- her schedule is hectic.

"The week of a game, we practice Tuesday and Thursday nights, and then we have to be up at the stadium at eight in the morning Saturday," she said. "We practice from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the game is on Sunday."

Despite the schedule, Bowden said she loves cheering for the Rams.