Cheer Dads Unfiltered – Episode 40: Coach Bryce Kirkley on Tumbling, Mental Blocks & Progression Over Perfection

Cheer Dads Unfiltered · Sep 24, 2026 · 1h 35m

What does tumbling progress actually look like when your athlete is stuck on a back walkover, battling a mental block or grinding through private lessons with no obvious progress?

For Episode 40, Tom, Geoff and David sit down with Coach Bryce Kirkley, better known as the Tumble Whisper, to help cheer parents understand what we are actually watching from the other side of the gym.

Bryce is a U.S. Marine Corps combat veteran with more than two decades of gymnastics and coaching experience. His core message throughout this conversation is simple:

Progression over perfection

We get into why some…