I walked along the warm gray cement. The smell of funnel cakes, pretzels, and pineapple smoothies filled my nose. I had butterflies in my stomach. The sky was a perfect blue. As I strolled into the shade of the school I heard it. The screaming. Last February I went to California with my colorguard team. We were able to participate in the Winter Guard International Riverside regional. I learned a lot about hard work leading up to performing in the regional. Hard work will always pay off.
It all started with a rehearsal in the parking lot of a church. Thursday morning began the five hour practice. We ran around on the blistering pavement. Our feet were so black they could have matched the night sky. A few days later we arrived at the competition. On the bus ride over, caterpillars hatched in my stomach, and they turned into butterflies. We got off the bus and from that point on it was go, go, go. We finished make-up, got dressed, then went to warm up. “ Make sure you’ve stretched well!” Jenny would remind us.
Bri came by and hugged everyone. I turned to Melissa, one of my teammates. “Can we go over the work before we do the lay down?” I ask. “Sure!” she replies. A few minutes later Jenny calls us over.
“This has been a pretty good
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The sun was just setting as we finished our warm up. We grabbed our trees and started to head out onto the floor again, this time in finals performance. I could hear Lone Peak’s colorguard team cheering us on. It was comforting to have someone we knew cheering us on. My performance was amazing again. I didn’t fumble on the toss I had almost messed up before. It was almost a perfect run. However, it was not perfect. A few weapons dropped their tosses. All there was to do now was wait. Later, our captains went to awards and it was very nerve wracking. First they announced the division lower than us. The anticipation grew with every minute. Then they announced our division. My breath felt stuck in my
A popular quote used by many guard members is that “Color Guard is god's gift to the marching band”. No matter your religion, the message of the quote is clear. Many guard members feel that the marching band needs them. Most band members would disagree with this, however, the color guard is superior to the band because the guard has to work harder, has more interesting equipment, and a better offseason activity than the marching band.
The LWC Color Guard depends on the capability of its captains and how well they can do their job as a section leader. A leader, in general, is someone who many people look to for advice, instruction, motivation, and most importantly, encouragement. This means that it is important for a leader to have the ability to make difficult decisions and do what is best for the color guard. An essential job of a leader is to guide others as well as being an example of a hard, passionate, and dedicated worker. Some qualities that are necessary for a color guard captain are compassion, character, and courage.
It started on one brisk morning that I had been waiting for throughout the entire summer. The day I will receive my first pair of pointe shoes. Today is the day I will dance en pointe for the first time. After what seemed like an eternity when we finally arrived at Patterson’s, the place where I will become a true ballerina.
I was smiling and laughing while many on the plane were vomiting. This was the most fun I’d had on a flight, but not everyone seemed to share my excitement. They had good reason for anxiety; we had endured a turbulent, and were now circling Columbus unable to land. This started my experience at Winter Guard International World Championships in my junior year.
Is Color Guard a sport? Many people like to ask this question. Personally I think Color Guard is a sport. Here’s why, first the definition of a sport is an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment. The definition alone tells you that Color Guard is classified as a sport, but some would still argue with that. I really don’t see how anyone could argue with that, because there are facts there to prove it. You do hardcore physical activity, have to have skill, and your team competes against other schools. Color Guard is also something I take very seriously because it sculpts you into who you are, it makes you strive for what you want. It makes you want to
As more of my teammates began to show up, I recognized most of them. However, I learned later that if I went on to play in the Spring, this would not be the same exact team I would play with. With only twenty minutes until we began,I put on all of my gear and my dad gave me a thorough warm up. Time seemed to fly by, and before I knew it, everyone was gathered together as positions were being assigned. I was originally overwhelmed with excitement, but as the game drew closer, the joy I had felt was replaced with anxiety. The lacrosse game taking place before ours ended and we entered and took our place on our bench. I recognized the opposing team’s jerseys quickly and identified them as a travel team from our area. Taking one final breath, I rushed into the lacrosse net enjoying my bird’s eye view, unsure of what was to
It was my final moments as a Chelsea High School cheerleader. My final banquet had quickly approached. It was then that I realized I was not ready for the season to be over. I stood in front of my friends, fellow cheerleaders, and their families as they watched and waited for me to recite my last words as the season came to an end. It took hours for me to write about what my teammates and my coaches meant to me. I did not want to sound too nostalgic since I’m not the emotional type, but I also did not want to come across as indifferent. It was a difficult task but I knew I could accomplish it.
When the dorm step show came homecoming week I was so nervous you would have thought I was about to be interrogated. The female’s dorm Kleist had just begun finishing up and they came back and said, “High Rise you’re up.” From that moment on, my nerves began to take over. My heart felt like it was beating out of my chest. The crowd started screaming as soon as they saw us coming out onto the stage. Once I heard people yelling out, “yessss go Tre!, go High Rise!” those butterflies flew away and I instantly grew confidence. It was like I had a flashback of myself being in another cookout or party when I was a kid and I let it out. Before we could even finish our first step, the crowd nearly blew the roof off of the gym. Once I heard the crowd’s reaction that allowed me to get comfortable and start really having fun. After our performance, I knew we had a good chance to win but I wanted to stay humble because the other teams worked hard. After the last performance, they said that they were going to announce the winning team. I shook hands and hugged all of my teammates and closed my eyes tight like I was making a wish. The announcer said, “Drumroll please….and your winner is……. High Riseeee!.” The entire team ran out on the floor full of energy and joy; it was like we won the Super
Prior to placing fourth, I had a strong inconceivable drive to win. I worked to my fullest potential every day in practice and when I wasn’t there it was all I could think about. Although, proceeding my fourth place win, my mind was far away from cheer. I complained about having to attend practices and I relied on my current skills to carry me through the season. I reminded myself there’s always tomorrow to console my consciences after a bad practice. In March of 2015 there would be no “tomorrow” after performing the worst routine of the season. My team placed twenty-fourth in the state of Illinois. I was devastated and angry but I had no one to blame this shameful defeat on but myself. Getting twenty-fourth place was due to laziness and a lack of dedication to my
Two teams are on the court racing for the ball. The gym is suffocatingly hot and, the students are flailing their arms in the air. The game is a mix of basketball and soccer. Gym class has begun. Blue and yellow jerseys fly throughout the gym with tiny sixth graders inhabiting them. The Yellow team scores and a player picks up the ball forcefully, ready to score once more . The Blue team runs across the gym back and forth like birds stuck in a cage. As the Yellow team scores the heads of the discouraged Blue team hang in disappointment. . The Perspiration is scattered on the bodies of the lively children. The Yellow team begins running for the ball and now looks like a pack of wild animals hunting their prey. They run fiercely towards their victims, each one aiding the next to achieve one goal, to kill. Wisst the sound of the whistle halts the game. Water drips from the water fountain onto the floor . The thirsty children flee the gym. Halftime
The start of the 2002 track season found me concerned with how I would perform. After a disastrous bout with mononucleosis ended my freshmen track season, the fear of failure weighed heavily on my mind. I set a goal for myself in order to maintain focus and to push myself like nothing else would. My goal for my sophomore track season was to become a state champion in the 100 meter hurdles. I worked hard everyday at practice and went the extra mile, like running every Sunday, to be just that much closer to reaching my goal. The thought of standing highest on the podium in the center of the field, surrounded by hundreds of spectators, overcame my thoughts of complaining every time we had a hard workout. When I closed my eyes, I pictured myself waiting in anticipation as other competitors names were called out, one by one, until finally, the booming voice announced over the loudspeaker, "...and in first place, your 2002 100 meter hurdle champion, from Hotchkiss, Connie Dawson." It was visions like these that drove me to work harder everyday.
Finally Friday came. The tournament lasted for about three hours, peppered with constant complaints, arguments, and threatened fist fights. To my own disbelief, we lost -- by one point! For the rest of the night I rationalized our loss by creating stories of how they must have cheated, accented by remarks about the character blemishes of their mothers. I just kept saying that we were still the best and it didn't matter that we had lost. By the end of the night no one was speaking to me, not even my partner in the competition. I finally snuck off and went home. All the way, I could feel myself choking on ...
Our kicker went on to kick the extra point, as only one minute remained on the time clock. The Clark Cougars went on to beat the Williams Warriors. I could see it now on the front page of the town newspaper. "Clark demolishes Williams for the first time in 14 years!" We finally beat the best team in the world! As we celebrated, and jumped around on the soggy grass, a tear came to my eye. It was all hitting me now. I finally achieved the goal of my life! I could not control the tremendous smirk on my face. As I watched the coach from the opposing team cry in agony, I thought to myself, "That must be what they call the agony of defeat." I knew that the moment of my life I had long waited for, was gone. Only memories are left in my mind, and I cherish every single one of them.
At last we had brought all our practicing skills into work at the final stages. After working hard for three solid months it all paid off, the competing mat was beneath our feet. It was as if I could almost hear the girl?s hearts thumping before we walked onto the mat. I couldn?t stop smiling, I had the biggest grin on my face as if I were the cat who just ate the canary. Only when I thought that was enough, my facial expressions were amazing, all the nights I spent in front of the mirror or watching my self through the reflection of the glass door in my kitchen. It?s hard to go first because watching all the other teams compete makes you think, how did I do?
I was also surprised at the different types of music playing from each team. All the music blurred together so you would hear different types of songs every time you listened. Finally, I found where my team was supposed to go and walked over to find them all stretching. I found my coach and saw her smiling,” You girls all ready?” she asked. We mumbled an answer overwhelmed by the competition. Our coach already told us that no team from West Union had ever won. So our hopes weren’t high. After we finished stretching we ran through the routine a couple of times. By that time I was super nervous. Before I realized it we had to make our way to the competition