By Joey Villarreal.
As the band’s marching season ends, the color guard prepares for their upcoming winter guard competitions.
Color guard is a section in the band that marches with flags instead of instruments. They perform at football games, pep rallies, and other dance competitions. During their winter guard season, they branch off and perform without the band.
“Being in winter guard means we do our own thing,” sophomore Julee Jimenez said. “We travel with other schools, like Cooper, sometimes Wylie to perform our shows.”
This year, the guard will take their show to multiple contests and will perform at the spring show along with Gold Rush.
“We have practices every Monday after school,” freshman Lillian Gingrich said. “And we practice before school two days a week.”
Paula Findley, the new guard director, has taught the Abilene High Guard for many years in the past. Her guards have won numerous trophies and awards.
“The guard is really improving,” Findley said. “They have gotten stronger since football season already, so it’s already going really well.”
The theme for their show is ‘transformation’ and puts emphasis on growing apart and coming together.
“Our show this year is a song from the movie ‘Encanto’,” Jimenez said. “I’m pretty excited cause it’s way better than last years,”
It took Findley over five weeks to write the entire show, and she and the guard have taken many practices and reps in order to learn the four-minute-long show.
“The dance is very beautiful,” senior captain Marly Gabriel said. “The flag work is very beautiful, very flowy, nice, and calming.”
They will perform their show at their first competition next week on Feb. 24 at Cooper’s Winter Guard Contest. “We’re just going to go in as a beginner so that this is our first contest and everyone can get a taste of what it’s going to be like,” Findley said. “We’re very excited about the season.”
