By Candice Schrader
This December camp was one of the best camps that I have ever been to. es, there were lots of new auditionees, but that’s what made it great.
This camp truly seemed to capture the Blue Stars atmosphere.
From the moment I walked into the gym, I could tell that everyone in the color guard was there to work. Friday night consisted of stretching, some basic movement exercises and flag basics. After that, Luke began teaching a few new releases on flag. They were difficult, but everyone picked up on them and was working hard.
Saturday started with a good morning stretch, which also means bonding time for us. We kinda use this time to get to know the new people and introduce them to our wacky ways. When that was done, we had to wait for the gym to open up before we could go spin, so we took that time to learn more about each other and began to become a family. Shortly after we found out that the gym we were going to rehearse in was being used, so we moved to the band room and did dance for about two hours.
Lunch came and went, and we were finally able to start spinning. Luke began to teach us the flag work we would perform at show and tell and after dinner we learned the rifle work. Both were very hard because of the tempo of the music, but it was some of the coolest work I’ve ever performed. To end the night we had long cool-down stretch. All of our bodies were aching and it was exactly what we all needed to not wake up sore the next morning. I think for most of us though, it was a nice moment of relaxation and while we didn’t talk, I felt like I became just a little bit closer to everyone else in the room.
After our 7 a.m. wakeup the next morning, we stretched again and went straight to work. We danced for a short while and then the sabres went to learn some more basics while the flags reviewed work and exercises. Then we had the rest of the time to go over our work to prepare for show and tell on our own. I look forward to this time of the weekend the most. It’s now that we get to help each other out and tell people how far they’ve come in this short weekend. We get to watch ourselves perform and there’s nothing better than that. Before we knew it, it was time for show and tell and we were performing for the rest of the corps and other friends and family. I think we really turned some heads this weekend. This guard definitely has the potential to be great.
This weekend held true to everything the Blue Stars organization is about: Family, tradition, pride and everything else that keeps us coming back. There was a positive attitude all around and you knew everyone was there for the same reason; to make this the greatest season the Blue Stars has ever seen.
Candice Schrader is a member of the Blue Stars’ color guard.
