Is it just pure strength to get to higher tosses like 8+ I can do a 7 with a plié but I can’t fathom putting anymore strength into the toss to get any more out of the rifle and I’m not weak to be honest. Is it just strength or is there some technique stuff that can help higher tosses could it also be how heavy my rifle is? I’ve had some people describe my rifle as heavy but it’s not really that heavy. Idk I just was thinking because I saw that 10 toss from bluecoats 22 come across my feed

Always… ALWAYS put strapping tape underneath your white tape even if you don’t think you need it. I bought a new rifle online, it delivered, and the next day I was spinning, dropped it, and it FULLY CRACKED. Yes, I’m mad😭

basically what the title says lol,i have a rifle otw and im calling it vidalia(ik its an onion LOL) bc i like the vibes but i got called weird by a girl in my guard when i said it😭did any of you guys name ur weapons? and what did you name it?

Exactly what the title says, my brain is always split screening counting and like weird little daydreams 💀

Ok our football season ended early due to a number a reasons (injuries a loss of a coach and a Mass Quit pf players) which means a lack of funding for the rest of the sports teams which will trickle down to the marching program even though in our county at least it falls under music and not sports (which means no physical for MB or CG i’m going to ask the athletic director if it would be ok for me to ask for them to be on the safe side).

But ultimately if the sports teams loose funding wouldn’t that mean it would give the music department more funding? Or would they give more funding to FB to try and entice kids back into it leaving us with even less than we have?

hi! i've never missed a comp but coming up we have one and im going to billie that day. everyone's known for a while, but my band director is really mad. i don't move props or anything so it doesn't make much of a difference. what's the best way to handle this without missing the concert?

i was on rifle line this marching season, but now winter season is coming up and i'm getting a little worried about keeping my position('cause smaller rifle line for winter). there's an "audition process" but it's pretty obvious that my director chooses who's going where well beforehand, which means i need to start pulling out crazy tosses like right now 😖. i can maybe get a five two hours into rehearsal after i've been spinning for a while, and some of the people i'm up against can do them cold.

so, any tips/advice on 5s and higher? also, would it benefit me to a noticeable degree to start doing some kind of strength/flexbility exercise for my wrists?

Hello all! Just a quick update on the freshman I posted about a few weeks ago, she has finally figured out how to toss and can already do a double! I’m not sure what clicked, but it finally worked and not a moment too soon since we have our Area marching contest tomorrow.

Now for the question at hand: how do you move your tarp from one place to the next during winterguard competitions? We have a cart for moving the tarp, but the issue is loading it on a bus since the cart and floor are extremely heavy. Is there an easier way to move it that isn’t a hassle? Thank you!

i’m doing a portfolio for my director to convince him to let me design out outfits for next year, and i’d love to redesign some of y’all’s outfits to add to it! so if you’ve had or seen some outfits in need of a redesign i’d love to see them!

My show has a riffle quad tossed with band kids 3 steps away on all sides. I have been practicing when I have time but they are still different every time. Another issue is when I see instruments on the sides I get nervous and that makes my tosses different too. If you have any advice to get this toss down please let me know everything is helpful!

So due to the way my schedule is laid out, taking my flag home to practice and film our video assignments is very inconvenient since I have to bring it back in the morning everyday. So, my plan is to purchase a practice flag to keep at my house. What all do I need to buy, and where should I get it?

I’m fairly new to coaching, as I only ever did Winter Guard in high school, but never continued on with guard once I graduated. The coaching job fell into my lap, and it was either I do what I can or the kids wouldn’t have a winter season. So I’ve managed through a couple seasons, but I really want to set them up for success this year the best I can.

*What warm ups should I focus on the most? *How should I structure each practice time wise? *What body movement exercises work best to help their dance and expressions? *What weapon exercises/warm ups do you use for the whole team? *any tips for helping students count when the music is just an instrumental? *what ballet exercises do you use that you find helpful? *how do you help a student who struggles with rhythm? *what type of try outs do you have? *how do you know when to cut a person because of attendance? *are accent tarps just as effective as the massive full floor tarps? *what are essential items/equipment/tape/bolts… would you buy if you were given money to start fresh and build up a program?

We are a small school with no funding, except we just won a grant for all new equipment to build the program back, and I want to make sure we have everything we need. Just any advice you got for me I’m willing to take.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUg3pnh1qJI&t=77s

I want to find shows that use the strings similar to this show. Where they pick them up and move them around the "grid." Any ideas? Thanks a bunch!

People who have traveled to auditions or Dayton, does anyone know how much it cost to check in a flag bag?

Hey! So I'm a freshman in college now and really want to practice spinning flag and rifle in the racquetball courts, but I'm a little nervous about walking to our gym (a couple blocks) and getting looks. I'm worried someone might mistake my rifle as the real thing? I'm in a decently half half liberal and conservative college. Should I risk it? Any advice?

Saturday we had two competitions, assessment and a competition and on the second one I accidentally did a money-hand toss two counts early. and its just haunting me because one how did that happen and two I’m literally in my third season ☠️☠️☠️

I had my first competition this weekend and we didn’t place (the comp only gave out 1st and 2nd). Apparently (I black out on the field and don’t remember much afterward) I turned around at one point to look at our captain because I got lost in the show and blanked on choreo. I also made a few other errors (tripped and fell but tried to pull it off as a solo bit, caught every toss by the silk or incorrectly, etc) and had to modify choreo (can’t do turns as I’m trying to be easy on my knees). I’m trying to convince myself that I’m not the reason my guard didn’t place since we are very small (4 people) and not a single one of us used weapon or had alternate props, just flag unlike everyone else we were up against and that we don’t have full show choreo due to the hurricane that that’s why we didn’t place. How is guard typically scored? Is it more based on difficulty or is it based on achievement?

Next year my band will be performing Voyage to Valhalla and I need costume advice! Our director said he wants us to be either sirens or valkyries and I’m leaning heavy on the siren idea. I don’t want something that will blend in with the field so if yall have ideas or other recommendations please show! xx

A month or two ago, I tried doing a 45 for the first time and got a concussion. Thankfully I recovered quickly, but now I get very stressed when trying to do one and often sprint away from my flag. How do I overcome my fears?

As backflags, I'm honestly not sure where we belong

Hi, I'm auditioning for captain at my school. 7 people are trying out but there are only 3 spots so my audition piece has to be on point. I want to incorporate that I'm the ONLY member of our team with dance experience, and have flexibility with strength. I don't want to make my dance look awkward with my flag though, and I especially don't want to make it look like im just doing tricks with awkward transitions. How do I incorporate my flexibility and technique while keeping it smooth with the flag work? Ideas for big moments (i know i want to do a big toss while in an arabesque, haven't tried it yet but sounds badass), transitions, coming up with choreo, or even general audition advice is welcome :) Edit: I am trying out for dance captain

My final for colorguard is to perform a solo we've choreographed, but I'm horable at choreographing. I already have the song picked out and I have a bit of the choreo written, but I've hit a wall. Does anyone have tips on writing choreo?

Hello! I previously asked a question here about a trick I heard about online and got a bunch of really helpful responses, so I was hoping you all would be willing to help me out again!

My guard is looking to purchase new silks for our show this winter (we have like no budget / school support so this is a pretty big deal). I found this video with these gorgeous silks and was wondering whether anyone knows where they purchased these!

I did find these silks from drill comp and the Gold color looks pretty similar. Does anyone have experience with this brand/material? Is it similar to the flags in the video? Also — does anyone know if these “metallic” silks are hard to spin at all (e.g. feel heavier, more drag etc)? Or do they feel like normal silks?

Thank you all sm!! <3

Hey, I’m doing winterguard auditions in two weeks and we will be judged and ranked on skills on a rubric and you have to reach a certain amount of points awarded from the judges to get in. One of the things that are being judged is any special skill I can do (no flag or weapon, only dance and gymnastics stuff) for example I can show a split, a back flip, a pirouette, etc. I’m confident I can make the team but I also want to be ranked as high as possible since I’m a little competitive. I barely have experience in dance and I’m only slightly flexible (not enough for a split) I wanted to ask if there’s any type of skill y’all recommend I can learn within two weeks. I can almost do a split, I can do a Single pirouette, and I can do a backbend but only after starting on the ground, that’s about it though.

Hi do you guys know any independent wingergaurds near hickory in nc... My school doesn't have one and the band director doesn't wanna make one!! Idk how to join another schools.. And it's my senior year so I really wanna do it.. Marching season is almost over

Weird question i’ve been spinning for 6 years and recently realized every single one of my fingers pop everytime i bend them does anyone else have this experience?

I’m currently a sophomore in my first season of color guard, and I was thinking about maybe doing winterguard? I did a little guard my freshmen yr too but no real marching band stuff. My schools winterguard is definitely wayyy too advanced for me since I haven’t even touched sabre, and they’ve scored rlly high their past few seasons, but I was thinking maybe I could join an independent guard that’s a little less advanced. I live around Wake Forest/Louisburg, NC. Idrk anything about winterguard classifications but does anyone have recs for beginner guards I could join this season? I just need the experience, half my guard is graduating this yr and the three of us left have little experience 😭 guards fr about to just disband. 💀

Me and my friend want to do a sabre duel kind of like a fight for our ensemble this year so would you guys have any videos of something like that so we could get some ideas in?

Ok so I have been trying to find a good performance bag to keep my makeup and hair stuff as well as some personal items like sweaters and gloves. I am currently using a backpack and a tote bag but it has become impossible to find stuff in them. Anyone have any good bag recommendations that have a multitude of pockets?

I am starting to learn silks and flag but i dont know where to start does anyone have tips??? :)