Most of my guard kids have been doing great in their first days of band camp. However there is one kid who just won’t catch their tosses no matter what. They won’t even try to get their hands on it. It’s not that they’re scared, they’ll do the tosses correctly but they just won’t catch. I’m honestly at a loss, any help would be so appreciated.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Colorguard/s/Wqr9L79090

I made this post almost two years ago exactly.

The TLDR is It was my senior year, my school didn't have an actual guard, there was none within proximity, both marching and winter guard. I realllly wanted to do guard, but couldn't.

Well... Update it's my sophomore year of uni and I'm in the Colorguard of my D1 University with 230 band members.

This may sound silly, but I did marching band my first year on Baritone and I reallllly wanted to do guard. I asked a few of the girls for help and they taught me a few things. A few weeks before clinic/auditions, I really locked in with one of my friends and one of the captains. I practiced almost every day, and I reached out to the Guard director for feedback.

I made the team! I am really proud of how far Ive come, and I just wanted to let yall know, you can do it even in bad highschool situations.

I’m in charge of finding show makeup products for my guard, but everyone always complains about whatever lipstick I choose. Whatever our old coach picked came off too fast, so I tried the maybeline super stay matte ink, but they complained it never came off (even tho I told them to use an oil cleanser or coconut oil). Then I tried the vinyl ink from the same brand, and they said it didn’t stay long enough. So I’m wondering if anyone has any recommendations for what their guard uses? I’m looking for a hot pink lip, pretty affordable, and any finish is fine. Tysm!

Does anyone know where I can buy Sabre hilt guards and tip guards for my kings? I’ve used king Sabres with them before but I can’t find any on their website.

When I find out the Excalibur (what I learned on, & therefore was in love with brand) was discontinued, I went out & got both sizes in parts, they a few organizations/businesses. I’d say I have one of the last “brand new” Excaliburs.

Welp, I always knew they would come out with something new, & here it is! The Pro! Not a big fan of name, but looking forward to seeing it & being able to spin one. I wonder if they’re comparable.

Has anybody been lucky to try one out yet??

I’ve been doing color guard for 4 years now for my high school and I am looking to try to make my own spin team. Is there anything I should know before I start getting people to join?

I was in colorguard/winter guard during highschool and it’s been about 4 years since i’ve touched a flag. i really want to bring it back as a hobby just in my backyard, but it’s been so long that i don’t remember how to set up a proper flag. does anyone have any tips for weights and general supplies? everything i used was given to me by the school so i never had to source my own weights, poles, or silks. if you have any tips please let me know! i miss it so much

hi! i’m going to community college this fall and im on the dance team. as an extension, the coach wants me to lead the efforts to start a colorguard team! besides coming up with easy combos to do, i have no idea where to start! anything helps to just push me in the right direction. i dont anticipate to have a whole lot of turnout this year but we have a little bit of equipment and i have my own. with this team, id most likely be a captain and besides what to do, i just need tips on skills to refine!

The title is basically my question. I have done two years of independent A class and one of Open class, and now I’m switching organizations. So, I‘m unsure of how things work in other places. I’m mostly unsure of what skills are needed for world class. I know that technique and performance are the biggest qualities that change in between classes but I’m just not sure about what skills I should have or need to work on.

Does anyone else find it saddening to see programs not make finals anymore? Staff cuts, budget cuts, and being reduced in divisions can be precursors to this. A recent example is Palm Desert Charter MS. They have been doing such a spectacular job since 2022, making finals, but this year they unfortunately didn't make the 15 and ended up in 8th in their round of semis. They continue to create shows with a variety of styles, 2025 having a rock and roll 80-2000's themed "Welcome to Middle School". But this year, they created a mature, beautiful, and organic show. Their props and choreography, design, and music were amazing! They had such amazing scores early in the season, being 2nd in the world after the first regional. I hope they come back even stronger next year. They're definitely a group to keep an eye out for.

I just saw their insta post saying they’re “pausing all organizational activities beginning with the 2027 season”. I’m honestly so devastated, especially since the wording sounds like they’ll be indefinitely gone from the competitive scene. however, the last slide said ”see you later”—does that mean there’s a chance they’ll come back? does anyone have any info about this?

hello all! with band camp coming up, me and the other captains are trying to plan section bonding/theme days. what are some theme days or spirit days you’ve had at your band??

So I left my band camp earlier today because I got sick and my coach texted me saying that we aren't allowed to leave without directly telling her and that we have to be there no matter what. I did tell her. Several times. I also told everyone else. She was the only person who brushed me off and then asked if I could do a drill and when I said no she got upset with me even though I was sick. Am I wrong for leaving whenever I was sick?

EDIT: I apologized to her because I feel so bad. I did puke when I got home but I have apologized to her because you guys made me realize I probably scared her for not 100% checking in. Thank you guys I feel a lot better emotionally

I am about to be a hs sophmore and I do marching band (specifically colorguard). Recently, I got into a fight with my parents and they told me that they are no longer giving me any support towards my sport (giving me rides, paying for it, etc.) Marching band is very expensive (1k each season, for me its winterguard and colorguard — 2k per school year). Luckily, I can fundraise for it, but it’s limited for me as my friend will only be going to certain events with a parent (meaning she raises more money faster. My parents are not giving me a ride). I am also very busy with school so I can’t get a proper job. All of this ends up with me asking for side hustles so I can raise money and pay for whats left after fundraising. Anything is appreciated.
p.s. I do not have a credit card so I can’t do any work online. I am 15 and after school practice is twice a week. + I also have school work for AP classes

I want a cartwheel in my show choreo this year. What are some drills I can send my kids to work on over the summer so that I don’t have to worry about injuries caused by getting scared and bailing or unstableness when they get to camp. I’m thinking of having them practice donkey kick overs, kick handstands, and wall cartwheels but any other input would be great. It’s been so long since I learned how to do one I can’t even remember what the build up to it is.

I’m usually able to count my tosses while i’m tossing but sometimes I have to watch footage of me tossing to be able to accurately determine the amount of rotations. Do you guys count the flats or count the amount of times the tip goes up? I usually count the flats but recently I think I’ve been counting wrong.

Hi yall! hope everyones doing well, this is more of a winterguard question, recently I went to a winterguard spin clinic and was interested in joining, I'm currently 18 and the group I'm interested in is an Independant A, I'm a rising senior so I'll still be in highschool, and when I talked to the guard director and he said that I couldn't join while I'm still in highschool, and I was absolutely okay with that, but I've been thinking about it and I know some highschoolers that have spun with Independent World Classes while still in high school and sometime are below 18. Does anyone know the exact ruling WGI has on this matter?

My son is starting colorguard and it’s time to order uniforms. He wears a double wide normally so I’m worried about his shoes fitting. Does anyone have any advice abt how these fit or know of any shoes that look like these that come in wider widths? Appreciate any help!

I’m 54 years old and just moved across the country. I started a “retired” guard group where I was and I did all the writing. I found a group in my new state that is an entire band, twirlers, dance and guard of “retired” members.
There are 3 issues I’m having with the new group. First the guard is made up of 1 person who is in his 70’s. There is zero doubt in my mind I could recruit more members but I have been waiting to see if this is a good fit for me. This gentleman is very nice and helpful. He has made it very clear he helped found this group and things will be done his way. (I called a move by a different name while learning and he went on a very polite tear. Didn’t ask him to use the term just said… slam, butterfly, tuck.) I’m having issues remembering his routines because he reuses the same moves in different orders over and over in very short routines. There is zero body work ZERO. He has a couple dozen routines recorded and on YouTube. I get he comes from a military style background and I want to honor that but my brain won’t hold on to the routines. I really want to ask him if we can change things up but I don’t want to offend color guard grandpa. (Term of endearment) We are practicing tomorrow and I don’t know what to do. I really want to be in this group and grow it but if I can’t remember a routine it is pointless. I also know I am far too blunt. (Neurodivergent in the 80’s was an odd thing.). Input please.

Hello! So this is going to be my second year as an instructor, but first at new schools (yes plural). One group is 4a with grades 9-12, and the other is 1a with grades 7-12.

So I'm wondering: what are some tips and tricks you wish you knew in your earlier years of coaching? It could be anything, teaching, writing choreography, behavior and attendance issues, apps that make your life easier, or anything else you can think of.

Okay, just for context I’m 17 and I’ve only ever done fall colorguard and I’m going into my senior season now. I’m wanting to do a winter guard that’s somewhat local but every time I look for one the auditions are cryptic or they just aren’t taking them anymore. I’m wondering if I should wait till college and tryout for a team there and then just wait until next year and spend all of this time doing clinics. But my main issue is finding anywhere for these clinics and teams, I mean if I end up doing winter colorguard what would be the smoothest type of group to go into (such as A, open??)? And what’s the best time to start looking? I feel like I really missed the deadline for most of these camps and I just think if I can’t do it this year I need to be training for more technique when it comes to dance and rifle. So if anyone has info about this it would be very appreciated and helpful😊

Does anybody have a video of Oasis 2026, "live, breathe, meditate"? Their show was amazing at the West Power Regional! But I can't seem to find a video anywhere of it.

I ordered a sabre 4 weeks ago and I have received no updates and I’ve emailed them twice about it 😭 Does anyone know who else I can contact to get some sort of answer bc my sabre was $250 and I’m moving in 4 weeks as well so I really need it come in time

update: after i called twice they responded and said they would get it shipped out asap woooo

I’m looking for a metronome that can count verbally instead of the tapping.
I have to count very loud to get my group to stay on beat and it hurts my throat after a while. Plus I have a hard time moving and shouting behind me.
My guard counts like this, 5 - 6 -, 5 6 7 8, 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8, 1… etc
If anyone has any recommendations I’d really appreciate it!