Color guard members Cassandra Hunt (11) and Katie Palmer (9) work hard day in and day out for the success of the guard.

“We practice three hours a day, Tuesday through Friday and 9-5 on Saturdays and competitions are separate. If you have to work on tosses or specific skills, you need to practice on your own,” Hunt said.

Freshman year determines a guard member’s willingness to put in the hard work for the next four years.

“I love to perform, so I am going to continue with it for the rest of high school,” Palmer said.

Although a large part of color guard is marching along with the band, dancing is involved.

“When you’re dancing you still have to be in time with the music of the band but sometimes it’s just marching along with the band,” said Hunt.

Each year brings more routines and steps to learn.

“I really like this year so far because there’s harder and more challenging work,” Palmer said.

Involved since sophomore year, Hunt gives some special advice to incoming freshmen.

“Try not to talk back to the instructor and make sure to exercise beforehand or you are going to be super sore,” said Hunt.

The color guard puts in countless hours for one special reason.

“I love the performances because you know that you did the best you could do and at the end of the day, you had a flawless run,” Hunt said.