Color Guard Research Paper

Words: 1462
Pages: 6

In April of my eighth-grade year, I attended the Marion High School Color Guard Clinique. I was extremely nervous and didn’t know anyone there, but after only two hours of holding a flag, and seeing what could be done with it, I was in love. The clinic involves learning a short routine and watching the guard members of that year perform their show. I can clearly remember the winter guard team (which is the color guard but without the marching band) performing what I thought was the best show I had ever seen. After a week of tryouts, I was accepted into the team and was ready to have the most exciting summer yet. I have been in color guard since then, and although there are rough patches, it has become a huge part of my life that I love. Being in Color Guard has helped me become stronger as a person, growing …show more content…
In the 1930s, the first civilian color guard was created, but didn’t catch on until the 1960s when it became common to see the color guard with the marching band during halftime. Rifles and sabers are descended from the rifles and sabers that the military would carry, but instead of metal, they are often made of wood or plastic (Wikipedia contributors, “Color Guard (Flag Spinning)”). Now, color guard has become a sophisticated sport that takes immense amounts of discipline and time to master. With the growth of color guard, more equipment became available for the guard members to use. The equipment that a guard uses is extremely important to have a big visual impact on the audience. The more popular the art of color guard got, the better equipment was created to help support the group. The most common type of equipment is a six-foot pole, with a flag attached to it, and weights at the ends of the pole that help the guard member to spin faster. Swing flags, or swings, are a type of flag much shorter than its six-foot