When leaves start to fall and there’s a chill in the air, it’s the turning point of fall and many people are excited. People are excited for holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving, but most importantly excited for football season, one of america’s favorite sports.

Along with football, the start of marching band season begins, but one section of the marching band starts preparing in the springtime. That section is the color guard.

Unlike the rest of the band, the color guard instruments are six foot long flags with vibrant silks and white, wooden rifles that they spin while marching.

The color guard also dances on the field while wearing fun costumes and a bright smile on their face. They add an important visual element to the music, creating a colorful motion to the notes.

“It adds cool visual effects to the marching band and I like it,” Elaine Stumpf, Junior that’s part of the clarinet section said.

The coach, Amanda Buero, has been with Fraser for over 10 years,  and is a hard worker. Many people outside of Colorguard loves her.

“I love the coach Amanda; she’s amazing,”  Stumpf said.

They practice their dances and routines 2 hours, twice a week within their own section, then practice from 3-4 hours with the whole band, on top of that they have all day flag camps and band camps. It can be quite challenging for the team members.

“It takes up a lot of time, especially preparation for performance,” Olivia Miele, a junior section leader that’s been on the team since her freshman year said. “We take over an hour to get our costumes together, makeup on,  and hairs’ done for a performance. We also have to warm up before our performance which can be stressful, especially for big competitions.”

With all the time they spent together, Color guard creates a bond between the members.

“Color guard to me is about not only working hard on your own and commitment to the sport, but it also means commitment to your team,”  Marissa Krajewski, a member of color guard that’s been on the team since her freshman year said. “Having a strong bond with your team members is very important in color guard.”

 Many strong friendships are formed in the team, and they last through out high school.

“I have made some good friendships out of it, and I love being part of the team,” Miele said.

Although a challenge, it’s worth it from gaining friendships and winning awards. Such as at MSBOA, a marching band festival, where the Fraser Marching Band got division 1 for 14 years straight.

I love Color Guard because I love the feeling I get when I finally get a routine or a toss right and spinning and performing makes me feel alive,” Krajewski said, “it’s very exciting to perform with the whole band and show them what you’re made of.”

The new Color Guard season is starting up, and the skills clinics are on Monday and Tuesday, March 18-19. Then the auditions are on Wednesday and Thursday, March 20-21st. It’s open to all current 8th-11th graders, and open to boys and girls. Everyone who is in music and performance should come and try out.