Twice in a Lifetime

Yesterday I did something I never thought I would do again- I went to a baton twirling practice at Cyndi's studio. It was the first time I had REALLY twirled since 2000, the first time I'd twirled with a team since 1999, and the first time I twirled at the studio since 1996. That might not seem like a long time, but for a twirler it's a lifetime. Although it's a little like riding a bike in that you never really lose your skills, it's also a very athletic endeavor, and when you have done nothing athletic for at least eight years, it is hard to get back in the groove.

When I quit twirling, I said I would never pick up a baton and compete again. I was twenty years old, which is actually on the older side for a twirler. I was tired of dieting for weigh-ins as a college twirler, tired of wearing a glorified bathing suit in front of thousands of people, and tired of missing out on parties and vacations due to practices and competitions. I had been tired of it for some time, but something indescribable kept pulling me back in. In 1996, I twirled on a pre-trials team and we were going to the national competition in San Francisco. That same week, all of my non-twirling friends were going to the beach for spring break. I truly considered BREAKING MY HAND to get out of going to Nationals, so I could go party with my friends at the beach. That is something I've never told anyone. Obviously, I'm glad I didn't pull that stunt, and I even continued to compete at a world trials level for three more years.

Practices were often grueling, starting at 8am and lasting until way after dark. We would practice in a church gym, and in the winter the temps would sometimes be close to freezing. We would light a fire and make s'mores right there in the gym- it was one of my favorite memories from those days. Twirling came with a lot of perks- I got to travel to California, Colorado Springs, Daytona Beach, Kansas City, Kalazamoo, New York City, Nashville, and many other cool places for competitions. I got to represent my university as a feature twirler and go to two bowl games, one in Florida and one in Tennessee, performing in front of upwards of seventy-five thousand people. I got to be interviewed on the local news, and a portion of my segment was aired on ESPN's Sportscenter. I got to meet a lot of very cool people, some who are still my best friends to this day. But when I was done, I was DONE.

Baton twirling is a very thankless sport. There is no Olympics, no television exposure, very few endorsement deals with little paychecks, and very few scholarships for those who twirl in college. If you are a world level baton twirler, you command respect from other twirlers, but very few people outside of the sport know your name. In fact, many people mock baton twirling as an outdated nostalgia act, even though our world class athletes are often star dancers and gymnasts too. Everyone I know who twirled competitively did it for the love of the sport, as there is very little glory.

After I decided to put the batons down, I never worried about my weight, health, or athleticism. I didn't have to. And for someone who likes to eat junk food, drink beer, and lounge on the couch, it was a huge relief to not have to worry about how I looked. For the first few years of my retirement from baton, I truly did not miss it one iota. I taught twirling quite a bit in those years- crafting halftime routines for three local high schools, driving to Louisville twice a week to teach baton to children at a community center in the inner-city, and forming my own makeshift "studio" with another UK majorette. I was happy to be teaching, but was downright giddy that I was only teaching, and after a couple of years I even lost interest in that.

My days of twirling were behind me and I never thought I'd do it again in any sort of organized fashion.Then last spring, my friend Brittany put up some old team pictures on her MySpace. A few of us followed suite, and we were all reminiscing about the old days of practice, competitions, etc...as a joke, a few of us "oldsters" started joking about twirling again. We were all out of shape, married, working, Brittany has kids, and basically it didn't seem realistic. But the more we talked about it, the more excited we got. We talked to Cyndi, our old coach, and she was receptive. Ginger and I went to nationals this summer and watched the girls from our old team compete. Three of the five of them were our age, girls who had at one point taken a break and come back themselves. What was stopping us from doing the same thing? We decided to go for it!

A few of us got together and practiced once this summer. It was disheartening to realize I could only do about 1/2 of the tricks that I could do eight years ago. After gaining 60 lbs., my body wasn't ready to try the gymnastics moves, and all of my timing had to be relearned. There was fat where there had been no fat, and a major loss of flexibilty and strength. I knew right away that getting to where I would be comfortable on the competition floor would be tough. It helped knowing that I was not the only one who needed to get in shape, though I daresay I have the hardest row to hoe.

Yesterday was our first official practice. There are six of us on the team. Five of us are aged 28 -30. Four of us have been retired for at least seven years. I know it is going to take a lot of work and willpower to be as good as I personally want to be by the time March rolls around, and I am sure I'm not the only one who thinks this. But I am in good company. I also have a supportive group of friends and family. I know that there will be dozens of my "rowdy friends" at the recital to support me next spring, lol. My grandmother and aunt are over the moon- I'm doing this for them, too. I have a feeling there will be a huge smile on my grandmother's face when she she sees "the girls" twirling again.

Yesterday, there were a few times when I almost got chills. One is when we were doing an exchange- it felt like I was in high school again. It was surreal to be there, with those people, in that place. Some of us have a few more wrinkles, and some of us are a few (or a lot, lol) pounds heavier, but it is very, very exciting. For anyone who has ever twirled competitively, that feeling is what it's all about. We have a lot of trophies on our bookshelves, a lot of pictures in books and boxes, a lot of dusty old costumes in closets, and that is all very exciting, but it's that feeling that keeps us coming back for more.Even after nearly a decade, it is addicting. I can't wait to see what our team looks like next year.

Cyndi: "Do you girls remember the first year we were a senior team?"
Karissa: "I wasn't born yet."D'oh!