Baton Twirling

I started twirling baton at the age of 7. I had done gymnastics before I started baton, but decided to try something new and found the program through the local community center. The team/program was called the Suzettes. When I started, I didn’t realize it would become so much a part of me, and I didn’t realize how big of an impact it had on my life until after I wasn’t twirling anymore.

I stared off at the lowest level, by just learning the basics as well as doing some gymnastics and dancing along with it. I stared off doing little things like somersaults, stretching a lot, learning how to simply throw it up and catch it. After about two years of doing that, I joined the team aspect of it. After being on the team for a few months and learning a routine, I went to my first competition.

After the first competition I was hooked; I started doing individual lessons, as well as team, and became close to the girls that were in the program. I continued to do competitions and build up my skill level. It took a while to win one, but I finally did. The feeling I got when I won was unbelievable.

After a few years of being with the program, times got tough.  Out of the two locations, only one was left open (one was located in Crystal, Minnesota and the other in Spring Lake Park, Minnesota. The Crystal one remained open). As well as one location closing, a lot of the girls became old enough to go off to college, so the whole program dwindled down to only a few.

Around the beginning of 2009, (including me) there were a total of six left in the program, whereas before there were around twenty-five. Most of the previous girls had moved, gone off to college or decided that the drive to Crystal wasn’t worth it. Although the numbers were low, though, we stayed alive. Around the same time (in 2009) our head coach had some serious health issues, and decided that she wasn’t healthy enough to coach anymore. So, we were left looking for a new team coach. We found a new coach (who was a previous team member of ours and a previous coach of mine) and competed in a few competitions, but we soon found out that she had become pregnant and wouldn’t be coaching us for much longer, either.

Shortly after finding out the news of our new coach being pregnant, (in 2010) I decided that I needed to choose between hockey and baton twirling. I chose hockey, but I didn’t realize what an impact that would make on my life. The girls continued twirling, but soon a few others dropped out until only about three were left. Looking back now, I wish I had continued on with baton. I was so close to the girls that I twirled with; we had grown up together. I decided to choose hockey, but I know in my heart that I could’ve done both.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about twirling a lot. Luckily, a girl I twirled with (who quit around the same time I did) is attending the U of M as well. We have both talked, and are hoping to get back in the gym and twirl just for fun. And, honestly, I’ve never been so excited to go to the gym.