The Lions Color Guard won second place on Saturday, February 27 in a contest in West Hills High School for the first time.
Fairfax competed in Regional A Blue of the Winter Guard Association of Southern California (WGASC) and placed behind El Camino #2 High and ahead of Lanchester.
The Color Guard members and instructor Erik Estrada are very pleased with the results but also want to keep improving. “We were shocked. I personally thought we would get third place, but we worked it out,” said Senor Captain Anahi Gonzalez.
Despite success, the Color Guard is not a very well-known program. A few members of the Marching Lions grouped together and began making dance routines. Band director Mr. Raymundo Vizcarra began to notice and asked Estrada to be the instructor for the Color Guard, to which he gladly agreed to.
They never had a formal recruiting process, unlike many of the other athletic teams. “The winter guard performed their show when the freshmen came around orientation and. We got four girls like that,” said Gonzalez.
Eventually, the Color Guard grew big enough to compete with those from other schools. “The circuit that we are in, you see a lot of color guards that have been successful year after year. But we’re just coming into it and to do that right away is a good thing,” Estrada said, proving that talent and willpower matters most to the Color Guard.
However, the Color Guard still faces many obstacles and disadvantages, even on the campus.
The Color Guard is not given a specific place indoors to compete in or even practice.
“It sucks. If you see us, sometimes we’ll probably be at the basketball court or black top. That’s not good enough because the kids need to be indoors and be exposed to the lighting,” said Estrada.
He hopes one day that the Color Guard will be provided some gym space to practice their routines in.
In hopes of keeping the program alive, members of both the Color Guard and Marching Band have been given permission to sell chocolate bars for fundraising purposes.
The Color Guard begins practicing alongside the Marching Band weeks before the school year starts. While Marching Band provides the music and rhythm, the Color Guard serves as the visual counterpart of the performance. They spin flags, which are known as colors, and toss rifles.
When the Band performs at shows and competes against other schools, the Color Guard is a vital part to the performance. Things change when the winter season comes along, as the two groups break off, with the Marching Band forming into the jazz band and orchestra, while the Color Guard becomes the Winter Guard.
Along with success and awards, the color guard also wants respect and recognition from the school.
“People take the Color Guard as the reject group from cheerleading,” said Estrada. “I don’t think it’s like that at all. With all due respect, cheerleaders do their thing and we do our thing.”
The Color Guard hopes to continue their success. While seniors like Gonzalez, will be leaving the school, the Color Guard will continue to grow.