A stunning silence filled the air as everyone took a collective breath. The anticipation of the crowd was palpable as the judge lifted the envelope. First place was about to be called and for the Color Guard, it was all or nothing. The unfolding of the paper was loud in the ears of the hungry, whose appetite could only be quenched by victory. “And the winner of the 2010 WTAC Color Guard Competition is, Canyon High School!” The only sound to be heard was the deafening cry of pride.

Two years ago the Soaring Pride drum line and color guard participated in the West Texas Auxiliary Championship. The drum line placed second in their district while the color guard placed first in their district and first overall. This was the first year for the color guard to win overall. After missing a year of WTAC for a different competition, the drum line and color guard are returning to take back what they left behind.

“It gets my blood going,” senior color guard captain Lily Meck said. “It is a fulfilling experience that I want the entire color guard to enjoy.”

It is still undecided whether or not the color guard will get to participate in the competition this year, but Meck said she is very hopeful.

“Well, we won first place last time,” Meck said. “I don’t see why we can’t this time. We started practicing in early June and have worked hard since then. I’m hoping that we’ll get it done.”

 The color guard isn’t the only group that has been practicing since early June. The drum line has been preparing for a long while as well.

“This is the only time of the year the drum line competes by themselves,” senior drum captain Wyatt Gwyn said. “It is really exciting and I think we’ll do pretty well this year. We are shooting for first, as always.”

WTAC will be next Saturday, Sept. 22 at Lubbock.