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Lynne V. Cheney, the wife of Vice President Dick Cheney, was a baton twirler and that she was the Wyoming State Baton Twirling Champion in 1958.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg the U.S. Supreme Court Justice was a baton twirler in her youth.
Actresses Debbie Reynolds and Sissy Spacek were baton twirlers!
Singer, Sheryl Crow, was a baton twirler!
Actress Phylicia Rashad (Bill Cosby's wife Claire) and her Actress and Choreographer sister Debbie Allen were both baton twirlers.
World Records:
10 Spins - Donald Garcia (men's)
9 Spins - Annetta Lucero (women's)
In 1935, Chicago became known as the home of baton twirling when the first baton twirling contest was held as part of the Chicagoland Music Festival.
Baton Twirling Poems
A Tribute To Baton
By Frank Pavlick
This little poem may not seem much,
But it's a special one,
A written tribute to Baton,
For all that it has done.
Baton produces happiness,
A sport all boys and girls can do,
It's instant fun for everyone,
And can make dreams come true.
Beginner, novice to advanced,
Baton and music mix,
To offer kids of every age,
A chance to get their kicks.
Parade, crowds cheering, self esteem,
The list goes on and on,
Great lifetime friendships have been made,
Which started in Baton.
With good times, traveling and such,
And very little strife,
Baton becomes a treasure which,
Remains with you for life.
A Majorette's Prayer
Author Unknown
Dear Heavenly Father,
watching over us all,
please help me not to stumble,
and please don't let me fall.
Help me keep my smile,
and when my tension mounts,
please Dear Lord,
don't let me lose the counts.
Help me hold my head up,
and look into the sky,
and when my legs grow weary,
help me keep my knees up high.
And when my memory grows weak,
on you I'll have to lean.
Please Dear Lord,
don't let me forget the routine.
I know that I can do it,
for you're my only prop.
But just one more thing I ask,
Lord, please don't let me drop.
A Tribute To Twirling Moms Around The World
By Bobbi Piller
Many will be shocked to find
When the day of judgment dawns,
That there is a place in heaven
Set aside for twirlers' Moms.
Furnished with big recliners,
Satin couches and footstools,
Where there is no place to practice,
No contests or rules.
No gowns to make, costumes to stud,
No spinners or illusions.
There will be quietness and calm,
No chaos or confusion.
All strutting will be outlawed;
But a finger snap will bring
Cool drinks and gourmet dinners
And treats fit for a king.
You ask, "Who'll serve these privileged
Moms and work for all their worth?"
Why, their very children who were lucky
And reaped the benefits on EARTH!
You Know You're A Twirler When...
By: Talley Blackburn
Any long skinny object that finds its way into your fingers gets twirled around.
When someone mentions the animal "Cougar", you think of your twirling shoes.
When someone says that the conductor of the orchestra used a baton you ask "What was his most difficult trick?"
When you hear marching music you clasp your hands over your ears and cringe! Listening to that during a twelve hour competition day is enough!
You are the only one in your school that has calloused and cracked hands.
In Ballet class you can do pirouettes better to the left then the right (and no one else knows why).
At your school dance you unconsciously do an illusion in the middle of your groovin'.
While watching a movie you are always occupied by listening to the soundtrack ("This song would be great for a show-twirl!").
The Twirlers' Creed
Courtesy of Association of Baton Twirling In Ireland
The Contest last for moments
though the training taken years
It wasn't the winning alone
that was worth the work and tears.
The applause will be forgotten,
the prize misplaced
But the long hard hours of practice
will never be a waste
For in trying to win you build a skill
You learn that winning depends on will
You never grow by how much you put in
So in any new challenge you've just begun
Put forth your best and you've already won.
Twirler's Goodnight Poem
By Audra R. Wiese, International Spirit, LC
Twinkle, twinkle little twirling star,
How wonderful your batons are!
Of all the others, your strut's the best,
So close your eyes and get some rest.
Tomorrow is another day.
You'll tuck your twirling dreams away.
Then off to practice you will run,
So you can still be number one!
Baton Twirlers Have....
1. The hand-eye coordination of a baseball player,
2. the gracefulness of a ballerina and ice skater,
3. the tumbling and flexibility of a gymnast,
4. and the stamina and endurance of a runner.
You Know You're A Twirler When...
1. The furniture in your room is arranged to create the largest open space possible in order to practice.
2. You get upset when you can't find Baton Twirler Barbie.
3. You critique the technique of twirlers and dancers that you see on TV.
4. Even if you are terrible at math, counting to eight is no problem for you.
5. You are planning on or already have bought stock in bobby pins.
6. You have an entire closet filled with old costumes and practice clothes.
7. If seated, you cannot listen to music without mentally choreographing a routine in your head.
8. You can apply full make-up in 5 minutes (Bonus points if you can do it in a moving car.)
9. Hallways are always a place to practice leaps.
10. You own more leotards than formal gowns.
11. You can fix anything with safety pins.
12. You look at street clothes and see possibilities for practice outfits.
13. A broken finger is more than an inconvenience.
14. Costume catalogs are captivating reading material.
15. Seeing someone do splits does not send you into shock.
16. S t r e t c h i n g is not just something you do for a few seconds when you roll out of bed in the morning.
17. Baton Twirling is on the first items you write down when asked to list your hobbies.
18. Your parents yell at you to "Come Watch This!" when a twirler is on TV.
19. Nine out of ten of your tee shirts are from twirling events.
20. You find yourself walking in-step with people at school/work.
21. For you, the year is divided not by weather seasons but by football/competition/parade seasons.
22. You wish professional football games showed the half-time performance.
23. You say, 5,6,7,8 instead of Ready, Set, Go.
24. You can pose for a picture in an instant.
25. You rate surfaces for their turn potential.
26. You walk into a room and immediately look at the ceiling height.
27. You love to get into debates about whether twirling is a sport.
28. When you have more baton bags stuffed with batons than will fit into your closet
29. You think sore muscles are something people live with.
30. You have more trophies than shelves.
31. You have worn holes in at least one pair of baton shoes.
32. When you hear marching music, you want to scream to turn it off.
33. You twirl anything in your hand even if it's not a baton.
34. The night before a competition, instead of falling asleep, your mind is running through all of your routines.
35. Waking up early and going to bed late is not a problem for you.
36. You can fall asleep anywhere even when there is loud music playing.
37. Finding yourself sitting on the edge of your seat with your ankles crossed and your hands folded is no longer weird.
38. You can sing marching music for 24 hours without ever messing up.
39. You pick up anything and start throwing it around... long skinny objects are no longer needed.
40. You start having a seizure when someone is not stepping with the beat of the music
41. Having to change uniforms in 2 seconds doesn't stress you out.
42. You don't even care if you broke a nail. Again.
43. You feel like an old lady in need of a hip replacement from illusion after illusion.
44. When you hear any music you wonder if it has show twirl, freestyle or team possibilities.
45. When you're in gym class and you have to do hurdles, the teacher yells at you because you are doing leaps but you find it physically impossible to bend your knee like that.
46. If your hair always looks like it is up or has been up for a very long time that it permanently stays like that.
47. When competition season is your favorite part of the year and you can't wait for that hairspray/sweat mixed scent.
48. When as soon as you get home from nationals you wish you could go back and stay there for the entire year.
49. When you had to take the reflex test in school you had the highest in your class.
50. When instead of doing what you are supposed to do with the gym equipment, you twirl it.
51. People think your parents abuse you because of all the bruises.
52. Any time someone is sitting on there porch and you know they are watching you practice, you run and get your show twirl music, and do your routine for them.
53. If you feel frustration when someone says the word "rolls".
54. If you knew the word "ambidexterity" before most of your friends.
55. If proportionately you miss more school than twirling lessons/events.
56. If you take ballet because you know it will help your twirling.
57. If your VCR tape collection includes more twirling tapes than movies.
58. You take a camera to competition so you can film EVERY OTHER twirler, but not yourself.
59. When you don't even flinch when a baton comes at your head
60.When your calves are so big they won't fit into your boots
