Celebrating our 2022 Juvenile Miss Majorette of America!

Hello Texas Twirl Fans!

Yesterday was a very special day, as it was the last day of AYOP! That also means it was the last day of most twirler's competition season, and the closing of the 2023 contest schedule. It was also the day our very own Texas born and raised Juvenile Miss Majorette of America, Collyn Lambeck, passed along her crown to the next title holder. To celebrate, we wanted to learn a little more about Collyn's experiences and her amazing year of holding one of the highest titles in our twirling community!

Collyn Lambeck is 10 years old but competes as a 9-year-old in NBTA. She is in 5th grade and is from Stockdale, Texas. She is currently coached by Catherine Watters Lattimore, and in addition to her many hours spent practicing baton twirling, she also enjoyed playing basketball, volleyball, and doing ballet. 

We asked Collyn what it was like hearing her name called as the 2022 Juv. MMOA, and at what point in the award ceremony did she realize she has won, and she told us, "They announced the modeling results first and I was getting really nervous because they hadn't called my name in 10th through 2nd place...but then I was 1st! So, I was a little relieved because I know modeling is not my best event. After the strut results were announced, I started to feel better because I knew I had done a really, really good solo for pageant. And then when they called my name as MMOA, it was almost like I floated over to get my crown. I started crying after I walked off the floor because all of the stress was over! However, I think the best part was hearing everyone start screaming as soon as the announcer started saying FROM TEXAS, because they knew it was me. It was so loud!” (Yes #TeamTexas!)

To win an MMOA title, it takes a ton of preparation and endless hours of practice. We wanted to know what Collyn did to prepare, and what her gym schedule looked like. "Normally my practice took 3-4 hours every day. I had to do 10 no drop solos for every practice and 5 x-struts. Then, I would do modeling lessons over Zoom with Mrs. Lori. She always said we would only work for 30 minutes, but then it would take 1.5 hours! Every single time. But it worked! I also did ballet for 2 hours once a week with my ballet teacher and strength & conditioning classes with Dr. Twirlz."

We all know Collyn was excited to win an MMOA title because she loves helping pass out awards, but we wanted to know what else she was most looking forward to if she won, and what it was like getting to actually do it! "I was so excited to meet some of the twirlers that I have always looked up to and admired, and all of a sudden, they were my MMOA sisters and the Senior Grand National Twirling Champion. Spending the year with Emma, Ella, Jessica, Emily, Blake, and Kylie is something that I will never forget."   

From the outside, we all see the most well-known parts of being an MMOA (awards hosting, exhibition performances, etc.), but we wanted to know what part of the title Collyn didn't expect. "I didn't realize that - because I won Juvenile as an 8-year-old - that I wouldn't be able to compete in any pageants this year, which meant no modeling this year! That was the best news EVER! I really do not like modeling!"

Throughout the year Collyn has been able to do a lot of traveling representing her title. We wanted to know what that was like, and what she has been able to gain from those experiences, and she told us, "Traveling has been so fun, and I have really liked meeting so many people! Sometimes I'm surprised when other twirlers come up to talk and they know me, but I haven't met them before! But everyone has been so nice everywhere we have gone, and it's been really fun to be able to see the other MMOA sisters during the year. It's also been a great way to stay competition ready!"

Through all of her travels and Juv. MMOA duties, there has been lots of great experiences. We wanted to know which one was the most memorable. "Ella, Jessica, Emily, Blake and I were all at Northeast Regionals in Boston in May, and the directors of the competition had an autograph table for us to sit at on Saturday. The line for autographs was so long!! We also had to judge basic struts for the Novice 0-6 division and that was so much fun!!"

Getting to have all of these new experiences had to mean some funny moments! Collyn's favorite funny moment came early in the season. "The funniest moment was at the very first competition of the year in Hutto. Evelyn Winter was walking by with a bunch of other younger girls. I was warming up my rolls in the hallway for solo, so I didn't see who all of the other little girls were, but I heard them whispering to Evelyn, "There's Collyn Lambeck, there's Collyn Lambeck..." Then Evelyn said really loud, "Yeah, that's Collyn! She's, my friend!" It was funny to me because I didn't understand why they were whispering or not just saying my first name like Evelyn does."

Now that her year as Juv. MMOA has come to an end, we know Collyn will continue to chase even bigger dreams! We wanted to see if she had any advice for other twirlers that also have big dreams or that look to her as a role model, and of course she did! "If you work hard, you can do anything. It took three years for me to reach my goal. I was so disappointed when nationals was canceled in 2020 because of COVID, because I wanted to try to win Little Miss Majorette of America that year and it was my last year in 0-6. And then nationals was canceled again in 2021. So at nationals last year, I had been practicing for three years to reach my goal."

Last night Collyn got to help crown the new Juvenile Miss Majorette of America, which ended up being her friend Niery Tunrer from Florida! We asked Collyn what advice she had for Niery or any other future MMOA's, and she told us, "Enjoy every single day! The year will FLY BY SO FAST!!"

#TeamTexas is so proud of Collyn and we loved having our very own Juvenile Miss Majorette being from the great state of Texas! We are also excited to have her carry on in the new season as the new 2023 Juvenile National Solo, X-Strut, and Three Baton Champion! We look forward to many more great things in the future from Collyn, and wish her an amazing start to middle school! 

We hope you have enjoyed this blog post. We are always looking for great new stories about Texas twirlers. Do you have an idea or some information we could use to help highlight our sport? Contact us at texastwirlcontact@gmail.com and we would love to hear more about it.