Friday Night Lights Feature - Goldthwaite High School

 Hello Texas Twirl Fans!

We are back for week three of High School Football! This year may look a little different, but twirlers all over Texas are making it work, and we are so excited to be able to Feature many of them over the next couple of months. As those Friday Night Lights turn on in stadiums all over Texas, we hope to see many face masks and safety precautions being taken so that we can continue to enjoy the sights and sounds of football teams, marching bands, and our favorite, lots of talented baton twirlers! 

Each season this blog likes to get to know many of our awesome TX twirlers a little better by learning about their experiences. We will be meeting many HS twirlers on Fridays through the season with the Friday Night Lights Features and discovering more about our TX Collegians with the Collegiate Twirler Spotlights. We will also be having many of our HS and Collegiate twirlers take over our Social Media Story for their Game Days and may even have some special Live moments! Make sure to follow us on Instagram @twirlingiscatchingtx or at facebook.com/twirlingiscatchingtx so you don't miss a thing!

This weekend’s Friday Night Lights Feature is the Goldthwaite High School Twirlers! 

Goldthwaite, Texas, is a small town about 1.5 miles North West of Austin, or West of Waco, and the home of the Eagles. It is also the home of a generational tradition of baton twirlers! Not only does the High School have a constant stream of twirlers, the Middle School also has a strong program where future GHS students learn the skills they need to one day be a Feature themselves. Yesterday we got to experience Game Day with them as they performed at the GHS JV Game through their Instastory Takeover. Now we get to learn more about these two young ladies that sparkle on the field as they represent their Eagles – Goldthwaite High School Feature Twirlers Kaitlyn Baird and Addison Lee! 

We asked Kaitlyn and Addison how the audition process worked to become GHS Feature Twirlers. Senior Kaitlyn told us, “Try-outs are a pretty chill day. We go in, warm up, and draw a number from the director. Then we go out in the hall, tryout one-by-one, and wait for results.” However, this year was a bit different as it was done virtually. Going through the HS auditions for the first time, Freshman Addison found it to be even more time consuming than if it was in person. “The audition process for tryouts this year was unique because of COVID. We had to record and submit our video for a virtual audition. This was hard because I wanted to record the routine over and over again, so I could submit a perfect routine.”

COVID is definitely changing up more than just auditions, and throwing a wrench in many twirler’s plans for this Fall, but especially for Kaitlyn. “COVID has had a big effect on football season and being a senior makes it so much worse. I don’t get to enjoy a lot of my favorite game day traditions such as pictures with the boys after the game and victory lines. We also had to move our Pep rallies from the gym on the football field and did not get to have our normal summer band camp. It’s all so different!” 

Addison is getting to other side of the spectrum with starting her High School experience with all these changes. “I just started week 7 of school! We were given the option to do in person or synchronous learning, but if you chose synchronous learning, you were no longer eligible to participate in any UIL activities. I chose in person learning because I wanted the chance to twirl! As our band was unable to have band camp it was difficult to plan our half-time performance. Also, our band is also not allowed to go to all of the out of town games due to spacing issues in the stands, so we are marching at some of the JV home games instead. This is my first high school twirling experience, and although it is different because of COVID, it has been so much fun, and I am thankful every week that I get to step out on the field and represent my school.” 

School Pride runs deep in Goldthwaite. As Kaitlyn puts it “Football itself is the tradition here!” The whole town comes out for all things football, even the JV games! One of the most important games of the season is the rivalry game named “The Battle of the River”. Addison tells us more about this event. “The Battle of the River is one of our best football traditions. This is the football game against our biggest rival team, the San Saba Armadillos. We were just nominated for being one of the top 100 rivalries in the history of UIL Texas High School Football. This is always a huge game, and this year we will be playing at Gordon Wood Stadium so more fans can come to watch.”  How exciting!

Now that we have learned a little more about GHS, let’s learn about the Golden Eagle Feature Twirlers!

Kaitlyn Baird, Senior

Kaitlyn has been twirling for 8 years and has worked with coaches Meghan Smith and Amanda Wood. Her favorite field moment was the third movement of her Junior year show. In baton twirling she has been most inspired by Kendall Bumpass (the high school twirler when she was little), Savannah Miller, and Caroline Carothers. After High School, she plans to study nursing at Tarleton State University. 

Addison Lee, Freshman 

Addie had been twirling for four years. She is coached by Ashley Wood and Twirl ATX. The competition title she is the proudest of was the 2019 ATX Holiday Twirl Fest Junior Basic Skills Pageant, and her favorite trick is a toss leap. She has been most inspired by Tarleton State Univ. Feature Twirler, Kaley Dowell. “She helped me get started, taught me some of my first tricks, and encouraged me to work hard for my goals. I also love to watch her twirl. She is so graceful and always has a beautiful smile”. After High School Addison hopes to twirl at the collegiate level. “I would love to twirl at a Division 1 School, like with the Goin’ Band from Raiderland!”


Fun Facts!
Favorite Color – Gray and Yellow (Kaitlyn), Teal (Addison)
Favorite Movie – “The Lion King” (Kaitlyn), The Harry Potter Movies (Addison)
Favorite Music – “All kinds” (Kaitlyn), “I listen to mostly top 20 music, but I also like to listen to local indie rock bands” (Addison)

Favorite Quote…

• Kaitlyn - “Be strong and courageous. Do not be discouraged. The Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” -Joshua 1:9
• Addison - “You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” - Christopher Robin, Winnie the Pooh

When they are not twirling, they love to…

• Kaitlyn – “Sleep/take naps, ride around and hangout with friends, and watch football!”
• Addison – “Draw! Drawing is very therapeutic and is something I do to relieve stress.”

Something people might not know about them is…

• Kaitlyn – “I don’t have tonsils.”
• Addison – “I am really shy. You may find this hard to believe because I get out on the field and twirl /perform in front of large groups of people, but I am actually an introvert.”

Most memorable advice from their coach…

• Kaitlyn – “Never stop smiling!”
• Addison – “To have fun! It is good to focus on technique, timing, free hand, etc., but having fun is what makes all the hard work worth it.”

Favorite Moment of Twirling…

• Kaitlyn – “Stepping onto the field to do the fight song. Feeling the crisp fall air on your face and hearing the fans cheering in the stands while the boys run out of the Eagle.”
• Addison - “This year, Kat and I got to twirl fire at the homecoming pep rally. This was by far a favorite twirling moment of mine.”

Funniest Moment of Twirling…

• Kaitlyn – “I’ve hit a lot of people with batons on the field.”
• Addison – “During an interview, at a competition, I was asked by the judge what I would be doing if I wasn’t twirling at the competition. My nerves took over and said I would be sleeping. I am not sure if that is funny or just embarrassing. I may never live it down.”

Favorite Thing About Marching Season…

• Kaitlyn – “You become really close with random band kids.”
• Addison – “Half-time! If I am being honest, I am the happiest when I am performing.”

Best Golden Eagle Marching Band Tradition…

• Kaitlyn – “Last time, best time!”
• Addison – “The mandatory, really silly joke, at the end of every itinerary!”

These two have learned a lot through performing. We asked them what they feel is the best non-twirling life skill they have learned from being a twirler. Addison told us it has improved her self-confidence, while Kaitlyn said it has taught her how to recover. “Even if you mess up, you just have to keep going.”

They also had some great advice for any twirlers hoping to one day twirl at their High School. Kaitlyn said to always stretch, while Addison emphasized the importance of practicing. “Repetition is key in helping you master a skill and nailing your routine.”

We asked them how they kept up their motivation during the last six months of craziness. Addison told us she tried to really use the free time beneficially. “Right before the quarantine, I placed second in my pageant division at the Southwest Regional Championship. This motivated me to work extra hard throughout the quarantine for the next season. I started a nightly stretching routine, I did reps on all of my hard tricks, and I set goals to be a better, stronger, and more well-rounded twirler.” With such a strong goal, we asked her what challenges she faced. “One of the hardest challenges was not having a gym to practice in. I practiced in my driveway, killed the grass in my parents’ front yard, and put a hole in my shoes from my spins.” 

What have they learned from this situation? Kaitlyn, who has long awaited the fun of her senior year, which has now been drastically altered, learned to appreciate the experiences when you get them. She told us, “You never know what will happen, so never take anything for granted!” So very true, and we are so happy to see Kaitlyn making the most of the season despite the challenges! 

Finally, we wanted to know what they would both miss the most after this season was over. Kaitlyn told us she would miss, “Football, of course, and knowing that I will never march onto the field as a Goldthwaite Feature Twirler ever again.” We know Kaitlyn has made a great impact on GHS and will be greatly missed when this year is over. In fact, twirling with Kaitlyn is what Addison will miss the most. “I have loved getting to twirl with Kat this season.  She has been extremely supportive, and I am going to miss her.”

We want to say thank you to Kaitlyn and Addison for sharing their Thursday night game with us. Good luck to Kaitlyn on the rest of her senior year, and we hope they have an amazing rest of the season together.

We hope you have enjoyed this edition of our FNL Feature. Have a favorite HS or Collegiate Twirler that you would like to see interviewed? Please contact us at texastwirlcontact@gmail.com with their name and email address so that we can reach out to them!