*By Haley Johnson*

Homecoming week brings a variety of events: the Battle of the Classes, the pep rally, the football game and the dance.  But for many students, the most anticipated of the festivities is the “Guy Pomz” performance.

From the crank to the crowd-pleasing snake, the boys impressed the crowd during both their Battle of the Classes and Pep Rally performances.  Out of nearly 40 seniors who tried out, only 20 got to represent their grade as a Guy Pom and proudly wear the pink shirts and short black shorts.

Sam Walsh decided to try out for the team because of how much he enjoyed seeing the previous squads.

“For my three years at Whitman, it was really funny to see the past Guy Pomz perform,” he says.  “So, I decided to give it a shot and see if I could make it.”

Riley Sieber, on the other hand, decided to try out because of who might be on the team this year.

“I heard there were going to be a lot of cute guys and I wanted to see what that was all about,” he says.

During tryouts, the boys had to learn the first 30 seconds of the dance and perform it in groups of 10, then do individual moves to try to impress the coaches.  They were judged based on how fast they learned and how funny they were.  Once the roster was finalized, the team practiced two to three times a week for around an hour each time.

Senior poms Dani Soldin, Jillian Shainman and Angela Cox coached the boys, putting in numerous hours in addition to their already busy girls poms practice schedule.

“They were very understanding and nice,” Guy Pom Luke Rozansky says.  “They learn quicker than us, but they were patient, even when we were goofing off and not focusing.”

Twenty outgoing guys dancing together for an hour is not necessarily conducive to productivity.  The practices were characterized by lighthearted, comedic and loving behavior.

However, the team got the dance down and was just as entertaining as in previous years, especially behind the scenes.

“The funniest practice was definitely Riley [Seiber] getting whipped with a belt,” Walsh says.  “He deserved it.”

Sieber, however, did not find the experience quite so amusing.

“I was brutally attacked during practice and violated by a belt,” he says.  “I did not appreciate that.”

Walsh says the best part of his Guy Pomz experience was the Battle of the Classes performance.

“We had a really inspiring pep talk by Jeremy Klitzman and went out really pumped up to perform,” he says.  “That was definitely the best part.”

Sieber enjoyed the other Guy Pomz’s company as well.

“I liked just hanging out with all the great, good-looking, wonderful guys,” he says.  “It was a blast.”

With their sheer athleticism and sultry dance moves, the Guy Pomz proved they’re more than just pretty faces.

“It’s not just about our bodies,” Sieber says.  “Under all this muscle and brawn, we’re people too.”