Gary Matczak Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I think the future of DCI Open Class, at least on the east coast, is in DCA. I have been saying this for a few years,.........DCI open class corps are treated like the red-headed step children of DCI,...................the weekend only model is a perfect balance for these corps that have very little in the way of compeditive performanc opportunities in the DCI world. I say, come one, come all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mchromik Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 The responses here have been interesting. I think that C2s arrival will in many ways mirror my experiences as a member of Star United coming into our 2nd year of competition. Our first season was a complete surprise to both us and the minicorps world. But coming into our second year there was a good deal of buzz both positive and negative about us. Some suggested our membership was largely 'professionals' and some questioned our eligibility for DCA competition. Others showered us with praise and where excited about our presence. I will never forget standing on the stage waiting to begin when someone yelled; "This isn't DCI!", only to be quickly shouted at by several around him. Our competing was very polarizing at that point. But a funny thing happened in the intervening years. Many of the competing Minis got better & IMHO the entire Minicorps event got a good deal better. Not that there wasn't competition before, of course there was. But having someone come in with a slightly different approach, some new ideas in programming, visual, ect, sparked a few groups to push far beyond where they were comfortably playing before. As a group we feel that competitive pressure every year and have to keep striving, changing, and perfecting what we do just to stay ahead. Oh, and generally our reception has been FANTASTIC in recent years. Having dozens of corps members and staffs come over just to watch you warm up before an exhibition, well that feels pretty good. Sure C2 is probably going to shake things up. Some older feathers might get ruffled and some toes might get stepped on. But I have no doubt that if they are successful, everyone will ultimately benefit. If only from the others they might defeat stepping up their game. Hopefully DCA will get some more butts in the seats. Hopefully their presence will inspire other groups to give this All-Age thing a try. Trust me, here in our part of the MidWest wear you cannot swing a dead cat without hitting a top notch BOA Band/WGI/Drum Corps member of fan, I still get a puzzled look when mentioning 'Senior Corps'. Can you say untapped market/fanbase? No doubt C2s mere presence changes the game a bit. Hopefully for the better. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Matczak Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Sure C2 is probably going to shake things up. Some older feathers might get ruffled and some toes might get stepped on. But I have no doubt that if they are successful, everyone will ultimately benefit...............(snip)............. Can you say untapped market/fanbase? No doubt C2s mere presence changes the game a bit. Hopefully for the better. right on! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FPonzo Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 The responses here have been interesting. I think that C2s arrival will in many ways mirror my experiences as a member of Star United coming into our 2nd year of competition. Our first season was a complete surprise to both us and the minicorps world. But coming into our second year there was a good deal of buzz both positive and negative about us. Some suggested our membership was largely 'professionals' and some questioned our eligibility for DCA competition. Others showered us with praise and where excited about our presence. I will never forget standing on the stage waiting to begin when someone yelled; "This isn't DCI!", only to be quickly shouted at by several around him. Our competing was very polarizing at that point. But a funny thing happened in the intervening years. Many of the competing Minis got better & IMHO the entire Minicorps event got a good deal better. Not that there wasn't competition before, of course there was. But having someone come in with a slightly different approach, some new ideas in programming, visual, ect, sparked a few groups to push far beyond where they were comfortably playing before. As a group we feel that competitive pressure every year and have to keep striving, changing, and perfecting what we do just to stay ahead. Oh, and generally our reception has been FANTASTIC in recent years. Having dozens of corps members and staffs come over just to watch you warm up before an exhibition, well that feels pretty good. Sure C2 is probably going to shake things up. Some older feathers might get ruffled and some toes might get stepped on. But I have no doubt that if they are successful, everyone will ultimately benefit. If only from the others they might defeat stepping up their game. Hopefully DCA will get some more butts in the seats. Hopefully their presence will inspire other groups to give this All-Age thing a try. Trust me, here in our part of the MidWest wear you cannot swing a dead cat without hitting a top notch BOA Band/WGI/Drum Corps member of fan, I still get a puzzled look when mentioning 'Senior Corps'. Can you say untapped market/fanbase? No doubt C2s mere presence changes the game a bit. Hopefully for the better. Micheal......I am colorblind. I gave you the negative -1. That was definitley not my intention. I saw the green and I pressed the red. Why? I have NO idea!!! I am SO sorry! I wholeheartedly agree with everything you said!!! I do see this as a positive for DCA. And I have been saying this all along, as a performer...BRING IT ON C2!!!! BRING US YOUR BEST, AND WE'LL BRING YOU OURS!!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyGuy66 Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Micheal......I am colorblind. I gave you the negative -1. That was definitley not my intention. I saw the green and I pressed the red. Why? I have NO idea!!! I am SO sorry! I wholeheartedly agree with everything you said!!! I do see this as a positive for DCA. And I have been saying this all along, as a performer...BRING IT ON C2!!!! BRING US YOUR BEST, AND WE'LL BRING YOU OURS!!! Frank, thats exactly how a CAB should think. Have a GREAT season. Jack Z 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KeithHall Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Frank, I hit the green which erased your red. I got your back LOL 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irishbugle Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 (edited) C2 are certainly at no advantage because the limit membership by age. I can respect your opinion but I believe they are in fact at an advantage, in a number of areas. And therein lies the problem. It's also why no one except Reading and Minnesota have won in the last seven years. Failure to adapt and overcome. There's another word that applies besife indifference. Stagnation. One team had to win (Right Mr. Ream?). Corps that have been consistently Top 5 for a decade do not constitute a failure in my book. It's not like you can have multiple winners that dictate success. I don't believe for a second that the other corps haven't been trying to reinvent themselves and push to get back into that #1 spot. Stagnation implies the other corps have been sitting back thinking that just doing the same ol' same ol' will be fine. I highly doubt that has been the case; at least with those groups. Edited May 10, 2012 by irishbugle 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldephard Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I think every other DCA corps needs to personally thank George Hopkins for absorbing any and all negativity that is generated on this forum. I don't think I have seen a slam on another single corps on here since the day Cadets 2 was announced as a concept. Hopkins has literally created the Black Hole of DCA Smack Talk. (Hey, C2, this would make a great t-shirt!) Of course, the above is meant in total sarcasm. C'mon, give this new corps a break!!! I don't seem to remember anyone scrutinizing every single letter of every single word put out by any other first year corps. 10 corps will make finals. Cadets 2 will either be one of them or they will be one of the 2 that does not make the cut. Same with everyone else. And btw, what I find most shocking about this is that this thread is TWICE as long as the No Beer at Prelims/Finals thread! Priorities folks. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Charlie, sorry for being fussy, but your comment has no verb or object. I don't know what you're trying to say. I think Jeff has already said if there are twelve Corps in Finals, C2 would be there because, I assume there are only 11 competitors (as always I stand to be corrected). I stated over a month ago that it seems contradictory to have complaints about the decline in the number of Drum Corps and now there are complaints about a new one. Confusing at the least. C2 has deliberately set a differerent membership criteria than other all-agers. There shouldn't be much of a threat to other Corps about recruiting. I can understand that the Bucs might be the most concerned. So what if C2 makes finals or even wins. It's a weekend Corps like everyone else and I would be bothered that the abilities of the staff of all the other competing Corps would be deemed less capable than the Cadets. Don't forget the juniors are on the road for 63 days. Cipriani, McNutt, et. al. can only get spread so far. Just some thoughts. No criticism. Kevin Ya know...all this talk about how close distance wise C2 and Bucs are.... um....ya knwo for years Bucs had another DCA competitor about an hour to the west. Didn't hurt them. Cabs have how many corps around them in their area? hasn't hurt them. Cru and Empire went head to head for how many years in the same city? I think the location angle gets too much play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I can respect your opinion but I believe they are in fact at an advantage, in a number of areas. One team had to win (Right Mr. Ream?). Corps that have been consistently Top 5 for a decade do not constitute a failure in my book. It's not like you can have multiple winners that dictate success. I don't believe for a second that the other corps haven't been trying to reinvent themselves and push to get back into that #1 spot. Stagnation implies the other corps have been sitting back thinking that just doing the same ol' same ol' will be fine. I highly doubt that has been the case; at least with those groups. the age thing can be an advantage...it can be a detriment too. See....experience can be a huge help to kick it upa notch, and know when to go all out. plus, age is just a number. you have some 50 year olds out there running around as well as a 20 year old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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