Just saw Cavaliers 1985 on Fan Network

[TKYR_FA1986]

I really LOVED that show. The fact that it was all guys. The music. All the tricks. I was a senior in high school and was off to college in the fall. I didn't know how I was going to afford it. What guard it would be and where it would be located, but I knew I was going to be marching in some guard in Dayton in 1986.

Thank you Cindy Jones for telling me about "a guard that your sister, Nola, was going to be working with"

[dugg]

yes indeed a memorable production!

now tell us the rest of the story...........

Edited November 22, 2009 by dugg

[TKYR_FA1986]

yes indeed a memorable production!

now tell us the rest of the story...........

Me, a young black kid from Alabama who picked up a rifle after seeing Sky Ryders Drum & Bugle Corps. I was blown away by that rifle line. I started marching in local guards none that were any good but it was fun. One day while flipping channels I came across WGI on PBS. I popped a tape in the VCR and tapped it. I remember being blown away by Velvet Knights and Odyssey. Then Cavaliers came on and it was over for me. I had to be in a "real" guard some way some how. Once I saw Erte my eyes were glassed over. I studied that tape as much if not more than I practiced my instrument.

I played Oboe and had been offered a few scholarships and ultimately went to LSU. At LSU being an oboist, I joined the guard so I could participate in LSU Tiger Band. Here I was a kid that had memorized pretty much every rifle feature done in 1985 so people thought I was pretty good. I met a flute player named Cindy Jones, who told me about her sister, Nola Jones and about Final Analysis. The rest is history... I marched Final Analysis in 1986 and got to march on that same court I had seen on PBS

Another funny thing. That Sky Ryder rifle line I saw a few of the members were Tommy Keenum, Wes Cartwright, and Karl Lowe.

[dugg]

wow,how cool thanks for sharing your story!

loved those iconic productions and the performers/designers you mentioned who helped to shape the artfom!

i bet there are lot's more stories out there like this one........

[deftguy]

Me, a young black kid from Alabama who picked up a rifle after seeing Sky Ryders Drum & Bugle Corps. I was blown away by that rifle line. I started marching in local guards none that were any good but it was fun. One day while flipping channels I came across WGI on PBS. I popped a tape in the VCR and tapped it. I remember being blown away by Velvet Knights and Odyssey. Then Cavaliers came on and it was over for me. I had to be in a "real" guard some way some how. Once I saw Erte my eyes were glassed over. I studied that tape as much if not more than I practiced my instrument.

I played Oboe and had been offered a few scholarships and ultimately went to LSU. At LSU being an oboist, I joined the guard so I could participate in LSU Tiger Band. Here I was a kid that had memorized pretty much every rifle feature done in 1985 so people thought I was pretty good. I met a flute player named Cindy Jones, who told me about her sister, Nola Jones and about Final Analysis. The rest is history... I marched Final Analysis in 1986 and got to march on that same court I had seen on PBS

Another funny thing. That Sky Ryder rifle line I saw a few of the members were Tommy Keenum, Wes Cartwright, and Karl Lowe.

Great story. I didn't march in the Cavaliers winter guard in 85 but I marched on the field that year. I did march in, 80, 81, 82, 83, and I had a blast.

I was a young puerto rican and cuban kid from New York City, and the guard at my school was big and quite good. I got in a fight with a guard member, and the guard instructor broke up the fight. That guard instructor was Steve Brubaker, who at the time was working with the Cavaliers B corps guard. He challenged me just like this; "If you are so tough, come back and audition for a place". Back then I always took a dare, and I auditioned and made it. After my second year, he challenged me to audition for the Cavaliers, but my mom thought I was too young. He convinced her that he would watch over me if I made it, and I did. Drum corps, and guard specifically changed my life forever.

[TKYR_FA1986]

Great story. I didn't march in the Cavaliers winter guard in 85 but I marched on the field that year. I did march in, 80, 81, 82, 83, and I had a blast.

I was a young puerto rican and cuban kid from New York City, and the guard at my school was big and quite good. I got in a fight with a guard member, and the guard instructor broke up the fight. That guard instructor was Steve Brubaker, who at the time was working with the Cavaliers B corps guard. He challenged me just like this; "If you are so tough, come back and audition for a place". Back then I always took a dare, and I auditioned and made it. After my second year, he challenged me to audition for the Cavaliers, but my mom thought I was too young. He convinced her that he would watch over me if I made it, and I did. Drum corps, and guard specifically changed my life forever.

You Marched in the West Side Story and James Bond shows?

[byline]

I marched Final Analysis in 1986 and got to march on that same court I had seen on PBS

One of the all-time great programs and performances!