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I just hate everything about that video, from the go-carts to what's being taught to the kids to the reinforcement that marching performance must be a circus to be enjoyed or score well. Arms race, indeed.

Yet when Bluecoats did it, no one yawned and said "Cadets already did that".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVfzWpmyXXk Almost seems like a parody. How much did that cost? How much were they used? Seems like a lot of props and pricey extras (couch french horns cough) are being used for a brief effect that can't be worth the expense

Did I ever tell you about the time I babysat Hop when he was a toddler? He was bored so I gave him pots and pans to bang on. I guess you can say I started Hop's drum corps career.

Wonder if they brought in a consultant from the local Shriners organization to teach them?

An opposite experience for me, in many ways. Among other "putting corps first when I shouldn't have" things, to this day I regret marching my last season with the Sunrisers... 1982... even though we won a DCA title. My dad was ill with the effects of an earlier brain injury that summer... the summer after I lost my mom.... and looking back, I needed to be home with him on weekends. We had some other family members and friends who pitched in... but I needed to be there more. My brother was Sun's director, so it was not an option for him to leave the corps. Don't get me wrong... it was fun to win that title in '82, and my family (mostly, kinda sorta) understood me being away on weekends... but honestly, I screwed up by not bowing out. I know... hindsight is always 20/20. He passed away in the spring of 1983, after I had retired from marching. Now... in 1981... the summer when my mom was diagnosed with terminal cancer... both my brother and I offered to leave the corps, but she ordered us to stay. LOL. You did not say "no" to my mom. Chris, you're right.... everyone has a good reason for their thinking. I hope the OP is happy with whatever decision is made. And I hope he or she has a great corps experience if that path is chosen.

True dinosaurs.

Last night's "same day" ratings for the 11PM telecast were the highest to date for the Age 15 - 24 demo. So few people in older age groups watched that the median age was 22. I noted when the first episode aired that the demographics were older. Generally, the show picks up a decent percentage of viewers beyond the first day. Last week, the audience more than doubled. Quite a few older viewers were watching the World Series.

Yea because all the running they do and lifting of equipment plus being first to arrive and last to leave always.

I think, in Rosemont at least, they just throw Jolly Ranchers at them. :)

Not true. That he's question is the sign that marching IS for him. He's done one; he's never done the other. He's looking for guidance because his heart and his head don't line up only because of this new opportunity. That doesn't in any way signal that marching isn't for him or isn't the right thing to do.

well I voted for Red, though I would have voted for the 1969 show if it was on the list! (I'm old...what can I say!)

If you have to wonder, then marching isn't for you.

Assuming that's one that popped on on the drum corps Reddit. Pretty much every one of those polls for every corps has either A) the corps most recent or more recent shows or B) the cliche one at the top. Not disvaluing the votes of people but it's usually a pretty young demographic on there (a lot more marching members whose thoughts I always respect/under 30 fans). I voted for 2006...under appreciated show IMO.

Shhh! Please stop giving the actual reasons, it's far better to think of DCI as an evil monster that is rolling in cash. Using reality on licensing and product cost is absurd. I'm just glad you didn't point out the fact that DCI generally loses money because the cost of production is far greater than the amount of revenue brought in by media sales, otherwise we'd REALLY be in trouble here.

this is becoming the way business is done at many venues these days. this summer i attended a concert in Hershey and went through a checkpoint unlike anything I had gone through there in decades of attending events. Even with ACC's the next two weeks security is tighter. it's the world we live in now

Back in 2010 Broken Arrow's show was based on the Wizard of Oz and they filled the field with bicycles. https://youtu.be/IU1rjx8dQqc

now, we just need to combine the two......RAMPS + GO CARTS!!!!! Evil Kenevil meets TILT?

I'm thinking the Cadets' statues should be safe. All they have to do is not move. LOL

FYI, the Bucs have confirmed the Gino thing.

Unless you are in the music field, I don't think drum corps is going to create many opportunities for anyone, with the rare exceptions that prove the rule. Do you know what percentage of the interns get hired on? My impression is the percentage is very high. So as long as you do a good job, you would have a job lined up. BaditKir also gives good advice; if you are confident you can get interviews during your senior year for the same jobs, then maybe the best decision is to march! If you got this internship, you will probably be a desirable applicant for many entry level jobs in the field...

Like mine in 1977. If I disagreed, I'd be looking for a place to live. LOL.

What do your parents think? Their opinion matters 1000x more than anything you read here

I completely agree.. but there are times when "marching in drum corps" doesn't add any weight to a resume'. Maybe more times than we would care to think. My last years at Gannett/USA Today, late 1990s, I was in a management position. The company was implementing a new interviewing/hiring system which put nearly 100 percent emphasis on skills /experience needed for a specific position, and for the candidate to provide specific examples of that related experience. So... if I were to interview a candidate, seeing "I marched in a DCI finalist corps"... or heck, "I spent my summers as a lifeguard on the French Riviera" or whatever... held virtually no weight whatsoever, unless that "life experience" included something related to the job for which the candidate was interviewing. For example, "I marched in a DCI corps, and I also was a writer/editor for the corps' website and here are examples of what I did"... for someone interviewing for an editorial position. Geez... I almost sound like a Sally Soul-Smasher here...."Don't pursue your dreams, kid. Work 100 hours a week in a dimly-lit office instead, and never go out anywhere." I don't mean it to come across that way. Again, my opinion... do DCI/drum corps if you can, but if you can't... so be it. Not the end of the world, by any means. Don't let drum corps ever get in the way of real life. To the OP, along the lines of what a previous poster said... as long as you make a decision, and whatever decision you make, I wish you well, and perhaps I'll be cheering for your corps someday.

So, I am on the engineering side, but here's my experience. I auditioned for SCV going into my freshman year but didn't end up making the final cut at the call-back. The year after my freshman year I didn't reaudition do to other circumstances. The next summer I did an internship at a mid sized company (Silicon Labs) and now this next semester and summer I will be working for one of the big 3 tech companies. Here's my perspective, I will probably regret never doing one summer of drum corps, but at the same time, I still had an amazing time at Silicon Labs. You meet a lot of people and make a good number of friends, learn a ton, and have some pretty cool experiences, and get to do some impactful work. Plus you make good money, and it really does help propel your career early on. I can't speak for the drum corps experience, but an internship isn't just a corporate grind, it's also a unique experience in itself.

In DCI, yes.I spent my age-out year (1979...the Stone Age...LOL) with a DCA corps, after an opportunity to be with a DCI corps (Blue Stars) fell through. Two years earlier, I joined that DCA corps for 1977 after my plan to join the Garfield Cadets was derailed by my parents insisting that I needed to work that summer and not go on tour. LOL It would have been so cool to march with the Cadets and make DCI Finals that summer... but the corps with whom I ended up marching (DCA's Long Island Sunrisers) won the DCA championship that summer, and again in 1978 and '82 during my time there, so that eased the pain quite a bit. LOL I know DCA is not a viable option for many, if there are no corps within a reasonable distance...and yes, I am fully aware that DCI is the top level of drum corps and it's a great experience ... but I guess my point is, there is life after DCI if one chooses to pursue that option.

I think you are 100% correct that you would be setting yourself back on the career side by not taking the internship. What you have to decide, is whether or not that setback is worth it to you. Are you looking at the career track where you go to work for 2 years, then go back to school for an MBA? If so, the setback might not be that great. However, if the first job will be a 5-10+ year job, and the Big 4 offers more money each year for 5-10 years, you are looking at a decision that comes with a 6 figure dollar amount that you are likely giving up by marching drum corps. I wouldn't count on the drum corps experience getting you anywhere in the business world. I'm sure once you get into the interviews and into the workforce, you will be able to leverage drum corps skills, but having drum corps on your resume is not going to open similar doors to having a big 4 internship on your resume, not even close. eh... disagree. Before you have the offer, the question about which to do is only hypothetical. If you don't have a choice of 2 options, then your decision is easy :)

So you applied for an internship, went through the process, got the offer, and don't know whether to accept it? These are things you should have thought through Before you applied for the internship. Harsh? Perhaps. But words you need to hear.

the cymbal line will save us all.