guardmom32

I have been in guards at both ends of the spectrum. My high school guard instructor was young and very immature when it came to ettiquette. She would belittle any show especially when it was in direct competition with us. We even had guard spirit cheers that belittled other guards. I then moved on to the Blue Stars drum corp where respect for every performance and group was drilled into my head. We had our 'enemies' but we only critiqued them when we were alone as a group. I then moved onto the SMSU program in Springfield, Missouri. We were taught to always be positive when around other groups or in the stands at any competition, even if we were at the event alone and not a part of an SMSU group. I may be a little more critical now but I still hold the philosophy of trying to find a positive for every negative, and I try to stay quiet until a performance has finished.

My husband has figured out a way to use straight oil (filtered of course) with a duel tank system. Basically it uses a little bit of diesel to warm up the oil and then acctualy runs on the oil. He used it in an old diesel pick-up he liked to play around in. He eventually blew the engine in that truck by driving through water that was too deep. Water doesn't compress well.

Just because it has been said before doesn't mean it isn't true. I am not sure how all the Cadets felt about their show, but I have heard a few negative comments towards the props and the technical problems that they had this summer. When the extra gets in the way of the real practice, it is hard not to get impatient and wonder what your doing there. On the flip side I also know that by the end of the season they were happier with the outcome of the show then they thought they were going to be early on. I guess as long as the kids enjoyed their season and felt proud of what they accomplished, what we feel doesn't matter. I just hope the staff heads a slightly different direction next year, but if the Cadets weren't innovative and slightly controversial what would we all talk about.

I loved Crown's show this year. It truly moved me. At least we agree there. I am glad that there were people who enjoyed the Cadets. Opinions make drum corp interesting. Everyone needs someone in their corner. I just didn't agree with Paul's statements and judgements of the situation.

I wasn't talking directly about the door or the planks or the four characters alone. I just thought their was an over abundance of stuff that completely detracted my attention from the fact this was a drum corp show. I was in shock at the end because I felt I hadn't really seen their performance. All I could remember was the four characters running around the field and the vocals that annoyed me. That made me sad because I felt these kids have worked all season and because of show design I didn't really get to see their performances. To me, it was almost as if the show design wasn't really centered around the kids that were there to actually perform in a drum corp. It was instead for a staff that wanted to push the envelope and see how far they could get with it. I am good with innovation when it doesn't come at a cost of the kids being pushed into the background. This activity should be about the kids and not the staff or designer's wish to reinvent the activity. Of course, this is only my opinion. Maybe others see this activity differently.

I wrote this to Paul. He thinks too much of himself. That is my opinion. I find your comment more sickening then anyone who did not give the Cadets a standing ovation. I for one felt very sorry for the kids who worked their tails off in the Cadets this year. I was so taken aback by the end of their show I was almost in shock. It was hard for me to see or hear the amazing things the talented performers (such as the horn players, the guard, and the percusion) were doing amongst all the muck of the extra. I had a hard time focusing on the true performers in the midst of a mis-placed vocalist and odd and strange visual elements. It seemed to me the design detracted attention from the performers who truly deserved it. I found elements to like, but did not love the show. I wish the kids the best and hope that the show next year showcases the true talent and not annoying fluff. As for your assesments of the other shows, Paul, I feel your comments are more disrespectful then any unenthusiastic fan. I would also be upset to hear people making derogatory comments about the kids, but it has been my experience that the negative comments tend to revolve around show design and staff, not the kids and their performance ability. I am a youngin' in the drum corp world and I truly respect those who have been around for years. I do not always agree with them, but I can respect them and the pride they have for their style of drum corp. I like some innovation, but I do not want the drum corp experience to become a theatrical train wreck on a football field. I want it to be a show that showcases great hardworking musicians and colorguard performers. That is what I find entertaining. I have marched and I know what it feels like to go on before an empty stadium. I clap for everyone to show respect and appreciation for the work they have put in. I give standing ovations to those shows that touch me and make me want to march again. That is my right as a fan. As for your negative comments towards both the Cavies and The Devils, you come of sounding bitter and arrogant. For someone who went on to rant on respect, your tone in this post was very disrespectful to fans and other corps. Your hipocrisy in your post is blinding.

I saw everyone for the first time tonight. Of course, my favorite was Cavies. They were not as clean as I'd hoped, but it gives them somewhere to go. I loved the pace of their show along with the guard, visuals, and music. Ok, just about everything. The surprise of the night for me was Carolina Crown, who should have scored higher. That was a truly beautiful Drum Corp show. Great music, good visuals, and a beautiful guard. It all felt like a breathe of fresh air. Phantom Regiment and Blue Devils were great but I just enjoyed the pace of the Cavies better. What was with the Cadets show? Way too much stuff. It severely detracted from the performance level that the musicians and guard were giving. It was stuff you expected on a high school level too pump up excitement because the students aren't skilled enough to let the performance stand on it's own. I thought there were good moments, but I have to say shut-up and get rid of about half the fluff and let the true performers tell the story. It wasn't a bad concept, but there is pushing the boundaries and then there is going to China with the boundary. It was too much that went too far.

How is everybody from Music City Legend and any others in the path of these tornados today? I hope all is well. I've been praying for everyone's safety.

I believe that the best wings in Orlando, FL are at little family bar called Tom and Mony's on Orange Ave. My husband and I loved them when we lived there. Although as I progressed in my pregnancy I had to go milder on the wings because my heartburn was out of this world. They also serve RC Cola on tap and have a great assortment of awesome finger foods. I hear they have real food too, but I never found a need for such stuff. I haven't found wings that hold a candle to Tom and Mony's here in Memphis.

I was looking at the colorguard side. I only get to see percussion on a regional level usually and I deffinately don't have the expertise to critique such shows. Thanks for bringing that point to my attention.

I meant independent world class guard. Ooops!

I believe that if you talk to most people in WGI they would agree that James_Logan High School could beat any independent world class corp almost anyday. There are many more in the schoolastic divisions that could beat there counterparts in the independent divisions. But, inturn, on a drum corp level I don't know it would work as well. Winterguards in general have a decreased practice schedule compared to drum corp. I don't know that a schoolastic level drum corp could attain the practice time that an independent drum corp has.

Have you ever heard of WGI. They have a schoolastic class and an independent class. Anything is possible. Just had to point that out.

Are you sure you are talking about DCA finals? Or is this a joke?

I know that where I live in Memphis, TN there is alot of gas station that are out of gas. I was wondering the same thing. I have to head out at about thee tomorrow morning to catch the Music City Legend bus from Nashville to Scranton. Any info would be of great help to all corps.

I think that it would be great to hold DCI in the middle of Missouri at Mizzou's stadium in Columbia, MO. Div II/DivIII could be held at one of the high Schools in the area. There are a couple of really nice high-school stadiums because some of the schools in the area are really large and have great football teams. Very few shows are held in Missouri. I have traveled far and wide for many years to enjoy drum corp.

In general I am not a fan of narration, but the persistance of the Blue Devil Narration made it difficult to appreciate anything else going on around it. I enjoyed certain aspects of their show and kudos to the kids for perfoming well.

I am a member who really is quite new to the activity (only been around it about 5 or 6 years), but marched with a corp steeped in tradition. The corp I marched with has been around since the 60's at least. I see both points as valid ones, but the one thing I know is that free speech should be encouraged in any forum. The vets I know and talk to are amazing from all years. They have great stories and great knowledge to share. We ought to respect them and their opinions. As a newbie I deffinately enjoy certain aspects of the more artful shows but I also have my own qualms with certain new regulations and changes. I also find it interesting to watch the older shows to see where certain tradiditions have come from and what type of a style they had in different eras. I know that I can enjoy a corp and different aspects of each show without liking the whole package. I think most people do. I also think it is not very smart to tell the people who may gripe, but always buy the expensive tickets, own the entire collection of DCI shows from the beginning of time, donate money, and buy merchandise to just go away. Being somebody who lived with my Granny for years I learned that as people get older they become more direct with their opinions. Let them talk and type. Most aren't negative towards the kids performing. They've been there as have I. We hopefully all hold great respect for the hours those now performing put in and the talent they have even if we don't like the whole show. Just my two cents. maybe more like ten cents

I saw the BD at Murfreesboro, but was not impressed with the narration through out it. I thought the show design was interesting with the idea of going backwards in a dance-off, but all they needed was a statement at the begining saying "and the last couple standing is" and at the end a statement saying " let the marathon begin" or something like that. The rest should have been told through the music and visual, no narration needed. I deffinately thought the narration detracted from the show. Musically I can't really remember anything. All I hear in my head when thinking about the show is the narration. Those arround me seemed to have similar opinions.