year1buick

I think “charges were dropped” is commonly put forward (with the inference being due to lack of merit) but that’s not what actually happened. A fee was paid and the record cleared. Kinda like a driving ticket.

I used to work there when I was on the Barney crew back in the day. For some reason, that period (from 97-99) was a dry spell for me and I didn’t make it to the Lake Highlands show any of those summers. But now it’s an embarrassment of riches. Since we’ll be back in the north Texas area again this summer, hopefully I can make a couple.

Oh, wow, that’s really cool. I drove through McKinney a million times back in my college days, going between Denton and Commerce. In high school, the only show option for me to attend was Lake Highlands. (Well, I went once, then marched the next summer.)

It might be fun if all of the corps contributed an updated version of one of their classic songs for a special release CD/download. But I think I would take a pass on retro shows.

I got to watch his Regiment line rehearse a few times when I was doing pre-dental at UNT. Since we’ll be moving to the Ft. Worth area this summer, maybe I’ll catch the SCV line too. I would Love to see Regiment at Concert in the Park some day.

This is shocking to me. I would’ve thought the 1st amendment was all the “shield” the Inquirer needed. What’s next, requiring reporters to read Miranda rights before conducting interviews? Seems like a pretty chilling effect to me.

To me, it looks like they’re doing all the right things to right the ship. The past can’t be changed; what else were people expecting at this point? Hiring Jesus to coordinate the show? Sheesh.

I’m so excited for next year. Who knows where they’ll place, but this should be a return to form for Phantom Regiment, and I can’t wait to see them. Hearing JD unleash the Buicks with some Mahler is going to be fun.

I’ve heard some whisperings but am going to have to plead the 5th on this one right now. Plus, I wouldn’t put too much stock into it this early on anyways. (Things can change.)

Where we were (67th and Central Park West) it never got too windy. It was a little chilly when we got there at 6:00AM to stake our claim to a section of the barricade, but I thought it was a pretty nice day, overall. (Tuesday was gorgeous.) I was really glad that they were still able to float the balloons.

Proud dad here! You can see my daughter spinning her flag at the beginning!

I can think of just one— San Antonio. (I’m biased, of course.) It even has a large convention center adjacent to the stadium (well, across the freeway, but still within walking distance) that could be used for warmups. Getting to see all of the corps in late July is pretty great, but having the big show once in a while would be awesome too. But it’s all a pipe dream anyway...

I’m curious to see your list- it’s been a long time since I’ve taken History of Film. (That professor was a big John Ford fan, as I recall.) ___________________________________ My first memories of drum corps are of watching Finals on PBS in the summer of 1989. Our antenna reception was pretty bad and the VCR recording I made was even worse. But I watched it over and over and over again. My first live show was at Lake Higlands high school, in Dallas, the following year. I carpooled with three other guys from my school (the driver is now a special effects supervisor at Dreamworks). We were stuff into that little hatchback like sardines and I feared for my life driving on 635. (We were from a small town.) Star of Indiana blew my mind. Actually, they all did. We were there to see another classmate perform with Sky Ryders—much yelling and cheering was done in our part. I said I HAD to get tickets to Finals the next year. (That didn’t work out— I marched in them instead...) I still think of bus fumes, gym floors, retreat, winter camps, all of that stuff when I think back to that drum corps “is.” [Also: Eating pizza at the circle in O’Hare, waiting for either the bus or connecting flight to Rockford. Gopher holes at Beyer field. The Game. Taking a date on a drive, with a borrowed car, into Rockford to see The Crow after one night after rehearsal. She hated it and I got lost and almost couldn’t find my way back to Byron. My first legal beer at the Hard Rock Cafe in the Mall of America— thank you, Dan Ferrell. The morning after our mid-summer banquet. Oh, the misery... ] That’s all really random stuff but I guess my point is, very little of what I read or talk about on here really coincides with what of my brain still thinks of as “drum corps”. Even as the memories fade. I don’t mean that in a negative way, just how it is for me. But it all passes the time and I still have fun following the activity and talking about stuff that piques my interest for one reason or another.

I went to a Target on my lunch break and joined about a half dozen or so people crowded around the TV section. We were all so horrified. When I finally left for home at 5:00, DFW international airport, which was only about a mile or so from our office, was completely silent. No overhead air traffic at all. It was so eerie.

We’ll be in New York this Thanksgiving for the parade and a visit to the WTC memorial is also on the week’s itinerary. I’ve never been before; I think it’s going to be pretty emotional but I’m really looking forward to seeing it as well. In 2001 I was working at a call center (in collections) and my coverage area included New Jersey and part of New York. We started work at 8:00 (central) and I remembered hearing a short blurb on the radio, just before I got out of my car, that there was a report of a small plane colliding with one of the towers. As I started making my first calls, I kept getting an “ all circuits are busy” recording. Over and over and over again. Then my wife called and said, “Are you hearing what they’re saying on the news?” It was a sickening feeling. We didn’t have internet access, and no TV’s either, so I had to rely on calls from her throughout the morning for more news of what was going on. I can’t imagine what it must’ve been like for people who lived or worked in that area or experienced it firsthand.

We shot an episode of Barney that included some members of the JJ Pierce marching band performing in a very non-JJ Piece style of marching, which amused me greatly.

My wife and I have laughed at it when we’ve seen it. The thing that stuck out to me was the possible side effect of a life threatening perineum infection. Ouch.

Don’t you start... :)

That’s a valid point. Hopefully their new staff coordinator can help maintain a positive balance. (I personally had a run-in or two with him. But I still think that, in the end, we were a better corps with him there.)

I think where he’ll really help is just making sure that whatever movement they do is uniform and still looks good. Even in this day of ramps and pedestals, corps still march and I would hope that keeping that looking clean still counts for something. Tony thinks up all the crazy stuff and Bob helps the marchers pull it off.

Yeah, I definitely get it. He drove me crazy some times (a lot of times, actually) but I still think he got the job done in the end.

Bob Smith returning! Clean feet again. I think this is a pretty great team they’ve assembled; hopefully this means they’ve finally turned the corner. Also, my sincere best wishes to Will Pitts in his future endeavors.

I was hoping the Cadets would be announcing a new website font or something like that.

Showered with some too. (Drum corps showers.)

Ha. Or this: