X DM

Thanks for that update. Time slotting can skew comparisons. Every program wants the prime time. And the pull ( or drag ) of the lead in program can effect ratings too, just as you said. Still in all, a 33% drop off in national household viewership seems like a pretty steep decline to me.

I havn't been on here for a few months so forgive me if this has already been covered: I was wondering if it's been posted as to whether or not the ESPN telecast ratings of the Finals were up over last year.... about the same....... or declined....... from last years national viewership numbers. Anybody know ? Thanks in advance for the input.

Unless DCI finds a suitable TV station, it now appears that this " exposure " you are referring to is about to take a MAJOR hit.

Grammy Award winning Composer, Pianist, Jazz Musician Chick Corea marched for several years with the St. Rose Scarlet Lancers, Chelsea, Ma. in the early 60's. He has reportedly attributed his musical interest and development as a youngster to the inspiration he received from his instructors he had in his musical formative years with that Corps.

This has really turned into a bash the Crusaders thread, filled with jealousy, people who can't spell, stories that may or may not be true that people are taking at face value, and now a bash on their" shows" My suggestion ,out of equal opportunity bashing, and full disclosure, we start a new thread on a Corps per week, and make up stuff on that Corps from years ago thru mostly hearsay or 3rd hand experience, and bash them. Anybody got any dirt on the Skyryders off the field activities ? Is it true kids in other Corps used to pick on them because they were considered geeks and pansies...... and later, for the same reason, the Carolina Crown ? I have a friend who told me he knows a person, who's sister said that this was true .And that's pretty " embarasing " for the Skyryders and the Crown if you ask me. I say this all tongue in cheek folks. That's because this thread topic should have been closed long ago. The thread topic it's not about enlightenment. It's about needlessly bashing a Corps. Close this rude and disgusting thread topic down. Or else some of us will go public with some off the field activities on some corps members that competed against the Crusaders that will be guaranteed to be filled with so much perversion you'll want to feel the need to take a bath and and secure a blood transfusion with a backup antibiotic prescription.... and all true too. So shut this Crusaders Corps bashing thread down. It's disgusting and uncalled for on a Corps that is bound to have some unpleasant things happen to it every once and awhile simply by virtue of it's being in existence for more than 65 years.

Suggestion...... use spell check. Otherwise, it can be " embarrising " , and not so " memoralbe" a post " thier" for you.

Well, they were one of the very best Drum Corps in the Country for most of the 60's, when there were literally several hundred competing Jr. Corps. The Boston Crusaders were made up of mostly inner city kids from the City of Boston. Kids who were tough. And had to be to survive. Many of them were literally saved by finding The Boston Crusaders. And from most reports, many of those who marched in the Boston Crusaders in the 60's are now productive citizens with good paying jobs, are pretty affluent , and are now nearing retirement. ' Hope that answers your rhetorical question Galen.

Me too. I LOVE Corps that pander to me, and do all kinds of cheesy things for me. I've been wondering for awhile too.... who stole my cheese? Put some more cheese on that pizza that Corps designers cook up for me. I won't the works!!.." Cheesy" is good !!!

Not to be picky, but if there are no hits ( and no runs ) after the top of the 9th by the other team, there is no need to stay" after the top of the ninth ". The game is over. The fans witnessed a no hitter.

I'd like to see Corps become innovative and creative without this seemingly compelling need to put the kids in a Corps in a defensive position or having to be a " magnet for controversy ". I want Corps to continue to be creative and innovative ( as they have been ). I could use less Corps..... ANY Corps...... feeling the need to " pick up a torch and be controversial ". But that's just my 2 cents worth too. As to the question..." what do we want The Cadets to be ?"...... it's their choice...... my hope would be that they become a Corps that for over 65 years has been innovative, dynamic, creative, without most years having to be in an apparent hostile..... us against the world..... mode with a large segment of the drum corps audience. The Cadets have been in existence since the 1930's. Most of those years they have been innovative and creative and forward looking. We can count on one hand the number of times in those 60 plus years that they have been deemed " controversial ". Unfortunately for them, this year was one of them.

As we learned in The Cadets narration spiel to the audience, it's all about the "value of choices", and "who gets to choose", etc. These are good lessons the Cadets members learned this summer. And remember, there are kids under these un...... narrations that were given to them.

It doesn't "end "...... until hollywood finishes the sequel..... then another.... and another...

We'll never really know if the Cadets might actually have won DCI this year, but it was the narration that put them in 2nd place. Nobody seems to know how Narration is judged. But we do know the sound quality was mediocre at best on finals night, and the words spoken seemed garbled and not clear...... and we don't know if the judges took off a point or so, because of ineffective integration of narration with the show theme...... or conversely, if The Cadets got a lot of creative GE credit for the use of narration and without the use of narration they really were about to finish 3rd, 4th, or 5th....... nobody knows..... but the judges...... and their judging notes and tapes seem like they are sealed up in some secret vault somewhere. It's a shame that narration has never really been explaineed in any detail to the public as to what constitutes "good narration " from mediocre narration " to even " bad narration ". We've asked for DCP's who teach or march corps or maybe even judge corps to explain how narration is judged, but nobody seems to know.

the typical 14- 16 year older who plays trumpet in his H.S. band never heard of Steve Young. They were either unborn or in a crib when Steve Young played, Either way, if you think the typical 14-16 year older from a middle or high school band relates to Steve Young, you are kidding yourself.

So it's fair to say you didn't see the Cadets, nor the other Corps " the last 3-4 weeks of the season " ( half the competitive season ), didn't see them at Finals, but saw on your TV screen the 10% of their show ...snippets.... and have concluded from these small snippets on your tV screen that " the Cadets were the best Corps with the most difficult demand " ?

Nobody wants to see 25 "mediocre corps". The Drum Corps movement hasn't had 25" mediocre corps "at the top in our lifetimes.

DCI has done some good things. But adopting the national touring model in hindsight was not a " good road " for DCI to have Corps go down. It's ironic that they want to now pattern themselves like the NCAA. But the NCAA has Regional tournaments. You win there, you advance, or go home. DCI should have adopted that model. The regionals would have had 2 from the EAST, 2 from The WEST, 2 from the SOUTH, 2 from the NORTH advance to the National Championships to duke it out over 2-3 days. This would have created regional loyalties and regional identifications, regional rivalries, and regional recruiting. It would have been great to cheer on your regional representatives at Champiobships even if your corps did not advance out of the regional championships. But DCI had 50 Corps or so go on national tours and most went broke. Now we have a handful of Corps and no matter what city is listed on the side of the busse, or in the program book, the Corps might as well be from Timbuctu. And there is no regional identification anymore at all.

Jeezus, I hate to burst your bubble, but you're an old codger yourself if you think most 14-20 year olders relate to Steve Young. Steve Young might as well be Neil Young to most 14-20 year olders who are inclined to pick up a drum or a trumpet. I loved watching Young play for the 49ers in the late 80's, early 90's. though. But he'll be 46 in a few weeks, and is not that much different than Moreno and Ferguson were when they were guests. But Bobby Knight still Coaches in his 70's and he'd still be a good role model to have DCI interview again for the " young people ".

DCI used to have Maynard Ferguson, Rita Moreno as guests. Now DCI has dropped PBS, and gone with ESPN, and now the emphasis is on competition, and how " athletic " these " competitors (" not perfomers) are, and the intro is all about the football stadium history, and how these " games " are going to be tough and blah blah blah. Look, I'm ok with this new marketing of Drum Corps as athletic competition on a sports channel, and listening to Bobby Knight or Steve Young. That's cool. But the next somma##### that tells me their knees buckle when they hear a few boos at these "competitive games ", I'm going to laugh out loud. There is no sports or athletic competition anywhere in the world where occassional booing or heckling is not sometimes evident. If you want to trumpet these kids as tough like college athletes, then stop the wimpiness when the ineviteable boos are heard. These are either geeks who perform..... or athletes who compete....... and all " athletes " are subjected to boos and heckling when on the road to " away games ". DCI has made a conscious effort to market these shows as " athletic competition ". With that, comes the good..... and the not so good (the booing )

Some Corps traveled down WAAAY too many" roads "in a Summer Tour..... and disappeared by the Fall...... 'never to be heard from again." Imagine" if Corps only did regional shows and went down those regional "roads" a few times.... then took the national" road" just once in the summer.... for the Championships. "Might have made all the difference" in having more Corps today.

and this "emotional tug " you speak of with the Cadets Director interview segment was designed for " the newbie " to do what ? Take a bubble bath ?

Gawd, here we have these wonderful kids showing grit, determination and fierce competitive drive, etc..... and then it's spoiled for a moment when DCI interviewws this wimpy, almost teary eyed, and thoroughly dull sounding Corps Director. Man, was that interview with the Cadets Director glum and depressing or what ? DCI should have pulled the plug on that sleep inducing segment before it aired and given the public more of the energetic kids in the Colts, Spirit, etc

One would think that with that statement, that when one goes down an unfamiliar road, it's not possible to get totally lost on occasion. How naive that can be.

Agree as well. Especially when the Cadets Director was soooo glum when interviewed and at the end looked like he was going to get teary eyed and maybe fall asleep right afterwards. Good grief !... DCI should have pulled the plug on that depressing interview before it aired, and put on the Corps that DCI told the TV audience " what an achievement it is to make top 12 ! "