Spirit Guard Mom

I am so sorry you missed the Madison Alumni Corps. Holy Moly, it was awesome, absolutely fantastic. I don't think they are performing tonight, but I could be wrong. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Please know that whoever the other Spirit parent was, she does not speak for the rest of us. As luck would have it, I sat next to a Colts mom, and we were nothing but exceptionally complimentary of each other's children, their respective corps and shows. Both of our daughters were aging out, and we were respectful of the commitment that each had given. And, on a personal note, I absolutely LOVED the Colts show, especially the beautiful ballad, and wished they could have tied for that last spot in Finals!

I'm so glad someone posted this thread because I'm packing and wondered about stadium seats. Are we allowed to bring in only the flat cushions, or are the ones with backs allowed also? I NEED the back! Three full days will wear me out, that's for sure.

Thank you. I hope they are going to do them!

I lost my Internet connection last night right after scores were posted. Were there ever any videos of last night's show on Season Pass?

I have to put my two cents in. I think that the fuss is over whether or not the CG judge was hard on Bluecoats. As my screen name implies, I follow the Spirit caption scores pretty closely as well. I was saddened to see that they dropped also. Then I took a look at the whole thing and thought it might be helpful to look at it across the three captions. Do not flame me for this, but I think the CG judge was the designated Simon Cowell. ^0^ He dropped SIXTEEN of the color guard scores, and all by substantial amounts except Blue Stars and Pacific Crest. By contrast, the percussion judge was Paula Abdul - only two corps' percussion scores went down. That leaves the brass judge to be Randy Jackson. Half went up (12); the other half went down (11) - if we could half it evenly, that is. All kidding aside, I do have a realistic observation to make. Just LOOK at all that red on the color guard column. By contrast, look at all the green in the percussion column. That really makes no sense at this point in the game. I understand the rating thing and the spreads and all that, but it is just not logical to think that - given the same amount of rehearsal time within one corps and all that - all these percussion sections can improve while their accompanying guard loses ground - over and over again. My other comment is this, and I am on shaky ground here, because I really don't understand the judging system beyond what my daughter has explained to me. If one half of the color guard score is content, how can there be a change from Saturday afternoon to Saturday evening in that section? If they need the scores to drop to make room for more at the top, then that should be done in the other half - execution. Also, considering from one judge to another, shouldn't they all be viewing the content - the difficulty level, the design, etc. - about the same way? In other subjectively judged activities, there are certain levels of recognized difficulty that should be rewarded with the appropriate number of points, regardless of who is judging. So, Bluecoats fan who started this - it wasn't just YOUR corps! Your brass almost went up enough to pull the cg drop back up so that the score was nearly normal. P.S. I know the red in the columns looks purple - sorry. Didn't feel like going back and fixing it. Also, I am not bowing down to Paula Abdul - I am indicating her normal reaction to everybody.

Bawker, From what I can tell, Terrance fell in love with drum corps sometime in June, right about the same time he developed an affinity for horses and swordfighting. I'm not sure how he squeezes it all in, what with his zeal for religion and SWAC athletics vying for his time. b**bs

Excellent! Finally, a reporter gets it right. Thanks for sharing. :)

Cardman, I agree with you that today's politically correct world has gone somewhat crazy. However, the person who wrote that this could be considered slander is nearly correct. There are two considerations here, however: 1) To be slander, the statement must be false and be made verbally. Since this is "written" (could be printed by any number of people at this point), this would be termed libel rather than slander. 2) If the Red Queen - or anyone else - were to choose to sue you over these statements, she would have to prove that your false statements caused her damage. For example, if at some point a drum corps were considering her for a staff position, and the director or hiring personnel were to tell her, "Sorry, we considered you, but we changed our mind because Cardman said you looked like a prostitute." THEN, the Red Queen has a legitimate cause of action against you. It would still be very iffy, IMHO, as you didn't say she was a prostitute - you said she looked like a prostitute. Since this is your opinion, it would be difficult to say that the statement was false. Now, all of that having been said, I want to ask you, gently of course, to realize that - while these performers are on their way to adulthood, most aren't there yet. If the Red Queen were my daughter, my feelings would be hurt and lord knows I know hers would be. I have been a high school teacher for more years than any of these kids have been alive and I can tell you - they do carry hurts with them forever. This activity is clearly very important to every performer; why else would they give up their lives for it? In other words, for the time being, it is their JOB. Don't you get upset when things don't go well for you at your workplace? Don't negative work evaluations bother you? I wrote a review a long time ago about the Cadets show and commented that I found the characters distracting. What I meant by that is that I was unable to focus on the majority of the corps because they stood out so much in their vividly colored outfits. Isn't that all you really meant as well? I guess I'm just saying that words like "prostitute" carry an exceptionally strong connotation and probably don't belong in this context. Respectfully submitted, Rita Ayers Fairhope, Alabama

The Quote button isn't working right now. I'm referring back to lowbrassdad's response to jimcporter. Thanks, lowbrassdad, for saving me the effort of explaining Spirit's theme to the OP. Something tells me he wouldn't have liked it anyway, as he didn't have many positive things to say about it beyond that. :( The theme was an effort to show how drum corps has changed in the thirty years Spirit has been participating - the flags have the traditional delta, but modernized somewhat. The only part that really needs to be "explained" is that the "new" part is from The Notebook and the "borrowed" part is from Madison Scouts in 1984. Other than that - the old part should be fairly obvious, as well as the blue part. Sorry you didn't like it, Mr. Porter. You're correct - it's too late for any massive re-writes. Hopefully, the judges will continue to see what they've been seeing and Spirit's finalist status will help explain the theme a little better to you. My only other comment is that I disagree with Glassmen's opening not being very effective. I think it's awesome. If you've ever been to the symphony, that's EXACTLY what they do. They warm up, all kinds of discord is heard, and then suddenly - kaboom! The color guard's facial expressions and chatting among themselves - as if they were the genteel audience members waiting for the concert to begin - are clever and performed quite well. I LOVE this Glassmen show (saw it in Baton Rouge in person just before the rainout). I do appreciate your review. Thanks so much for giving us your insights.

I had to vote for Spirit. My daughter is a 4th year age-out this year and she has given it everything she has. I'm so proud of her; she's grown up so much - never missed a show, through injuries and eye infections and just sheer exhaustion (I know, I know, all corps members feel that). It's not always easy, skating on the edge of the 12th spot always. In 2004, I was set to fly to Denver the day of finals when she called and said they were already on their way back home. Through that heartbreak (and others, including the whole family showing up three different times, only to NOT see the show because of rain) she has held her head high. I'll be in Madison for all three days of competition and to see the age-out ceremony. I LOVE many shows this year, but the OP did say blind devotion, and that's what I have!

Thanks for doing this for all of us who couldn't be there. I really appreciate your efforts.

I saw Glassmen in Baton Rouge Monday night before the rainout. I'm obviously pulling for Spirit, but I have to say that I thought Glassmen's show was awesome. Very strong guard and well-conceived theme that's carried out clearly from start to finish. Guard costume changes are some of the most effective I've seen; loved the way it started, as if a symphony was just warming up on a concert stage. I was broken-hearted when Spirit came out, set up all their equipment, then had to make a dash for under the stadium as the heavens opened. That's the third time that has happened to me since my daughter has been marching - they are the corps that is just about to start when the rains come, and I've travelled many miles to see her. We had the whole family, too. The standstill was great, but since the guard doesn't participate, we were really pretty bummed. :(

Spirit doesn't even step off until 10:14 (they are last), so it's too early for scores yet.

Thank you, thank you! Great review. I've been waiting for exactly that.

Oops... someone closed out my window and it posted again. Sorry.

Thank you. Still trying to get a package together to send to you to get to my girl. I hope the colorguard member is okay.

Do you know what corps the guard member was from? Thank you.

You have BAC listed twice in your list. I think the second one at #11 should be Glassmen.

My daughter just called and said they stepped off late because apparently they had a difficult time getting the crowd into the stands before the first corps was to begin. She was surprised by that, since Louisville is no stranger to hosting DCI. The holdup seemed to be at the gate.

My daughter is in her 4th and final year with Spirit. She has had an absolutely wonderful experience. The friendships she has made and the success she has achieved and enjoyed as a performer will be things she will remember for the rest of her life. I highly recommend Spirit!! They are a great group of people with some wonderful traditions. Please feel free to read more about my daughter's feelings and experiences here: http://www.dci.org/news/news.cfm?news_id=1...3a-267d3de82953 and here: http://www.partialobserver.com/article.cfm?id=1845 Your son won't regret it!

This whole topic is very sad to me. Look at the trends: two of the lowest positioned groups from last year are not competing this year (Troopers and Kiwanis Kavaliers). I assume that people who are on this forum really care about this activity. Why would anyone bother to point out that one corps is in decline? It just may be that this type of discussion furthers along the point that the group is in a bad position and hastens their journey to oblivion. Have you not noticed how many corps have disappeared over the last 20 to 30 years? Is that what you want to happen to this fine group? I appreciate the post from the parent who was traveling with the corps last season and saw that a lack of leadership was a big part of the problem. That seems to be the case with many corps who have folded in the past because of financial difficulties or lack of consistency and stability within the corps leadership. EVERY corps needs our positive energy and support, whether it is where you marched, where your kid marched, or whether you just plain out can't stand them because they beat you or you don't like their style. Without every corps, where would the competition be? I personally saw Magic just over a week ago and was also concerned about their future. It did seem that the kids were quite young, but I doubt seriously that they don't "get it." I also personally observed that lashing out by one staff member in the parking lot, and stated so in a review I wrote about the Birmingham show. I thought that showed a lack of respect for the members of the corps, given that it was not done in relative privacy. HOWEVER, never would I be so snide in a comment as to say "The Magic is going to win DCI this year." The original poster defended that position by saying it was a way to get folks to read it. I believe you could have had just as many readers by headling your topic "I am concerned about Magic; what can we do?" I realize this is a place to state your opinion, but sometimes... it's best not to.

Thanks so much!

Does anyone know what Spirit's actual score was in Powder Springs? DCI.org has posted 68.7 and the recap scores do add up to that. However, I heard they called out a lower score at the actual event. Can anyone who was there let me know? Thanks in advance!

Thanks for the encouragement. I mainly wanted to do it for the parents out there who can't get around the country to see their kids perform. I appreciate the reviews so much by other people and thought I could contribute in this way.