KeepOnFoodTruckin

is anyone at the show and tweeting tonight? We planned on being there but my daughter has a 101 fever tonight and it's only slightly lower than the temp outside.

As full witness to my age and geekiness (though I'm still flaky with a Y) if you were to search the website that must not be named and enter "Gary Burbank" you can listen to the novelty hit single "Who shot JR"

Hey Bev.. what kind are you making? Great to see you

Madison is a great town to be young in while you try to figure it out. I always say we have to take the time to figure these things out while we're young so we don't do it again when we're 40. Please send him our best. Congrats to all the corps who performed in Michigan City on their performances!

I'll be at the theater for quarterfinals too. I'll send you tweets live from them if you like. I promise not to call anyone boring! I gotta admit I just love all of it. The doctor beats, the warm ups, the goosebumps. I can usually find something I love about just about every show. Yeah, I gush. I miss it. How is Bradley? Didn't he go into the military?

Hey Sally! How are you? This stuff just gets in your blood, doesn't it? Blue Stars are in smooching distance of breaking 80 it seems. So glad to see them doing well. I can't wait till the tours get down to Texas. I want to see a live show!

Here, Here! Hiya Alex. Not sure if you remember me. My kiddo marched 07 Blue Stars before she injured out.

Didn't the Blue Devils sleep with the fishies in '06?

We're planning on being in San Antonio and Meg is going to be at Lake Highlands so we sure will! Going to be awfully hot down here. Bring your fans.

Just great, Dave. I have no one marching this year but this corps stuff gets in your blood and I am enjoying it via cyberland. Big hugs to Judy for me, won'tcha?

Thank you Kevin. Much appreciated and Hiya Kansas' Dad

So how does one find out the status of these findings and evaluations by the subcommittee? Is this information made available to the general public? Is there a way to contact the subcommitee to provide letters or reccomendation or letters of concern from those who have worked with the group? I've seen many times that DCP is not the place to discuss these concerns but I'd love to know what the appropriate place might be to give information to the powers that can actually do something with this information.

Hey Big Dog, Since you seem to be pretty up on the rules and regs of DCI, could you explain to those of us who are not in the know what steps a corps has to go through to re-enter DCI competition? I'm curious what protocol is followed and what requirements are in place for a corps to compete at a DCI sanctioned event.

Heartfelt condolences. Your family was lifted in prayer as we joined hands at family dinner this evening.

Isn't there a DCI conspiracy that Santa Clara always wins in calendar years ending in 9? Should make them the "corps to watch" for next season.

The soloist in Spartucus (Parker) and his twin brother (Dustin) have been with PR for several years. They were DM and Drumline capt at our HS marching band and two of the nicest most genial kids you'd ever want to meet. Texas is pretty proud of them. There's a pretty cool article/audio interview on the incredibly talented Doelling twins from a few years back on dci.org that can be found here. (http://www.dci.org/news/view.cfm?news_id=117ea178-e165-4786-a4db-8f9dcc10f1b4) Fyi, Parker's solo performance of Nessun Dorma from the 07 season is one of my favorite encore moments ever but that's another thread, isn't it?.

I think Nicholas Cage is quirky enough to have made a great VK but he may be dark enough to go BK. At any rate, one of the Knights.

I'd put her in the 05 Bluecoats when they did Caravan because that girl is all over the map. Besides that way she could bring um..the drum corps or something to Americans who don't have it like South Africa.

Has my vote. I'd rather see Cadence go on than many of the other "acts" on that program. So which one is Jason?

I've been thinking and I realized that that I have used the term "ask the right questions" a few times in the past days referring to a parent's responsibility in helping to guide their child in choosing the corps that is the right fit for them. I know that I have my own take on things and I know what questions and considerations were right for us that I've stated already but I'm also certain I don't know everything. I wonder, from the parent's perspective, what factors and considerations are important to other parents and what you put into your families decision. Do you think some corps are better suited for younger members? Are some corps better suited for older members and does that impact scores? How much consideration do tour fees play in this? Many times a kid is in love with a certain corps and has their heart set on marching there. Do you step in if you're not crazy about management? What about if you're not crazy about the product that corps puts on the field? What if you're an alum of one corps and your child wants to march elsewhere? What is your role? How did you decide how much to participate and how much to stand back? I'm willing to concede that I don't know it all and I've learned some things along the way but I'm sure I've made mistakes too so I'd love to open this thread as a positive place for parents to share and help eachother along the way. It's a different sort of experience, this drum corps world, and I'd love hear your experiences, thoughts and take on things.

Actually, I said he was a great guy when he was working among his peers. That doesn't mean he is a great guy as a corps director. And I'm glad you get it but for me, since it was my child who was denied medical treatment and put in a very dangerous situation, I get it too. You say you've seen the underbelly of the corps world. Congratulations. I've joined your club. I saw things too. I don't post the details publically and most of you who know me or have read my posts know I am actually very positive about the activity but, I saw enough of them to make me passionate about demanding accountablity. That is not a need for closure. I don't need an apology. I don't need some kind cathartic cleansing either. I put that away when I took my child back into my arms at the end of the season and them with great care, many questions and judicious aforethought put her in a safer situation the following year. I will give you this. I don't honestly believe there was malice or intent to do harm. I simply believe that one man was overwhelmed and unable to continue to deal with the constant barage of being faced with so many problems and no support that he lacked the sensitivity and sensibility to deal with a situation he couldn't fix alone and could not or would not ask for help. He lost it and the house of straw came down. Since you say you are actively involved in making this better, I urge you and all who are working to make Cap Reg better to work hard, to be aware of the past and commit yourselves ot not repeating it. I've said my piece now but I pray I'm not in a situation where I'm shaking my head and thinking "If only I'd said more."

Tom, you obviously feel very passionately about this and I think your interactions with Rick last year on the Southwind tour indicate that. Obviously, when Rick was loaning the foodtruck and driving it it was clearly very positive. I think that is very indicitive of Rick. He's a great guy, in particular, with his peers. I think he is at his best in that arena. I think he wants to do right thing. He is well spoken and genial and without the pressure of being in charge I'd bet he was a great traveling companion and a huge asset to the Southwind tour. Howver, I found him to be a less than capable administrator due to his inablity to delegate and share the load and quite frankly NO ONE can do it all alone. The result of that inablity, not to sugarcoat things, put lives in danger. It didn't inconvenience people. It didn't give them the short end of the stick. It put kid's lives in danger. I think we all do indeed want Capital Regiment back in some incarnation, but, I for one, do not want to see them be the same Capital Regiment again. I want to seem them be a better version of Capital Regiment. I want to see them with plenty of support both from staff and volunteers with the workload delegated out so that they can thrive. Do we both want the same thing? Actually, I think we do. We just have different motivations and see a different path to the same end.

I would not allow my child to return. Read into that what you will. I don't see this as an issue of my kid getting "the short end of the stick" in 2006. I view this as my child's life being put in danger by inept management. If that's an axe to grind, so be it. I see it more as asking for/requiring accountability. What qualifies me to speak to this? I was a 2006 parent and food truck volunteer. What did I do when my child called to tell me there was trouble? I got on a plane ASAP and helped out as much as I could over the summer. I was on the food truck on "birthday cake for dinner" night. My spouse was there to volunteer in Pittsburgh, KS when the 18 kids went ot the hospital and I believe those occasions to be symtomatic of the issues, not the core of them. I would say that first hand experience might make me qualified to pose the questions I posed earlier. What concerns me is I keep hearing about improvments such as upgrading the freezer on the food truck or changes in the uniform. I'm not hearing about managment skill improvement and changes. I hope the important issues are being addressed as well as the superficial ones.

Open class Ok, so we're still touring How will they do it differently? Going back to old uniforms So? That was never a concern. I never thought "my kid wasn't eating or getting medical care but wouldn't they look dandy in the old uniform?" Glad to see they are once again putting their focus on the "important" issues. Financially secure? They seemed to be secure in 06 too and had a great food truck and equip truck with a spiffy new paint job but somehow the numbers didn't add up on the road. Don't tell me theiy are secure. Make their financial statements open record. Where can we see copies? Most non profits publish this info somewhere. Recognized '06 was a horrible year (ya think?) and would like to rebuild a new, better program. There are many things I recognize and would like to do better but that isn't the point. That is an intention. WHAT do they intend to do to improve the program? Are they hiring new and experienced tour directors? Are they putting policies in place about bus drivers and minimum standards? Is there a head cook on the food truck? How will they handle volunteers? Where are they soliciting staff? Is there a policy in place about number of hours to work/rest? How many hydration breaks per hour? What are the policies in place regarding medical care for members and chase vehicles and hospital runs? Do they have a medical professional who is at their disposal? How large is the staff going to be? How many are instructional? How many are support? I am afraid I need more concrete information than a Polyanna concept of "Gee, we blew it but we're better now. I promise to do better."

Why? I can answer that. It's because, to"wait a bit and see," isn't going to address the questions and concerns that need to be answered so I will be able sleep at night. It's because, as a parent who experienced having a child march Cap Reg 06, I have a moral obligation to other parents to help them know what to ask before they entrust their child's well-being to this oganization. It's because, they were a non profit 501c3 in 2006 as well and they had state and federal regulations they were to adhere to then and it wasn't a safeguard. It is my hope that there has been a substantial change and that Cap Reg can, one day, make a return to competition but I wholeheartedly agree that those questions, and more, need to be answered before that can happen. If appropriate changes have indeed been made answering these questions shouldn't be a problem anyway. I'd ask similar questions as to the financial status, staff choices, managment philosophy etc of ANY corps before my child marched there. edited for grammatical errors and clarity