Cathie Wiener

Soaking clothes in Coke or Pepsi or other similar cola for a bit and doing just a wash cycle without detergent and then a regular cycle with detergent should get the smell out. I did that when I marched and when I was in the military we used to do that to get the smell of jet fuel out of our uniforms. Today I do that to get that musty smell out of the load of laundry I forgot was in the washer and sat there for a day. Edit: To clarify, I let the washer fill up with water and then add either half a 2-liter of soda or the whole thing depending on how bad the smell is and let that soak for 5-10 minutes and then let that wash cycle finish up as normal without detergent and then just wash it again as normal with detergent.

Yes.

SO glad to see the name changed to just Shadow. Having an organization with the initials SA is probably not the best idea. May not be that big of a deal in the Midwest but you start saying those initials on the West Coast and some other places and you could get yourself into some hot water.

Thanks Kevin and Charlie for your wonderful commentary. Charlie's here's hoping you don't have the rental car/airline nightmare going home this year like we had last year man.

Kevin, Thanks so much for doing this liveblog. Love hearing/reading about the corps.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write out your thoughts on the show. I know the performers love to read reviews and it's really nice to read about the performances for those of us that couldn't be there.

Not the official answer, but the show order of those mini corps that didn't play the year before or did play the year before but missed the initial deadline to keep their previous year's placement (though I don't know that this has ever happened) has traditionally been based solely on the order in which the fully-paid applications were received. The corps go on in reverse order of the date of the received application.

Class A is very vital in recruiting and, I think, motivation for the A corps. Would you rather be known as Class A Champion or "throw down" thir/four/fifteenth place? Champion, second or third sounds a hell of a lot better to me and potential members as well.

LOVE being part of "the regulars". Edited for proper smiley face.

Thanks for the info Tom!

Hey back Frank!! :) I'm a big fan of the convention center, too. I get why some people don't like it, but I think the pros outweigh the cons. I'm just asking because we had someone mention that they read something about the mini corps maybe being outdoors for the celebration and whatnot and I was just trying to get clarification. It'll obviously affect whether we practice indoors or outdoors as we get closer to DCA weekend. I'm sure we'll eventually get an answer through official channels, but I told the guys at rehearsal on Sunday that I'd throw up a post here at DCP to see if anyone knew.

I was just curious with DCA's return to Rochester if the Mini Corps competition is still going to be held in the same venue on the indoor stage? Thanks.

Also to clarify for those who don't know, when I mentioned dual participation with those of us in Freelancers Alumni, it's important to note Freelancers Alumni does not do the full-fledged marching field shows like Cabs Alumni or Bridgemen. Therefore, I would assume it's not quite the same commitment as the Alumni Corps on the East Coast. That being said, our two guys that did Freelancers and Renegades simultaneously did have fully "staged" mini corps shows to learn and try to perfect with two shows' worth of music to memorize each of the years they did this. It was still incredibly hectic for them.

We've had some Freelancers Alumni do that for the entire season including DCA Championships. I marched SoCal Dream and Freelancers Alumni simultaneously for three years. During the season Dream rehearsals and performances took priority but, luckily, there weren't all that many conflicts. And at DCA Dream took priority, but they knew I was with Freelancers on I&E and mini corps night. Since Dream was also at I&E at the same time, no rehearsal was lost. Also, Freelancers didn't do the Alumni Spectacular the year both were at DCA so, had Dream made Finals, Sunday rehearsal wouldn't have been a problem. Even more hardcore than that were our members that marched Renegades and Freelancers simultaneously and they were both located in Southern California so they would have 4 1/2 to 7 hour drives one way for every Renegade camp weekend. We had two active members march a full season of both (each in different years) and, in addition to that, we also had two Renegade contras "step up" and help out Freelancers Alumni in one of our first mini corps years. The two members who did Renegades didn't have as many conflicts as you would think because, except for once-a-month weekend camps (or twice-a-month as DCA comes closer), all of Freelancers rehearsals are on weekdays. And, except for one DCI show, when Freelancers performed it was at all the same show as Renegades so those guys would just pop in for the Freelancers performance real quick and then head right back to where Renegades were warming up. DCA Championships were another story. Both those guys were running around like chickens with their heads cut off because they were in both I&Es and mini corps for Freelancers the years they marched Renegades. It was hectic for everyone involved and one of the guys has vowed he would definitely never do that again. Plus the mini corps itself takes a beating because you don't have all your members there for all the rehearsals right before the one performance you've been practicing for all year. For me, it was hectic, but not as hectic as the guys who did Renegades. That being said, if I still lived close to Dream and my health was better I'd do it all again in a heartbeat. I miss marching drill and playing and I miss my Dream family.

Congrats guys. Looking forward to seeing you this summer.