skevinp

This is beautiful! I hope all potential donors to G7 corps consider this approach.

This should be placed on all the windshields in the parking lot of every DCI show:

As someone with no affiliation with or bias towards or against either corps, I must say that's the most astounding load of cow manure I have ever read. Were you perhaps vacationing outside of the solar system for the last few years?

Lettuce dispense with these bad puns.

I wonder if older buses don't get worse gas mileage and require more maintenance though, which would make them much more expensive. I really don't know, just throwing that out there.

If you are suggesting the smaller/newer WC corps that can't afford to do full tours are independently choosing to empahasize these things without good reason, I am not so sure about that, as I suspect they are not the biggest "offenders" in that regard. I don't have any evidence to suggest that corps like Academy are spending money irresponsibly, and I suspect DCI watches their budgets to some extent. If your are saying that the culture of the activity places too much emphasis on new and expensive things, then that seems a fair point. Especially if such things end up being required to be competitive. But I think at some point you might lose fans and therefore revenue if the corps are all out there with shabby uniforms and tattered flags.

In one night, Spirit just went up 2.1 and Colts went up 2.6. I think I will hold off on making any predictions for awhile.

I understand your frustration, but I don't think it is entirely futile, and the fact that someone posted these criticisms that might already have seemed valid to some normal people on the surface actually provided others with the opportunity to debunk them in ways that make sense to said normal people. For example, I did not realize that Academy played almost as many shows as BD, and others may not have realized that research and reason exist which refute the careless assumption that practice days are more beneficial than show days. And these reckless accusations led to the explanation of sound reasons for the touring model that a number of people may read and hopefully will better understand. It is true that not everyone will get it or wants to get it, but there may not be much we can do for such people. I tend to just feel sorry for them as they usually don't like themselves and secretly fear they are poorly endowed in some area or other. Those people are always going to exist and if they weren't bashing Academy they would probably be kicking a dog or something. So don't take it too hard, and think of how much your sacrifice will be appreciated by the dog.

Anyone know how long it will take them to make the Houston APD's available? I'm dying to get those as soon as I can.

Shame on you for ensnaring SFZFAN into this post with the cryptic title "INT Announcement...." He is too busy deciding what is official or not.

Maybe you should let DCI decide what division they should be in. I mean, if you don't mind delegating that.

Things remain consistent until a new corps called the Aardvarks bursts onto the scene.

I had hoped against hope but I guess Phanguard has no chance.

I don't know, isn't Blue Devils C still undefeated?

It is a little hard to take seriously anyone who would call Tempe AZ in the summertime "club med." Weather has nothing to do with it? How much time have you spent outside in 115 degree heat? I heard all this stuff 2 years ago about how they have an "unfair advantage" because they play less shows. The thing is, I ran the numbers for some corps that season and guess what, it turns out that scores increased MORE on average after playing shows than after merely practicing. I suspect game experience and feedback from judges has a lot to do with that.

Is it possible they could squeak into Murfreesboro?

I first saw them in '96. I have to admit that before that, I lacked opposable thumbs.

... 6. Bluecoats 7. Blue Knights 8. Blue Stars 9. Blue Devils* ... *penalized for appearing to have too many members on the field.

Great, we turn the world upside down and Academy STILL ends up just missing finals.

I wondered that too, decided to just pretend it wasn't there. But now we'll see how the other approach works.

It stands to reason that an all male corps would have a smaller height variation than other corps. Although now that I think about it the Cavies do seem more uniform in height than Madison. But perhaps Madison has a greater age variance.

What big business told me to like drum corps?

Why would the fans want them to run if they have the best passing quarterback in the country? In popular sports, there is a strong correlation between what it takes to win and what fans want to see. It's not pure coincidence. In fact, when teams figure out a way to win that does not correlate with what excites the fans, leagues often change the rules. When basketball teams figured out they could sit on a 6-2 lead by holding the ball for the rest of the half, it didn't take long before the shot clock was added. However the team does though, I am most impressed by their ability to all blink at the same time. I haven't seen a group accomplish that feat since the Cosby kids.

To me it is the trend towards "choppy musical arrangements" that makes it hard to appreciate more and more shows from an emotional standpoint. Although I like variety and can see where a choppy style might be appropriate for some shows, it seems like corps have moved in that direction to a far greater extent than I would expect based on what I would have assumed to be necessarily balanced objectives. I have no idea why it has gone this way. Perhaps the reasons for the trend are honorable, excusable, necessary or even desirable to more people than it disappoints, but I wonder if they are really as grounded in sophistication as some would suggest.

I'm getting verklempt... Talk amongst yourselves.... I'll give you a topic... Phantom Regiment is neither a Phantom nor a Regiment...Discuss.