wolfgang

We're months away from most corps announcing their shows. However, I have a feeling the Holy Name Cadets will be right at or near the very top. Bernstein, an anniversary year, etc. (and I hope this comment doesn't lead to silly narration jokes.... let's let that topic rest).

DCI's misfortune with the delays getting Lucas Oil Stadium done on schedule worked out big time for DCI. Great stadium, plenty of parking, tremendous atmosphere, and perfect weather. The only down side was that many people stayed in Indy, but as a facility with a perfect aura, Bloomington was a fantastic choice for finals.

Who gets your vote for the best drill of 2008? After viewing both quarters and semifinals live, I would have to say SCV. Whatever they need to do to retain their current drillwriter, do it. Fantastic!

Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

Don't take this personally, because it's not necessarily directed at you spincycle, but at the thought process behind this post (taken at face value.... I can see this also being more of a non-serious humorous post as well... and was probably meant in that vein), as I've read other posts like it too. I remember back in the days when RAMD's popularity was winding down and DCP was just getting going. There were 2 ties in a row, and someone ragged on the judges about not being able to make up their minds. To me, this is the most asinine, brainless thing someone could say about judging (again, not personally directed at spincycle..... I could see the above quote being made in jest). If the judges do anything that could be even remotely construed as slotting, 50 people jump on here and whine about it. So, if the #s happen to end in a tie, some people, same ones who complain about slotting, will whine about the judges making up their minds.... not having the mental capacity to stop and realize that they did make up their minds.... and the totals/averages of the individual judges just happened to collectively even out. Now, if this happened, and then a judges conference were called to break a tie, then that my friends, would be your conspiracy. I hope the dude from 7 years ago on RAMD that I'm really thinking of reads this, lol... The judges slap the #s down on a page. The sum total and/or average (depending on caption) is added, and whatever they add up to is what the score is. Now back to your regularly scheduled thread....

If so, when did you receive them?

I live in Indy, and that is one area I avoid like the plague, unless I'm eating at Mama Carollas, which is several blocks south of there.

Hmm. Wouldn't "Bonzai" be a word that would fit in the Cavies show better than Phantoms? btw, what's Japanese for "Splooie"? Sprooie maybe?

As mentioned on another thread last week, it's probably good fortune that DCI moved finals this year when it did. Check this out: Lucas stadium flooding unresolved selected snippets I'm not suggesting DCI had any control of the weather. Dan Acheson may wield some power, but not that much, lol. While it was frustrating when the move was announced, I am convinced that it was the best thing that could have happened, as had it not occurred until later (no way Lucas Oil can be used by Aug 7), that would have just made things become more complicated than necessary. OH, and btw, DCI won't sell these seats unless there is a crowd of more than 20,000 I would guess, but buyer beware. Look at the photo (they've sold seats in this type of area before for finals). I'm not positive if this is from the home or visitor's side though. Read this: How about that Lucas stadium view?

When was the last time the winner of semifinals didn't win finals? Obviously, in 1996, 1999, and 2000, there were ties, but at least the semifinal winner shared the title. What I'm asking is when was the last time the semifinal winner didn't get at least a share of the title. Was Garfield '83 2nd or 3rd in semis? If that's correct, 25 years is a long time.

I saw the Cavaliers within the past 2 weeks. There has been talk of other corps changing the end of their shows. Anyone know if Cavaliers are doing that as well? I thought the ending was ok. Not bad, but there wasn't a drill move that made me want to throw babies, to quote Zingali. I think with a more enticing ending, even if only 2-3 charts (if they're they right ones), that could be what they need.

I guess this would be classified as unverified innuendo, but I saw on another marching website based in Indiana the following: This is probably the best company they could have hired, my uh oh is the fact it's July 13. The stadium needs to be repaired in 3 weeks, 4 days (quarterfinals). Which is going to be their priority: Lucas Oil, or a college stadium? What other projects do they have in front? Will IU (re: the state of Indiana and my tax dollars) be paying an extra premium to be next in line? Hopefully, however it works out they will get this done in time... I was hoping these things would have been done already. Really no time to go through the normal bidding process.

1984 Geneseo Knights: July 21 DCM Prelims- 81.1 July 21 DCM Finals- 69.3 July 22 Dolton, IL 67.7 9 days off July 31 Sioux City, IA 63.0 Ouch!!! What did they do, strangle a judge after DCM prelims or something? Their score drops 12 points in a few hours, and 18 points in 10 days. I don't know the ins and outs of that era, but all judges should have been sat down and made to justify the scores.... and if anything sounded fishy, too bad, so sad, enjoy judging marching band shows cause your DCI days judging days are over.

I think in the early 80's (83 or 84), Les Eclipse from Quebec went up 15 points within a couple of days. Maybe someone could verify? Also in the opposite direction, I don't know the ins and outs, but my understanding is around the same time, the Knights of Geneseo, IL were doing well, and some type of altercation with a judge(s) occurred at critique, and their score either plummetted or flatlined for the rest of the season.

I started a thread on this subject just a couple hours ago. I'll repeat the basic point here. Assuming for the sake of argument all 20 World Class corps from this year come back out, Seattle Cascades have announced they are coming out in world class next year; I had a strong hunch Jersey Surf will. That's 22. And, I also posted Teal Sound is heading that direction but I haven't heard anything definitive,, and if Southwind comes back, that would be 24. Sometimes people mention Esperanza, Kiwanis, Capital Regiment, and Magic. Those corps are only memories. I don't expect we will ever see them back again.

Assuming for the sake of argument that all 20 World Class corps this year compete in world class next year, I would say there will be 22 world class corps next year, with a possibility of 23. Seattle Cascades already announced they are coming back. I have a hunch Jersey Surf will make the jump from open class. The next best possibility is a return of Southwind, and/or Teal Sound making the leap (which they have been rumored to be ultimately leading up to). Of course, should all 4 of these corps field world class groups next year, that would be wonderful. Magic, Esperanza, Capital Regiment, and Kiwanis are dead and gone, never to be seen on a football field again, imho.

Lucas Oil Stadium flooding Water damage reported at Lucas Oil Stadium It looks like DCI was the beneficiary of good luck by moving finals to Bloomington. Even if the construction was otherwise on schedule and the event were still being planned for Indy, this would have thrown doubts into the event. This may seem like a minor thing, but one quote from the articles stands out: Even if the field were usable, this means no internet updates, and maybe no video feeds, etc. Imagine if the stadium was done as originally planned, it's Saturday evening at DCI finals, huge crowd, a big thunderstorm hits, the roof is closed (a major plus for weather issues), and this happened. It's going to cost $ to fix, but in the long run, probably a good thing this issue happened now rather than later after it was already in use.

For anyone on the east coast who has seen them live, if they were competing in World Class this year, do you believe they would have any sort of shot at making 17th?

How is this conceptually any different than any early season marching band show across the country, except the admission price is usually lower, and ther are more bands vs 6-8 corps? Marching band judges do this every year (and many DCI/DCA judges also judge band contests in the fall.... their checks cash just as good as DCI/DCI checks). Same concept, though. It's not a big deal. How do judges do it? The performance judges evaluate the quality of what is presented. It affects the GE caption more, but still, the judges evaluate what is being presented.

They never have shown all the Div. I corps. They have shown 17 each year to the best of my memory, though. With 1 or 2 exceptions when the 18 place corps has moved up a spot, at least that allowed the viewer to see the groups that would be semifinalists.

Went to the movies today, and they had a preview of the DCI Quarterfinals broadcast. I went to the website because it said there would be a listing of theaters. Well, no listing of theaters, but this caught my eye: DCI Quarterfinals link Hmm. So in the past they showed the top 17, and this year they are only showing 15? What's the deal with that? Put this in last year's terms. I enjoyed Pacific Crest and Madison last year. If Madison is the 16th ranked corps this year, guess what- no Scouts. As far as paying more, I'm not sure about the ticket price... However, even if it's the same as last year, the net result is less for the spectator's money.

anyone who uses the word "bando" is demonstrating their ignorance..... and invoking terminology that reminds one of she who's name may not be spoken over on RAMD.

still waiting.... You must not be aware of the fact that George Hopkins is no BOA fan. In fact, you may not be aware that he/YEA run a large marching band organization called USSBA, which is a competitor to BOA. I will love to see a quote from Hopkins alluding to wanting DCI to be anything like BOA by name. Doesn't exist. Hmm. Blue Devils are more mature than a high school band with awkward 14-year old freshmen? I would never have thought of that... I have no idea what you mean by 99.9% of marching band shows being goofy and uncool. Again, the condescending tone of your posts is amazing, and almost everyone can see it except you.

Looking past the condescending tone of this post, there is a logical fallacy behind the thought process. Even people who don't mind narration have pointed out that what the Cadets are doing seems forced, not well written, etc. You are assuming because the Cadets are having issues with it, then a lowly band must absolutely reek with narration. Not necessarily so. Depends on the quality of the words and/or performance. Case in point, if you get a chance to see Tarpon Springs 2006 show, with narration (recorded narration at that), it would be worth the 10 minutes it would take to see it. I can't vouch for the quality of recordings that may be available, but I can tell you their BOA Grand Nationals performance was spectacular, with one of the best uses of spoken word I've ever heard on the field. I've heard shows with narration that have made me roll my eyes, shows that I'm neutral on, and yes, a few where the words meshed with the concept to make something memorable. Can you produce one quote on this board where anyone said corps should "try to be more like BOA"? I'd like to see that quote, as I've never seen any posts like that. Wolfgang

Eventually someone's going to broach this subject, may as well get it out there in the open. Personally, I have a hard time seeing Madison falling that low, but with an improved Mandarins and possibly PC out west, this topic is going to be discussed if it's not already been. I know it's still June; I know a lot can and will happen in 5 weeks; I know all corps are going to have re-writes; some will tweak and others will re-do major sections of shows; I know scores from one show don't mean diddly compared to another show, and frankly don't mean all that much the very next night in the next town with a different panel. I also know, looking upwards, Madison was only 2.5 from Spirit, and it's possible they can rise to a higher finish than last year. Yet, with all this in mind, I must say I never in my wildest dreams thought there was a chance they would not make semis. I think they will, and again, in 5 weeks a lot can happen. It's just that it's hard to believe the thought is now something that is not a totally wacko idea. I guess what I'm trying to say is, if you had told me 10 years ago that this was even a remote possibility, I'd have politely asked you to get your head examined. Much can change in a short time.