mcjordansc

Estimated attendance in 1981 was 36,000.

The Kilties finished 28th in 1976 and 10th in 1977. The Guardsmen placed 31 in 1975 and 12 in 1976.

He needs a fact checker.

I could not see all of them (I wish they would have held a wide shot for a few minutes) and cannot say what SCV had on the field. As you would expect, the very top corps all had a lot of members out there.

Looks like very few Blue Star age outs. That is a good sign of things to come in 2009.

Blue Devils get a perfect 20 in visual ensemble again.

1979 - the last year the Blue Stars made finals, before this year, that is.

The crowd shots are really depressing.

And the other top corps have changed their visual style how?

To me, I think the winner of the Illinois state championship wins it all this year.

Blue Devils are incredible and clean, but a perfect 20 in visual ensemble last night? I am not seeing that.

I disagree completely. Performance was great, just a different type of show. Phantom and Crown have the sound, Cavies have the visual.

That probably means we will see a top three up near or a little above the 98 mark.

OK, shoot me, but I think the Cavaliers are cool as hell and see it as a tossup between them, Phantom and Blue Devils. I would have no problem with a top three in any order. Crown is clearly fourth place.

Horn went down, right back up.

In the words of Dennis DeLucia, that was one hell of a drum corps show.

The sound is so bad over the Internet, it is hard to say if it is the corps or the broadcast.

Feedback at the end, lol.

####, pit tooooooooooooooooo loud.

Blue Stars great score!

Hope the mic works from the beginning tonight.

Blue Knights performed well tonight.

Here is a post by Blue Stars director, Brad Furlano, from an open to all section of the Blue Stars forum. He is explaining the head gear switch, but you can get a little idea of what the corps has gone through the last five years. Dear Friends and Alumni, Here are my thoughts on the corps' recent move to shakos. I absolutely mean no disrespect to anyone and their opinions. Our policy has always been to let people speak their mind (cell phones anyone?), and that’s what we’ll do here – even if those words are critical of the organization or me. The decision to move to shakos from the helmets was not one made hastily and without thought. Ultimately, the decision was mine and mine alone. I did, however, solicit the opinions of many people about the change. Alums from all eras were consulted and their thoughts were given due consideration. The board of directors also let me know that they supported whatever decision was made 100%. The corps’ success this season is not an overnight phenomenon. It was born out of a meeting in the fall of 2003 where the only topic on the agenda read: “Fold the Blue Stars.” At the time I was a member of the board of directors, and the board and few alums decided that night we were going to go back to the top. To look back, it was an almost ridiculous notion given the state of the corps. We had 40 members and a sea of red ink. We had just closed our bingo program because on any given night we could pay out more than we took in. We owned 32 mismatched G bugles and keyboards that were falling apart. Our vehicles were ancient and held together with chewing gum and duct tape. To say we were not quite ready for prime time is an understatement. But it was a determined bunch and we set off on the business of rebuilding the corps. At a subsequent meeting, we discussed what it meant to be the Blue Stars. What made us special? What was important? What does tradition mean? We made lists. We crossed things off. In the end, the list did not include, “cross straps and helmet.” That’s not to say the cross straps and helmet aren’t near and dear to our hearts. What it means is that (I’ll speak for myself here) I don’t believe the essence of the Blue Stars is cloth, plastic or metal. That day, I asked my fellow board members a question: “Are we prepared to do what it takes to get back to the top, to make and support tough decisions, to slay some sacred cows?” The answer around the room was unanimous: YES!” My directives from the board of directors are simple: 1. Give the members of the Blue Stars a world-class experience. 2. Return the corps to national prominence on the activity’s largest stage. So, you may be saying to yourself, “That’s great. Brad will do whatever it takes to win, alumni and tradition be ######.” That would be incorrect. What I would say is, “Brad will do whatever it takes to give the current members of the Blue Stars the best opportunity to succeed.” That’s my directive. And that’s the way it absolutely has to be. Here’s the problem otherwise: to which alumni should I listen? Who are the important alums? Should I only listen to those who give the corps money? Should I only listen to those that speak the loudest? Should I only listen to those that marched more than 2 years? 5 years? 10 years? Should I only listen to the people who marched in the 60s? 70s? 80s? 90s? You can’t run an organization in that manner. The truth is, for every alumnus who told me the helmets had to stay; there was another standing next to me saying the helmets had to go. Ultimately, I was able to resolve my own internal struggle by realizing both of the following statements could be true: 1. I, and many others, love the helmet. It is an important part of the history of the Blue Stars, and should always be celebrated and cherished. 2. The helmet is ill fitting and dated, and generally does not look the best on the field. It does not offer our members the greatest chance at success and growth. It’s time to make a change. I will offer you my opinion as an alum, fan, and employee of the organization (feel free to disagree, as some of you may). I just spent a week on the road with the corps. The staff and members are working incredibly hard to perfect the performance of the 2008 show. They are the Blue Stars in every way, shape, and form. They are learning the lessons I learned. They are polite, funny, energetic, resilient, and determined. They are energized and excited to carry the hopes and dreams of thousands of alums and fans into Saturday night in Bloomington, Indiana. And in Atlanta, in my humble opinion, the Blue Stars have never looked better. Finally, I leave you with one final indulgence. Today, as I was flying back to La Crosse from Atlanta, I spent some time thinking about the long and twisting road the corps has traveled to arrive back on the doorstep of DCI Finals. And I cried. Right there on the plane in seat 29F tears streamed down my face. For all intents and purposes, we should not be here. But we are. Let me rephrase that: But THEY are. I’m just lucky enough to be along for the ride. It’s an extremely rare thing in this world for a person to say a life dream has been fulfilled. And most people over the past 29 years would say one of my life dreams was impossible: To see the Blue Stars walk onto the field Saturday night of DCI Championships week and hear Brandt Crocker say, “Please welcome to the field, from La Crosse, Wisconsin, The Blue Stars.” And yet the Blue Stars stand on the cusp. I, for one, am going to spend the next two weeks enjoying this crazy ride and have every intention of emptying several boxes of tissue along the way. I hope you’ll be there with me. There are plenty of seats on the bike. Finis Coronat Opus -------------------- Brad Furlano

Not easy to ride a racing bike across grass.

The Blue Stars, start to finish and all sections, were great tonight. Back in finals in a huge way.