dcifanforlife

Colts go into prelims the best rested of the group. Show Friday then two days off. Show Monday then two days off. Troopers shows Saturday, Sunday and Monday night will take a lot out of them.

Not correct Prelims seeding is based on average score from San Antonio, Atlanta/Winston/Salem and Allentown.

Blue Stars have beaten the Cavies head to head 6 straight times with different judging panels. What makes everyone think that the Cavies will pass them? Cavies have major issues with their show that will continue to keep them behind the Blue Stars through finals.

Colts have one more head to head with BK (8-5 in Allentown) Colts do not meet Crossmen or Troopers again until Prelims.

Scores: 1 Phantom Regiment 87.20 2 Colts 85.15 3 Blue Knights 82.60 4 Pacific Crest 73.95

Turf

DCI has basically sold out the stadium (only 455 tickets available in undesirable locations) so they will have to do something for ticket buyers. I could see a standstill but not all 16 corps.

DCI had COVID protocols in place since the beginning of Spring Training. It was up to the individual corps to implement them. Some corps have had no COVID cases since Spring Training so those corps protocols are now the ones being adopted by almost everyone. The Health and Safety of everyone on tour is the responsibility of the individual corps not DCI. Some corps have more resources than others to handle the situation. Before the season started DCI gave grants to the corps so they could employ Health Care people on tour.

Except for championship week DCI prepays all show income. Based on Bob's plea Surf appears not to have enough income coming in. Housing is not the issue. Transportation and food are the big expense.

Bob Jacobs admitted that the reduced fees did nothing to help with recruitment. Fewer members paying fees is part of the reason they are in the situation that they are in. I expect that DCI will remove then from tour if they don't have the funds in hand to complete the season rather then having them take on debt.

It is all about the money. Texas shows are the most profitable for DCI outside of Championship week.

Shows how much influence the Cavaliers have within DCI. Bummer for Blue Knights, Colts and Phantom who all perform before a one hour dinner break. Cavaliers have five shows in six days next week so we will see if they can live up to everyone's expectations. Time is now for them to us what they can do.

They need the money from camps.

You need to look at what sections each corps has been assigned. They vary greatly. Once you have found a section you like use that corps code to get your seats. The best seats remaining are in the corps blocks. All seats are first come first sold. Over the years I have purchased through several different corps. Hotel room blocks are a rip off.

Problem with Cedarburg is that the stands face West so only the last couple of corps will appear after the sun goes down. Unless you want to be extra crispy going into Indianapolis I would pass. Shortened season means less exposer to the sun for fans. Plan on plenty of sunscreen. I plan to attend all five of the other Midwest Combine Shows.

I totally agree the average age-out is financially ruined for a long time at the end of the season. Plus they are physically and mentally exhausted. For the few that win a medal it is a great accomplishment. For the majority it is just something to put on their resume. The one and done era is here. The average top corps is turning over 70% of their members each corps. The average member cost of $5,000 is what is driving the turnover. I have first hand knowledge that this is happening. A two or three year vet in a corps is becoming an endangered species in the activity.

Blue Stars added also. All of the above were scheduled for The Cadets show on July 29th. Which is no longer listed.

4H Exhibit Hall at State Fairgrounds.

Schools closed in Hendricks County (Avon High School , Middle Schools, and Elementary Schools) closed until April 6th. Nine scheduled school days and ten spring break days. This will probably impact WGI since Avon Guard is the defending Scholastic World Champion. Avon also has an A guard. Winds group and percussion group.

Best way to thank the directors is to make a donation to your favorite corps. Money talks.

You can expect none stop solicitations for donations. How do they expect to pay for all of this staff?

DCI tried this centralized purchasing a few years back for peanut butter, jelly and cereal. Fuel and field-ling paint were separate contracts. Main reason it didn;t work was because corps would not commit to any volumes before season started and they would not pay in advance. How corps manage expenses while on tour is widely different. Some pay with cash, some pay with script and many pay with credit cards. The person on tour that is managing finances is the key. A combination of all three methods is the best. You don;t want to have a lot of cash on hand for obvious reasons. Corps use the cash from souvie sales to pay some expenses daily. Problem with credit cards is that the people in home office don't get a clear picture of what is being spent regardless how fast the expenses are loaded into their accounting system. Basically corps are broke before the season starts, during tour and hopefully they are not broke at end of tour. Having a solid budget and keeping within budget is the goal for every corps. Corps are not very good at paying their bills in advance.

What is important about the 8th place finish is that they stayed a head of The Cadets. Corps get to pick what shows they want to go to in 2020 based off 2019 placement. Blue Stars get to pick ahead of The Cadets which could result in a better tour. for them.

No Intermission Also

Who is going to buy a ticket to an exhibition? Who is going to sponsor an exhibition. This year we have had only three short panel shows ( Mesa, Sioux City, Casper) in each case an exception to the full panel rule was granted. Corps knew when they signed up for these shows that it would be a short panel show. Is the show sponsor required to announce in advance that a full panel will not be used? Exceptions to a rule are standard practice in most situations.