mjpudster

Gosh, maybe the corps would become community based again and actually offer an opportunity for kids who aren't quite up to DCI's standards. What a concept, become an actual education (501c3 - non profit educational)organization. I'm not taking a shot at you Grumpy, just trying to make a point.

I'm glad you realized the error of your ways. Seriously, I appreciate your good thoughts. Mike

For MBI it has never been about trying to beat someone. They have always been about putting the best possible product on the field. Mike

Bob was friend to all. He was one of the truly "good guys". Even though I only knew him for 8 years, it seemed like I knew him forever. I will miss his "yo Mikie!". Debbie, Judi and I love you and the girls. What ever you need, all you have to do is ask. Mike & Judi Palmquist

Well, Ike came and went. In his aftermath he left around 4.5 million people with no power, uprooted and broke many trees, bushes and fences. All in all, it could've been worse. I can't speak for anyone else, but my family and I are all fine. Some minimal damage, no power, no a/c and no broadband service, but as I said it could've been worse. Mike

First of all I want to congratulate Jim Gruber and the entire Buccaneer organization for 4 titles in 4 years. What an incredible accomplishment. You have done what only one other corps has ever done, win 4 in a row. Jim, you run a class organization and I am happy that we have gotten the opportunity to get to know each other over the years. With that being said, I have to also take this opportunity to apologize to you and your organization for something I said, in the heat of the excitement over Minnesota Brass's second place finish. In my excitement, when it was announced that the Bucs had won their 4th title, I said "who cares". I didn't mean it the way it was said, but one of your staff, who was on the way over to congratulate those of us with Brass heard me say it and, rightly so, took offense at what I said. I was reveling in our success and did not mean that no one should care that the Bucs took 1st, only that, at that moment, I didn't care who took first. Had it been anyone else, I might have said the same thing. I don't know, and I will never know. In any case, what I said was both inappropriate, and also very unkind to you and your fine organization. I hope you can accept my apology, and please convey to your staff, membership, and specifically the individual who heard my "stupid" utterance, my very sincere apology. Mike Palmquist

Thanks Tom. You, like Empire's founder Mr. B, his son David, and all of the members of the STATESMEN organization, are a class act. I can't begin to tell you the emotion that was running through all of us last night. I want to take this opportunity to thank the STATESMEN for, once again, running an exciting and energetic DCA Finals. I have said over the years that the 1996 DCA Finals, other than the field situation, were one of the best run and most first class finals I have ever attended. Rochester is a great host city and will always have a special place in the hearts of all of the membership of MBI. The Empire STATESMEN will also always have a special place in the heart of the membership, past and present, of MBI. I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate Jim Gruber and the entire Buccaneer organization on their 4 peet. They are a fine organization with a great history and are a very diserving champion. In 1977, the first year that I attended DCA, I was MBI Business Manager, and thanks to the Buccaneers Corps Director (whose name escapes me), we were invited to play at a show in Reading the night before DCA Prelims. It gave us a big lift. Bucs also set us up with a practice facility and were very helpful to a new (we had only been to DCA once before in 1973) DCA participant. Mike Palmquist

Fran, Glad to hear Barb is doing so well. I'm looking forward to seeing both of you in Clifton. BTW, 50 is now considered to be "middle age". Also, Barb, I'm still not worthy. Mike

MBI

Gives a whole new meaning to the term "a big head". Mike

Here's another streak for you. Name the 4 DCA Corps that have consistently been in the top 10 for the last 16 years? Mike

Fran, I'm still not worthy. Give Barbara a kiss for me. Mike

All I can say Fran, is that I am not worthy. You know what I mean. Tell Barbara I'm looking forward to seeing her next June in Wildwood. Mike

Be still my heart! Mike

Sorry, Gary. I should have figured that out on my own. Thanks for the "Heads up". :) Mike

And if my aunt had balls she'd be my uncle. You don't get it. And based on your circular arguement you won't. And as for you 3 competing corps, 3 exhibition corps example, last years Houston show only had two competing corps because Heat Wave pulled out of the show (ummm...there wasn't a 35 member rule last year, was there?) and there was a local Shrine corps exhibition, and a Junior corps exhibition. Somehow the crowd actually seemed to be entertained. Was it a big crowd, no. Did the Houston corps make money, no. Will they run another show this year, yes. If Heat Wave really wanted to continue they could have. I'm sure the Houston show would have accepted them as an exhibition as would the rockport and any other show in DCA South. They could have still gone to DCA and performed in the mini-corps show. Let me see. I have a team in a softball league. The league says that I have to put at leat 8 people on the field in order to play the game. My team shows up with 7. Do I play the game? NO. The rules say I need 8. In every aspect of our life we have rules that we have to follow. If you don't like the 35 member rule then go to the DCA meetings and complain to the membership. Maybe they will listen to you. Better still, start your own corps. Have more than 35 members, go to DCA and place in the top 10 and get a vote. Maybe you can change the whole organization. However, quit blaming the rule for the demise of Heat Wave. It isn't the reason they folded. Even one of their own members came on the forum and said that. I don't know what your involvement with the activity is, but many who have been involved with the activity for years seem to understand the arguement. It only seems that it is those on the perifery that can't accept the reality of the situation. I'm sorry Heat Wave folded. I will miss them. I have known Vic for many years. Heat Wave was his baby. He gets it and understands it. Mike

Who are the sponsors for the DCA South shows? The Corps. Why do they sponsor the shows? They do it to try and build up a fan base. They do a round robin type program. I'll come to your show if you come to mine. They don't pay the corps anything because they are all in it together. They also don't pay the corps anything because they don't make anything. In fact they lose money. Those are the facts. I still stand by my original statement. If I were a sponsor (a band booster organization for example) I certainly would not want to run a show and lose money. If all I can get is 5 corps with 25 to 30 members, I doubt that I'm going to be able to fill the seats. If I don't fill the seats, I don't make any money. Mike

Let me try this one more time. What part of a sponsor wanting a corps to be at least 35 members don't you get. You can slice this every way you want, but the bottom line is that if I were a sponsor of a DCA show, shelling out a large chunk of change, and all I got was a bunch of corps with 25-30 members, I would be ######. And as for one rule change negating a good chunk of our efforts, it just ain't so. Yes, Heatwave has gone inactive. Yes, there is a lot of us who will miss them. Is this an indication that the whole activity is in jeopardy, I hardly think so. And as for working harder instead of killing off a corps, who should work harder. Should DCA or the other member corps go out and recruit members for Heatwave or for anyone else who needs members? I'm sorry, but I don't think you really "get it". This, DCA, is an organization made up of individual corps who all want the same thing. They want the opportunity to perform in front of a crowd. They want to remain financially solvent and they want to survive. It use to be that many of the corps could have cared less if another corps folded. They thought in terms that it just meant a greater opportunity for them. Most, if not all, have come to realize that they need as many corps as possible in order to keep the activity fresh and entertaining. The member corps in DCA who voted for the 35 member rule did it because it made sense from a business standpoint. The one thing that most of us have figured out over the years is that although drum corps is a hobby, if you don't run it like a business it will not survive. As you said, "I've never had the pleasure of sitting down with the voting membership at a DCA meeting". Well, until you have maybe you ought to hold your judgement and public chastising of a group with which you are unfamiliar. Mike

Let me see, what have I done for the activity. Hmmm....Corps director Minnesota Brass, 1976,77,78 (Business Manager 1977). I'm still active with the corps in various support positions, even though I live in Houston, Texas. Corps Director (1997 - 2001) Business Manager (1995 -1996) and one of the original members of Bayou City Blues, Houston, Texas, (now Gulf Coast Sound), 1991 -2001. Associate Member, World Drum Corps Hall of Fame, 2004. I guess if you knew the "facts" you would know that we are on equal terms. I have attended DCA meetings since 1977. I have seen DCA go from an eastern booking circuit to and organization that is trying to expand the activity. I was at the one on May 5th. When was the last DCA meeting you attended? As I said in my original post, "They've turned the I&E's into a great social experience. They've pushed the Mini Corps activity. They added the Class A competition. They've even made it possible for the top 3 Class A corps to compete in finals. They have opened up regional entities, DCA South, DCA Central and they have santioned shows for the west coast corps. They've embraced the Alumni activity. What else do you want?" As far as I'm concerned, I will miss Heat Wave. I saw them at their very first DCA mini corps performance up on the mountain in Scranton in, I think, 1993, when the only song they could play was "Heat Wave". Vic Kulinski, the founder of Heat Wave is a very good friend of mine, but as it was said in this forum by Alan Mundy, a member of Heat Wave, "To those who want to make Heat Wave into a cause celebre in their battle with the imaginary powers that be, thanks but no thanks. It is certainly true that without the 35 member rule, Heat Wave likely would have soldiered on for another year, and while I'm plenty biased, I think we would have surprised a lot of people with the quality of the product we put on the field. Nevertheless, the tale of how we got to the point where we had to worry about that rule is a Shakespearian drama that extends back several years and has nothing to do with DCA as an organization or its constituent corps."DCA has made some mistakes, but their desire is to put out the best product they can produce. If I've missed something, please tell me what it is. Mike

It always amazes me when someone who has been in the senior activity for what, 3 years knows it all. Where do you come off referring to the " self serving DCA Board". What have you done to advance the activity? I'm sorry to see Heat Wave go, but If I were a show sponsor who paid a sizable chunk of change to sponsor a show and one of the competeing corps showed up with 25 to 30 members, I don't know how happy I would be with DCA. DCA has come a long way in the last 30 years. They have tried very hard to expand the activity. They've turned the I&E's into a great social experience. They've pushed the Mini Corps activity. They added the Class A competition. They've even made it possible for the top 3 Class A corps to compete in finals. They have opened up regional entities, DCA South, DCA Central and they have santioned shows for the west coast corps. They've embraced the Alumni activity. What else do you want? Because Heat Wave decides to cease operations it is somehow DCA's fault. Grow up. Come back when you understand the facts. Mike

Do the horn trick, do the horn trick! LOL Mike

I have a Kanstul Powerbore Soprano in very good condition that I will sell for $450, a Kanstul Mellophone that I would also sell for $450 and a DEG 3-Valve Soprano that is in excellent condition and I will sell for $300. All 3 horns have cases and are in the key of "G". Also, if anyone is a collector, I have a Kanstul Bass Soprano (a very interesting horn) that sounds a little like a French Horn that I would like to get $350 for. Mike

Gosh, I don't know? What do you think? Mike

Oh, I see, because we all missed the point, your comments weren't really meant to upset anyone, they were meant to inform. Umm, interesting. I still read what you said as being that since you don't like the Cabs, how did you say it, "rat rat rat" poor quality music, you were concerned that too many of the people who you heard leaving the stadium were too confused to realize that the corps was the Hawthorne Caballeros ALUMNI Corps, and not a competing DCA Corps. I think most people understood the difference, and if there were a few who didn't, BFD. As another poster suggested, maybe it would have been better if you really didn't care whether people thought that the Cabs Alumni corps was a competing DCA Corps, or just an organization that enjoys entertaining an audience. As I said in an earlier response, please don't subject yourself to OUR brand of entertainment again. We certainly don't need your OBSERVATIONS. And with regard to your comment about DCA not being as popular as DCI, relative to the number of particpants in each activity, I would say that DCA is doing just fine. Oh, and now I feel comfortable about moving on with my "rat rat rat" life. Mike

I'm sorry I posted the same message several times. I hit the wrong button, after all I'm old and I march in an Alumni Corps. Obviously, according to Tenor Tim, we should all just quit after we get out of Junior (?) corps. I'm sorry if you don't like the Cabs or the Cabs Alumni. Since I have no idea what your background is, I have no way to comment on yours, or whatever corps with which you perfomed achievement in the Drum Corps activity. I will say this, however. I doubt very seriously that I would ever say the things you said about any corps, "First off, let me say this. I'm not a big fan of the Hawthorne Caballeros nor their alumni corps but I respect and appreciate what they stand for and what they've done in the past. I just don't like their style. I prefer listening to quality music. Not the "rat rat rat" coming from the horn line (outside of Frank Ponzo - great soloist). Sorry, not my thing. Their Alumni corps was well represented (numbers wise) and alot of the "old timers" really had a good time while they performed. And, that's why they were there ... to perform and entertain the audience. I was not entertained but I'm one opinion (you have yours and I have mine)." be it Alumni, Senior or Junior Corps, unless I had some significat axe to grind. What happened? Did you want to be a Cab and they didn't want you? I'm truly sorry that you don't like our style and that you prefer quality music. I guess you are refering to the quality music you get when someone sings drum parts, or are you refering to the quality music you get in opera, or broadway. My only civil response to you is, the next time the Cabs Alumni come on the field at any show which you are attending, please get up and leave. Don't subject yourself to the pain of the "rat rat rat", low qualiity sound that we produce. It will make both of us feel better. Oh, and BTW your comment, "but I respect and appreciate what they stand for and what they've done in the past.", you don't respect us at all. If you did you would never have added that comment. Mike