desertrat68

And I lost my feed (driving in rural Indiana to visit family before finals) right before the anvil chorus.

If you are trying to find decent seats, there may still be some seats sold by individual corps. Check the websites of the world class corps. I haven't looked in a while to see who still had some left. Otherwise, check the resellers or get their early on Saturday to buy some from a seller on the street. Look for someone who doesn't look like a scalper and wear your corps t-shirt. You're more likely to get tickets from another parent from another corps with extras.

My Blue Devil actually posted a photo of his plate full of snack on his Instagram. Looks like he took more than one serving of each item. Well done, sir!

I've yet to see Boston, Crossmen, Blue Stars, Oregon Crusadors, Madison, Spirit, Colts, Surf, or Cascades - hey, I gotta leave some things to see for the first time when I get to Indy - so I'm leaving them out of my favorite lists for now for lack of information. Of those shows I have seen, I really enjoy Pacific Crest and I LOVE Cadets - which is really hard for me to believe. (No pun intended) I was prepared not to like it but it just grabbed me the first time I saw it and it might be my second favorite show this year. And finally, The Academy and Blue Devils are near and dear this mother's heart for different reasons. I was shaking last year at Finals when The Academy FINALLY got to perform on a Saturday in Indy and I enjoy my home town corps' show once again this year. They have stayed true to their commitment to put on shows that are "fan friendly" and the organization is filled with amazing people that its hard not to be a fan of whatever they put on the field. Ask Dan Farrell. But the Blue Devils... it brings me such joy to see my child having the best time in his entire drum corps experience. I am so thankful they designed a show I could love, too. And that ballad. Good lord, how can you hear that and sit perfectly still? Its totally stuck in my head.

Yup! I am an unapologetic Academy supporter (and long time volunteer) so am rooting for them to pull a BAC this year. That said, I saw a lot of young men from Madison just crushed last year after semi-finals so I know they will do everything in their power to keep from feeling that pain again. No idea how Mandarin's will respond to the challenge, but for drum corps fans in general, I hope they respond well. Go Academy!

Don't look now, but it seems as though Academy has finally worked out some kinks and is making a move to get into the fight for that 12th finals spot.

I highly doubt you will see them change. Several years ago they made a conscience decision to produce accessible shows that would engage the audience. I don't see them abandoning this any time soon since it was the formula that finally made them a finalist corps. They've created a brand, found their niche, and continue to steadily build the organization.

Yeah, I remembered that but I was on my way out the door this morning. They had listed it as a laundry/free day but changed it. I figured it was still a laundry day because they had one this Sunday and it a long time between San Antonio and the end of tour to go without! (I have an expired tax credit in Blue Devils and I like to know where he's at on any given day in case he calls needing money.)

The Academy will be at the following: August 1-2: High Point High School, Beltsville MD, (though the 2nd is a free day and the corps will not be rehearsing) August 3: in MA August 4-5: Warren Hills Regioal High School, Washington, NJ August 6: who knows because DCI doesn't All the rest of the Blue Devils housing info can be found at their website on their calendar with the exception of 8/2.

And don't forget the actual show sites that would have to cut the number of corps in their show because their lots for corps parking are currently maxed out? It not a lot, but enough. Oh, and the food itself. You'd have to get food deliveries more often which in and of themselves are a major scheduling nightmare as is today. Sorry to be a Debbie Downer, but my husband and I have spent years as volunteers working in tour planning to not look to see the multitude of logistical issues increasing the size of a corp would inevitably bring.

Another bus, another semi especially if a corps only has one for equipment (and leasing the tractor and paying the CDL), more staff to teach, more uniforms to buy/launder (if you've ever done uniform laundry day on tour you know what a chore it is to do 150 - 200 is frightening!), probably more volunteers needed to take care of uniforms and feeding the additional numbers. More people to go through showers could mean less rehearsal time. More people getting sick & injured on tour and needing to see a doctor. More volunteers to vet and recruit. When the size of the corps were expanded from 128 to 150 the logic was that you didn't need an additional bus. That was incorrect because they lost the spots adults took on those buses and the equipment trailers were not big enough. Most corps right now are trying to stay financially stable. The corps that don't get free instruments and/or uniforms would be struggling to keep up. I would also think that many food trucks would need to be replaced to feed the additional 50-60 people. Maybe if they voted for an increase in size to be implemented few seasons in the future it would give the corps enough time to build the fleet infrastructure to be ready. I just don't see it happening in the near future. Plus you'd need to recruit more kids to fill in the 1200 new world class corps spots. What might that do to open class corps?

Actually, they are triplets but their sister doesn't march.

The mello solo is during the Bizet piece. The flugel soloist from last year is definitely marching BD this year. The mello soloist is his brother who stayed with The Academy. (I wanted to answer this yesterday but I had to register and that took time.)