Sh0uldN0t

To recap ... In this all too familiar discussion on this board, we have covered: fatigue with tourism, disappointment with acoustics, allegations of dishonesty with respect to the retractable roof. Yadda, yadda? Great. It's a discussion. You can discuss what you want, good or bad. Meanwhile, I've been to every finals in Indy and every finals since the 80s. I like it that I haven't sweated once during the show. I like it that never was I concerned that it would rain during a performance. Attendance has held up even as corps numbers dwindled. DCI finances stabilized in part because of the favorable terms afforded by Lucas Oil and Indianapolis. While I don't object to a different venue, I long ago made my peace with Indy. Since the first Indy year I've been to shows in Allentown and Stanford, Dallas and Boston and lots of other places. I honestly don't believe it was a better experience. Maybe finals would be better someday in some other stadium or town. I have an open mind. I know this though: Wherever that might be, the people on this board will complain about tourism fatigue, acoustic disappointments and misleading statements about roofs or something else. Finally, to OP: I pick St. Louis because there are a couple of restaurants I haven't had the chance to enjoy in a while. Good a reason as any.

I think drum corps fans generally are pretty good at recognizing what corps are doing best, so I'm not sure what exactly the OP means. That said, I have enjoyed through the years recognizing the emotion the performers display. One that stands out was the Colts in 2001 when one of the women in the pit couldn't control her tears during the ballad, the wonderful Non Nobis Domine from the movie Henry V. This wasn't the staged emotion that is all too common in corps. She was feeling the song and the moment - and because she was, so was I. Here's another. I've been to a number of finals day rehearsals, including many for corps that have no shot at a championship. And yet I've never seen the work ethic flag. I love it how hard the members work right up to the last moment. I wish more people saw corps from that point of view.

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FLO's value is what it is. And if you choose not to go, make the best of it. I wish you the best. You just can't compare video to being there. You can't.

We have to remember that on an inflation-adjusted basis, gas prices are still relatively low. For sure every extra dollar spent is an extra dollar spent. However, oil is still a long way from peak prices (adjusted for inflation) even at $80, $90 or $100 a barrel.

Not really. Certainly out west the corps would burn as much (maybe even more) fuel running between shows on either side of the Rockies. Meanwhile, it would be only marginally better in the East. Then there are the fans. They would be the real losers. To save money on travel, there would have to be fewer shows, fewer corps or both. Doesn't really matter. The current tour already is mostly split east and west. Sure one corps usually takes a western tour where they and the western corps spend several weeks only in the West while everyone else is mostly MidWest. Then it's mostly Texas, the South and up to Allentown then Indy. There isn't that much crisscrossing anymore.

I seem to recall that one corps (maybe one from the Midwest?) purchased a fuel-price hedging contract for one summer. The idea was the contract would protect the corps against an anticipated rise in gas prices. Except prices didn't rise as expected. And so that corps had an expense that delivered no benefit. In essence, its fuel costs rose even though gas prices didn't. You just never know. There's an alternate scenario here. In that one, capitulation in Tehran takes threats off the board and makes the oil business more efficient, driving down prices. Let's hope.

It's been one of the fastest-rising costs for corps recently. I've heard figures like an extra $100,000 year to year for some corps. That's a busload of member fees and a fleet's worth of t-shirts. One reason why is drivers. They're in short supply and can afford to be pickier than ever. Why choose air mattresses and chuck wagon food when other tours are offering four-star hotels and restaurants? Bus companies are having to pay up for drivers. It's one of the many details afflicting the budgets of corps.

I think a lot of people are looking at this backwards. The BD organization likely isn't making this decision looking backwards. I might be they're looking forward and set these age bands (not those bands!) to help nurture BDB into new possibilities. By requiring age 18, they're telling members going forward that this will be a more mature experience on the field and off. If anything, they want members to regard BDB as more like BDA than ever. Though it might not compete for the gold any time soon (ever?), the B corps summer at 18+ will be more like experience of the A corps and many other World Class corps. It's probably no coincidence that the decision coincides with the sidelining of another World Class California corps, the Mandarins, this summer. The worst that can happen is they change the ages next summer. BD is one of the few corps that can afford to forego some member fees. Bingo receipts give them the luxury to experiment (as well as to run more than one ensemble).

I don't know, but perhaps this is just a way to manage between the B and the C corps? I suspect the A corps doesn't have any such rule so it can have whatever talent it wants (understanding, of course, that the A corps age skews older and that many younger performers aren't going to fit). Maybe?

I have no issue with paying the copyright owners. The problem is, as several comments here show, that the process of securing the rights is too complicated. It's one thing when a niche like drum corps can't secure rights in a timely manner. It's another when a top tier entertainment enterprise like Olympic figure skating is waiting for the okay while the competition has started. And therein is the real issue. The process is designed for movies, TV and all the places with lawyers and bank accounts. Two-bit operations like Phantom Regiment and other drum corps aren't equipped - and they aren't going to make the bank balance move much anyway.

I suppose you can look at it that way. I prefer to look at it as DCI leaving money on the table and fans in the lurch. Those late July shows in south Jersey or the Philly area have drawn large crowds even though they were a week or less before Allentown, which was geographically close. I was at the Glassboro show last year, and there weren't many empty seats. Two years ago, though a rain out, also was a huge draw despite the weather. And three years ago was an official sell out. Before Covid, the Chester show was always well attended by fans and top corps. It's not as if there isn't an audience willing (waiting!) to buy tickets. Why not sell them?

What a shame. Not that long ago, from my base in New Jersey, I would go to three or more shows a year - and usually with one or more feature three or more of the top six - before Allentown or championships. The last couple of years a show in Glassboro sold out or was close to. This year that show evaporated. Now the Delaware show too. So this part of the country that has long supported multiple shows in NJ, Delaware and Eastern Pennsylvania has nothing. Shame. (Full apologies to the all-age community. I just don't count those as proper DCI shows. Certainly not in comparison to previous DCI show featuring four or more of the top six.

Is the percussion any different from the rest of modern design? While I agree that the drum "breaks" really do sometimes feel like a break in the show, so does so much of the brass program. Maybe even guard. I'd rather have a less choppy show, for sure. I don't think it's just a percussion issue.

I'm with you. Though I have no idea whether it will work, I'm willing to listen and watch. I was skeptic when I first saw/heard the oboe. In the end, it was one of my favorite moments in one of my favorite shows last year. Not around here, as you've seen where the preferences are set for long ago. Problem with that is time marches on. The kids who march and will march? They march on too.