One Fan's plea...

[silvertrombone]

It is not the kids who are at fault here this season... it is the Crops administration in our opinion.

And once again...going back a couple of years...why the change at the top?? Are we still sold on the replacement? After all, his former employer went and robbed Cavies to replace him...interesting statement, eh?

1.) Really? And you know these facts how?

2.) There is a nice analogy I will not use here that i think everyone can relate to...

3.) BTW, keep stirring the pot. you will get to 100 posts before you know it!

1.) And you are???

2.) And that would be???

3.) And that would be necessary b/c???

Calm down.

it kinda reminds me of 97...after the emotional high of the 96 tie...the 97 show just didnt seem to connect

And 90. Inconsistency is the plague of this corps. See also the swings from 89 to 97, the drop of 98-2000. I thought 05-08 was a trend.

It really pains me to see low scores like the drums and brass are getting. BD's DL is already getting an 18, but in the shows Regiment's been in, they are still in the 16 range. What is up with that? The guys are executing very well. *sigh*

I agree with the above saying that it's the staff's responsibility. Design's definitely a mis-fire, in my opinion. That said, drum corps have done amazing things with little time. I still hope for the best...

It's a shame to waste a perfectly good drumline, eh?

I agree that this Red Violin show is not up to the standard set by Spartacus...but neither is any other show on the field this year. PR had a show last year that is as rare as the Triple Crown. It is totally unfair to expect them to top that effort...possibly ever again.

And yet...there's BD once again...right at the top of the heap. Might Rockford ever turn its gaze to Concord for an example?

I still haven't seen this show...maybe I'll pop into PR's housing site this afternoon...so I'll reserve judgment til tonight. But scores are not promising. Now, maybe my phellow honks got spoiled last year, and maybe we ALL took 05-08 to be a trend?? And it's still early...where was the corps in Texas last year??

Granted, there appear to be problems. Hopefully management will get their stuff together, because...boy, don't I look like the genie in the magic lamp...this is a management issue. Calendar management. Staff management. Strategic management. Etc.

The first problem that needs to be solved...is that the same old keeps recurring...every...single...year! That's BOD, not Executive Director. I mean, maybe it's ED, too, but the fact that this is a 20+ year trend says...it doesn't ORIGINATE with this ED, or any of his predecessors.

Regiment has enough alum all over in the right places that these recurring problems with specific captions (Visual, GE) are unacceptable. Brass writing seems to be pretty strong...maybe tweak the programming here and there...after all, when Faust isn't Faust, Spartacus has a lot of non-Spartacus and the Red Violin has a lot of non-Red Violin selections, there's a LOT of room to work as far as selecting stuff that works.

I agree...this show smacks of a need for a top-notch guard or it flops. Selections that are not related and don't portray the story rely on the guard to do so. That requires a staff to pull it off. 18-21 y.o.'s can't design such stuff when their primary concern is keeping hydrated, staying awake and getting showered and off to the show. That's design, and that's, like...MARCH, not July. Just sayin'.

I'm still looking forward to this show. This is indeed an ambitious undertaking--the type of offering I would hope every champion would undertake...not just try to do the same thing over again and take another ring away from the experience! But it still has to be executed.

And like OP said, that is clean, clean, clean!

Go, corps! Make us proud in Dallas tonight--Marie Czapinski won't be in attendance!

[TexasPRfan]

Wow, might this be the over-reaction thread of the year? All kinds of wild claims.

I haven't seen PR since late June in Illinios, so I'm looking forward to seeing them tonight.

Some of the assertions back & forth in this thread are just crazy. Does PR have the consistent track record that BD & Cadets have over 20 years, or that Cavaliers have over the last 10? No. Are they that far off, if you factor out the four year swoon from 98-01 where they fell out of top 5? No. If you subtract that 4 year wander through the wilderness (which included 2 terrific music performances in 00 & 01, by the way), this corps has been in the top 5 almost every other year since 1989 (not to mention their late 70s/early 80s tear). Cavaliers & Phantom went back & forth several times in the 90s, as did BD & Phantom.

If you fast forward to the last 4 years (05-08), PR has held their own with the "big 3" - besting BD THREE TIMES out of the last four years (which only they can stake claim to, by the way), splitting with Cadets (2 & 2) and finally getting past Cavaliers to go one for the 4 against the Green Machine. Guess what folks? That makes them batting .500 collectively against those 3 powerhouses at Finals in a four year span.

Clearly, they are not likely to beat any of the 3 this year. Was 2006 that long ago for Cadets, where they were lucky to finish in the top 5 & could easily have fallen as far as 8th? Wasn't it just 2005 that BD was lucky to hold off Bluecoats for 4th? Many think Cavaliers should have fallen out of the top 3 in 2007. No one is immune to a less successful year anymore. I think folks forget as well, that Regiment is not one of the more financially blessed corps of the traditional top 6. Sometimes they have had to make hard choices as to what type of top staff talent they can afford across every section. Thank god they make those decisions rather than spend themselves into oblivion! To consistently place in the top 5 (and yes, they have fairly consistently done so outside of 98-01), without the the deeper pockets of many of their rivals is in my mind absolutely amazing.

That said, I think what scares the longer term more loyal Phans like myself is the threat of returning to the visual/guard dark ages years of 98-01. But, I'm not going to let one year at MIDSEASON turn that worry into paranoia. The Regiment organization will move forward. They also have a powehouse percussion program going now that they did not have 98-01.

This show may be lucky to rival 2004 or 2002 of recent PR shows, but it will not be the flaming disaster many are pointing to currently - the staff is too good, and the kids are too talented. It IS great to see 8-10 quality corps that have legimate shows worthy of top 5 or top 6 consideration. Enjoy it, everyone!

I wish the Regiment organization and it's kids the best, and I will continue to yell my heart out for them every time I see them the rest of the season. Go For it Phantom!!!

Harvey

[RickCogley]

I was more impressed with the show in San Antonio, if Fan Network is any indication. I still hope that drill can be improved here and there, though.