G7 Corps Members

[Glenn426]

Well going to the OP's question. Yes I have several students of mine marching with a couple of G7 corps and they have confirmed from early last week that they did have a corps meeting to discuss the G7 and effects of its announcement. As well as announcing that their corps director was no longer on the BOD of DCI.

Obvouisly with these members are working hard at move-in and having very little contact with the outside world, they are surely not experiencing the effects of the proposal yet. But I suspect that will change once they hit the road.

[wesleyrp]

.... And of course you just highlighted perfectly what is so very very wrong with this kind of a power grab attempt. It will do exactly what you said it will here. And no doubt, the architects of this scheme would LOVE to solidify such a huge recruiting advantage, over their already strong competitive and recruiting advantages that exist already. Such group slotting, if allowed to be implemented ,would be poisonous to the notion of free and open competition on a level playing field in which all World Class Division Corps would have a legitimate shot of a Title in future years.

Agreed and you know what's funny.... Let's go back in time and think about this and if it had been done in the 90's. For sure G7 would have The Cadets, Cavies, Phantom, Madison, BD and SCV. But depending on when it would have been done in the 90's that 7th corps could have been Glassmen, Star or X-men. While we all know that that top 6 was pretty consistent, the 7th corps would have different at various times. Let's not forget while the G7 corps are trying to gain world domination some of those corps that are doing well today and are in the G7 proposals would not have been elected in the eras before the current one. My point? I think G7 is a STUPID idea, but also to ignore the past and focus on current placements is assinign. Lest we forget the X-men effectively broke into the top 6 twice and thus paved the way for the Glassmen, BK, BAC and currently Crown and Bluecoats to be where they are now. If anything the dominant corps were more dominant in the 90's and 80's and not as much today. To me, I think this is a ploy by a puppet master in Hoopie to stymie the influx of more and more great corps that are gaining confidence from the growth of Crown, Blue Stars etc.... Are they scared to compete? I doubt it, but we can't deny that the competition is better than ever and the differences of corps 1-9 are very minimal, which begs the question, WHY NOW????? The activity has more quality than it's had in years. Yes students will still flock and maybe more so to the G7 corps but is that really healthy? I mean many of those students that flock will not be given the time of day and in the end they will go away dissheartened and get the perception of Ricky Bobby "You're either FIRST or LAST." Seriously if the other corps continue and many don't collapse is it not going to bring down the quality in those organizations because of the selfish nature of these Corps Directors. I had and still have pride for my corps as I know many do. As we struggled to make finals and then saw the hard work and blood sweat in tears it took to get back year in and out we grew close together. That's something that Hoopie and the "Master of the Universe G7 Directors" have lost sight in. Because rather than knowing how hard of work it takes to take lesser talent and compete with the best, these guys would rather put themselves in a position to thumb their noses. Will the students go and audition? Sure, but the Fan Base will shrink!!! If BOA G7 is on the way then I wish the students good luck in those groups, but I will not buy tickets. If we are to promote the activity as it currently is as band directors (which I do) I would not if it changes to the G7 format. I would not be alone in this!!! I have many students out marching with a bunch of different corps this summer and I am proud of that, I only hope that they get to continue competing the way it is now and that sanity wins over selfishness!!

Wes Perkins

[NakedEye]

....Such group slotting, if allowed to be implemented ,would be poisonous to the notion of free and open competition on a level playing field in which all World Class Division Corps would have a legitimate shot of a Title in future years.

Yeah, but this utopian view of the current system has virtually no history of actually working. Over the past several decades, who have been the legitimate title contenders? With very few exceptions, the fight has always been within the G7 anyway. Star got there with an exceptionally well-funded and run organization. Crown got there after TWENTY YEARS of hard work and smart decisions.

Except in theory, it has never been a level playing field. The strong stay strong and the rest have trouble becoming that strong without a mix of luck and herculean effort.

So, let the strong try their own alternate system for a while. If the rest of the corps really have that much potential, this would be their chance to show it. Removing the wall of impenetrable super corps may allow for some rapid improvement of the usual also-rans.

[wesleyrp]

Yeah, but this utopian view of the current system has virtually no history of actually working. Over the past several decades, who have been the legitimate title contenders? With very few exceptions, the fight has always been within the G7 anyway. Star got there with an exceptionally well-funded and run organization. Crown got there after TWENTY YEARS of hard work and smart decisions.

Except in theory, it has never been a level playing field. The strong stay strong and the rest have trouble becoming that strong without a mix of luck and herculean effort.

So, let the strong try their own alternate system for a while. If the rest of the corps really have that much potential, this would be their chance to show it. Removing the wall of impenetrable super corps may allow for some rapid improvement of the usual also-rans.

Really... The strong stay strong...... hmmmm, ok Phantom won in '08, and were what place last season? Cadets went from winning in '05 and dropped/had a bad year or two or three, SCV last season started to gain from the limbo they were in for a while. Sure BD, Cavies have been in contention for quite a while, but the other corps? Not so much. Crown got there because of the work they've done since the mid 2000s. The top three got broken into last season for the first time by a new member other than the old crew, so why not let it keep going? Like I said are they afraid more and more are becoming good enough to be a a threat to their "World Domination?" I don't know, but I do think it's a dumb and elitist idea!!!!

WP

[Contreuph]

I wouldn't want to be apart of a G7 corps even if I was being paid. Knowing that my corps could hypothetically fold as a result of this thing, it just doesn't seem right to ditch a corps you've worked so hard with to build. I would hate to see OC (which gets better every year) to go under because of seven corps thinking they are superior to the the rest.

Remember: If you have a problem with what I say, PM me. These comments do not reflect my corps, just my personal opinion.

[wesleyrp]

I wouldn't want to be apart of a G7 corps even if I was being paid. Knowing that my corps could hypothetically fold as a result of this thing, it just doesn't seem right to ditch a corps you've worked so hard with to build. I would hate to see OC (which gets better every year) to go under because of seven corps thinking they are superior to the the rest.

Remember: If you have a problem with what I say, PM me. These comments do not reflect my corps, just my personal opinion.

Well, said and very classy!!! OC is a great organization as are many DCI groups and that's the way it should stay!

WP

[Getintoyourcolor]

Really... The strong stay strong...... hmmmm, ok Phantom won in '08, and were what place last season? Cadets went from winning in '05 and dropped/had a bad year or two or three, SCV last season started to gain from the limbo they were in for a while. Sure BD, Cavies have been in contention for quite a while, but the other corps? Not so much. Crown got there because of the work they've done since the mid 2000s. The top three got broken into last season for the first time by a new member other than the old crew, so why not let it keep going? Like I said are they afraid more and more are becoming good enough to be a a threat to their "World Domination?" I don't know, but I do think it's a dumb and elitist idea!!!!

WP

but, last time I checked, no one is stopping any drum corps from rising up and being great.

to imply such (slotting will never allow anyone new into the top 7) is an insult to the judges.

any of the non-G7 should (if they so desire) build their corps into championship calibre organizations (certainly there are enough examples of how to do it) - then they should kick some G7 butt!

really...I'm so tired of hearing the whining...

[Richard]

but, last time I checked, no one is stopping any drum corps from rising up and being great.

to imply such (slotting will never allow anyone new into the top 7) is an insult to the judges.

any of the non-G7 should (if they so desire) build their corps into championship calibre organizations (certainly there are enough examples of how to do it) - then they should kick some G7 butt!

really...I'm so tired of hearing the whining...

Oh, you're right, I forgot how easy it was.

And what if corps decide to place importance on the experience they provide to members over competitive placement? I'm not saying they're mutually exclusive, but a corps could well feel that they're fulfilling their mission by providing a great experience to their members while putting a quality product on the field.

[sarcasm] But you're right, those corps need to nut up. [/sarcasm]

[cybersnyder]

but, last time I checked, no one is stopping any drum corps from rising up and being great.

to imply such (slotting will never allow anyone new into the top 7) is an insult to the judges.

any of the non-G7 should (if they so desire) build their corps into championship calibre organizations (certainly there are enough examples of how to do it) - then they should kick some G7 butt!

really...I'm so tired of hearing the whining...

The way the proposal is structured the G7 will be in a position for more visibility which means more sponsor money. They will have exclusive nights for super competitions which means more money for them and less for the non-G7 corps. While not impossible, in practice it will cement them as the top and make it extremely difficult for anyone else to break in. Should someone be able to break into the elite, there's always the 2/3 vote rule to help "correct" the situation. I'm not sure if this is a money grab or a power grab. Maybe they're both the same.

I'm not sure how you think it's an insult to the judges.

[tnrM1]

The way the proposal is structured the G7 will be in a position for more visibility which means more sponsor money. They will have exclusive nights for super competitions which means more money for them and less for the non-G7 corps. While not impossible, in practice it will cement them as the top and make it extremely difficult for anyone else to break in. Should someone be able to break into the elite, there's always the 2/3 vote rule to help "correct" the situation. I'm not sure if this is a money grab or a power grab. Maybe they're both the same.

I'm not sure how you think it's an insult to the judges.

EXACTLY WHAT I WAS THINKING.

Also, there's the corps that are rising up now, someone said something about how the G7 ould've been different back then? And Ibelieve there's also a thread about non-G7 corps trying to beat out others this season? I think this is a huge season for everybody, and a lot of things can be shuffled around, place wise. Wih G7, there will be less excitement in DCI. Think about it, instead of having 20-odd corps all competing for certain spots, you've got 8. Also if other corps fold because of this, what will happen to all the kids who really want to march, but can't afford to go out of state or to a different area? The quality will go down because of less experience, there'll be less fans (I got into drum corps by seeing a flyer around town for my home orps, I'm pretty sure a lot of people have in similar ways, and with less corps+less fans).