Backstrom Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 I haven't been following DCI much in recent years, but what on earth is up with the Cascades? They scored a 49.500 at Renton. That's the lowest WC/D1 score I can remember in recent years. They only had 8 guard and a very small hornline, but do any insiders have the scoop on what's the deal with the organization? I know they had a reorg a few years ago but this looks like a case of failed management? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post danielray Posted July 1, 2013 Popular Post Share Posted July 1, 2013 (edited) . Edited April 19, 2014 by danielray 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NR_Ohiobando Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 (edited) I haven't been following DCI much in recent years, but what on earth is up with the Cascades? They scored a 49.500 at Renton. That's the lowest WC/D1 score I can remember in recent years. They only had 8 guard and a very small hornline, but do any insiders have the scoop on what's the deal with the organization? I know they had a reorg a few years ago but this looks like a case of failed management? Ok, first off comparing scores between different shows is not a good idea. So let's not focus on "this is lowest in DCI!". If you look at the recap from Renton, their music scores are the highest for them right now. The percussion scores are right behind Oregon Crusaders. The percussion section itself is very normal sized as well. If there was a brass or music caption at that show, this show would be much closer to OC. Instead they got reamed in the categories they were least successful in. Where they are getting ripped apart is Visual and GE. Why? DCI promotes all sorts of wacky visuals. The more you do (successfully executed) the more you are rewarded. Seattle's show right now is pretty comparable to an early 2000s show, and would actually be fairly decent a decade ago. Unfortunately they do not have much to work with right now compared to everyone above them, hence the ripping apart is validated. Once the show adds content the gaps will start to close in, but right now the difference between the corps above them is very noticeable. I'd bet a big part of this problem is just geographically-related. They don't have the same advantages of a California corps when it comes to getting things started early and getting everyone there for camps. And even though they've been around in World Class longer than Oregon Crusaders, they're still not as well established due to the off-years. (plus they can't really pull from OC like they used to) On another note, their colorguard situation is comparable to that Troopers show from a few years ago. I think it was 2008(?) when Troopers had a very decent sized corps... and like 6 people in the colorguard. Over the season they were able to add some more, but a large portion of their early struggles were attributed to the lack of colorguard. Seattle doesn't have the luxury of existing in a time before all this 50/50 focus on visual vs music, so they are getting ripped apart. So yeah, lots of reasons. I wouldn't say the management failed; they're in a tough enough situation as it is. If anything they're giving themselves a huge amount of room to improve. I suspect they'll pass up Pioneer eventually. Edited July 1, 2013 by NR_Ohiobando 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpiritVet Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 I have a friend who just joined the corps about a week or so ago, and I'm sure he's not the only one. A week is probably not enough time to get them in, so anything they put out right now is probably very hole-y and incomplete. Not worried about them going forward. Some corps just tend to be a little slow on the get go and don't even perform full shows until mid July. I remember Academy performing a June show a few years back and scoring mid 50's and then not seeing them again until Minneapolis, where they looked fine and within striking distance of finals. It's more or less the same thing here, except in a "lower" range. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OC Euph Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 I am glad to see people backing up the Cascades in why the scores are so low, but I feel I must chime in still. I saw them at the Tualatin show, and I am not surprised by the scores at all. You can tell just by looking at them that they are very young, and probably not a lot of Corps vets on the field. With young age comes rookie mistakes, especially visually. There was a large number of sound issues, with individuals sticking out of the hornline, or moments where it was hard to tell if sections were even playing, granted this could be due to still having a somewhat normal sized drumline with a small hornline. I tried really hard to enjoy the show, but I didn't really find it inviting. I've never really enjoyed Lewis Norfleet's original compositions, and I even marched one! (Oregon Crusaders 2005 had "some" original comps from Lewis). Now with that being said, I really hope the show comes together and become competitive with Oregon Crusaders, a FRIENDLY rivalry would be really fun in the northwest, and possibly create an even better Corps experience up here. Good Luck Cascades! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post BRASSO Posted July 1, 2013 Popular Post Share Posted July 1, 2013 I haven't been following DCI much in recent years, but what on earth is up with the Cascades? They scored a 49.500 at Renton. That's the lowest WC/D1 score I can remember in recent years. They only had 8 guard and a very small hornline, but do any insiders have the scoop on what's the deal with the organization? I know they had a reorg a few years ago but this looks like a case of failed management? No Corps that has found a way to still perform and compete can be deemed " a failure " in my opinion. 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skywhopper Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 (edited) Absolutely not a case of failed management here, exactly the opposite. The new director is an extremely competent and accomplished executive (Microsoft, Amazon, etc.). Looks like he worked on Xbox 360 and then Zune. Xbox 360 has been a success in the market, but hasn't made Microsoft any money. Zune was a complete failure... That said, I don't think working as a mid-level exec in a huge corporation has any bearing one way or the other on his ability to run a drum corps successfully. Wildly different financial situations and skill set requirements. He may be great, he may not. Edited July 1, 2013 by skywhopper 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcibrando Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 at what point do we stop scoring corps performances and start rewarding with crowd response these days sometimes there is more scores THAN crowd response which I think is not a good trend in my opinion 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danielray Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 (edited) . Edited April 19, 2014 by danielray 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShortAndFast Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 Although the number was a little lower this year, I didn't really think they were at too different a place from the Portland 2012 show. Decent drum line, young & small brass line, guard practically not there, show concept that they can't even begin to communicate in their current state. I'm glad that the new director has put their financial house in order, but it seems like they still have a very long road ahead of them. In particular, it's not a very good sign that their recruitment is so weak when the NW is sprouting new open class corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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