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Rain in DCI


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so with domes/roofs, we stay dry and air conditioned but we sacrfice sound.

i'd rather be wet

To be more correct, we ensure the most important show of the season, as well as one of DCI's primary moneymakers AND all of the other large Regional shows DCI produces that are also indoors, doesn't get canceled. If 2012 Finals would've been canceled, that would've been catastrophic. Even in CA one of the largest marching band circuit Championships had to be canceled because of rain, disappointing a ton of students, parents, fans, and school staff members. I was there in 1993 for that rain, and it is a small miracle that things didn't get worse; hell, it was a miracle Finals HAVEN'T been rained out before moving indoors! Before 2012 I was with you; but after seeing the benefits of being indoors, I think there's no question that sacrificing sound for insuring Finals won't be canceled is more than adequate.

Oh, and of course there is the whole safety thing. Weren't there fatalities in Indy in 2012 at another, outdoor venue that had major problems with the rain? While DCI fans were inside Oil Can marveling at the sound of rain on the roof, people at another entertainment venue were literally dying because of the weather. That Glassmen video posted here is kind of funny, and a hype, and any of use who marched a season or two likely has a similar story to tell. However, the dark side of that story is the potential for a member to seriously hurt themselves while moving at 200 bpm in torrential rain. Or a fan slipping on stadium steps and breaking a bone. It's my understanding that even in 2012 with huge rain corps could warm-up indoors as well as perform indoors. That is INCREDIBLE, and that is completely worth whatever sound deficiencies are inherent with domes. I'm with you that outdoors sounds a LOT better than indoors, but to trivialize the benefits as "yeah we get AC!" is a disservice.

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The one that immediately jumps to mind for me is Magic's semifinals performance in Orlando in 1997. I love when the drum major turns to the crowd and puts on sunglasses. He then looks up at the torrential rain, shrugs his shoulders, and then turns back and starts conducting the corps again.

It rained the afternoon of finals in 1995 in Buffalo. Things cleared up and cooled down for finals, but anytime an early corps went to the ground, when they stood back up they had very noticeable wet spots.

I also remember Phantom performing in some pretty serious rain at DCI Midwest at Camp Randall in 1996.

Z

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I remember at DII/III finals in 2000(or maybe 2001, but I am pretty sure it was 2000) there was a storm that popped up. It has been so long, that maybe someone else can remember all the details, but I am pretty sure they had the parade of ageouts, and I can't remember whether any of the corps had performed yet, but we were asked to leave our seats, and find shelter. I think there may have been a tornado watch or warning that night as well. After about an hour to an hour and a half delay, all the corps ended up performing, making it an extremely late night, especially considering the next day was quarterfinals. I know it was one of those 2 years, as I remember who we were talking with when we found a place to stay safe, but the same people were with us 2 years in a row.

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Another interesting comment on the 93 video that was shown on PBS. I believe they showed it live, and we had set our vcr to record it since we were there for finals. The older guy, I want to say his name is Kurt Gowdy, was commenting that night. It only rained hard during Scouts that night if I remember right, and Kurt had made the comment how Scouts guard was dropping equipment which was uncharacteristic of them. I remember thinking what an idiot he was. Anyone who has been around corps knows how much water on equipment can cause so many problems. The weight is different than normal, and a lot of the equipment becomes very slick when wet. I thought the Scouts put on an amazing performance that evening, especially considering they were really the only corps that had any major rain issues that evening.

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I worked a number of DCI shows run by YEA in the 1990s... and for several years running, it rained the day of every one of those shows.... either just before the show, during the show, or some combination thereof. LOL.

Didn't matter what the show date was... didn't matter what the weather had been for days leading up the event, or what the weather would be like the days after the event... it rained the day of the event. It was uncanny.

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Another interesting comment on the 93 video that was shown on PBS. I believe they showed it live, and we had set our vcr to record it since we were there for finals. The older guy, I want to say his name is Kurt Gowdy, was commenting that night. It only rained hard during Scouts that night if I remember right, and Kurt had made the comment how Scouts guard was dropping equipment which was uncharacteristic of them. I remember thinking what an idiot he was. Anyone who has been around corps knows how much water on equipment can cause so many problems. The weight is different than normal, and a lot of the equipment becomes very slick when wet. I thought the Scouts put on an amazing performance that evening, especially considering they were really the only corps that had any major rain issues that evening.

Perhaps my all-time favorite Curt Gowdy quote came during that telecast. Curt led into Madison performing in the rain with the jewel, "Steve [Rondinaro] told me he's never seen rain before." Rondo's reply (perhaps after a second to process what he'd just heard) was something along the lines of "it has NEVER rained before during a DCI finals."

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Perhaps my all-time favorite Curt Gowdy quote came during that telecast. Curt led into Madison performing in the rain with the jewel, "Steve [Rondinaro] told me he's never seen rain before." Rondo's reply (perhaps after a second to process what he'd just heard) was something along the lines of "it has NEVER rained before during a DCI finals."

I think also in 1993 after Star's performance he said something like, "I'm going to let Steve explain this one." I always thought it came across to me at the time as, "I have no idea WTF I just saw - Steve can you try to explain that?"

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I think also in 1993 after Star's performance he said something like, "I'm going to let Steve explain this one." I always thought it came across to me at the time as, "I have no idea WTF I just saw - Steve can you try to explain that?"

I remember that as well -- in fact, I still have it on tape somewhere.. Although I had grown up a Curt Gowdy fan (from all of those Saturday afternoon NBC "Game-of-the-week" telecasts), my immediate thought was "Oh my goodness, Curt...time to get back to baseball." I was, and still am, somewhat baffled by his inclusion on a DCI telecast in the first place.

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