MikeRapp Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 Let me say first I did not march in a corps when I was of age, so I am simply a fan. I also want to say that one of the corps that got me interested in DCI was the Scouts. Now let me ask this question, which may be unpopular and that's why I am asking: Is being an all male corps hindering the Scouts' success? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cappybara Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 Let me say first I did not march in a corps when I was of age, so I am simply a fan. I also want to say that one of the corps that got me interested in DCI was the Scouts. Now let me ask this question, which may be unpopular and that's why I am asking: Is being an all male corps hindering the Scouts' success? Did it hinder the Cavies? No. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyDad Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 I just want to point out that, between 1973-2000, Scouts were top five 15 times. So, about half the time, and pretty wells spread out over those 27 years. One could argue that they haven't truly been championship contenders since 1988. Were 1996 and 1999 both failures because they weren't catching a whiff of a championship? Are you suggesting the last several years were as competitively successful as 1996 and 1999? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyDad Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 (edited) They're already exploiting every revenue source. They get about 150k/yr from alumni and have a big merchandising operation. They even have a beer and brats concession at Brewer's home games. If you have any ideas on how they can pick up an easy 600k/yr, give 'em a call. Heck, give ME a call. I can use the extra juice. There is simply no revenue source available to the other corps that can compete with a 7 figure gambling op. Until DCI institutes some kind of spending cap (excluding travel costs of course), the field will always be tilted to the west. As for the economics and legality of bingo, I'm not an expert. My guess is that it's a bit dicey for a non-profit to be running such an operation. SCV and BD have been doing it since the 70's, but I think they have come under pressure lately. Starting such an operation in the midwest would probably be cost prohibitive even if legal. You need a facility and you need licensing. Thanks for your answer. So they are attempting to increase the revenue stream. I honestly could not tell from your post whether they were satisfied at 900k per year or not. I know how the gentleman in my avatar raises money, right in Madison. He holds a three performance spring concert at the Kohl Center. Very successful. And as a sidebar, I've enjoyed watching Jon Schipper perform at several of these concerts. Now I understand the Scouts membership is from all over, but how about a couple day post season fundraiser, Or even one night - Sunday the day after finals. It's an idea. Rather than shooting holes in it, what are some other ideas? Concert by the corps. Bring in alumni to perform with them. How about an endowment? 75 years of Madison Scouts and there isn't ONE alumnus or supporter who has become very successful and is ready to give back in a big way.....if someone would reach out to him? Not one person? Do the Scouts employ a full time fundraiser? A part time fundraiser? Edited June 28, 2015 by HockeyDad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vferrera Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 (edited) Thanks for your answer. So they are attempting to increase the revenue stream. I honestly could not tell from your post whether they were satisfied at 900k per year or not. I know how the gentleman in my avatar raises money, right in Madison. He holds a three performance spring concert at the Kohl Center. Very successful. And as a sidebar, I've enjoyed watching Jon Schipper perform at several of these concerts. Now I understand the Scouts membership is from all over, but how about a couple day post season fundraiser, Or even one night - Sunday the day after finals. It's an idea. Rather than shooting holes in it, what are some other ideas? Concert by the corps. Bring in alumni to perform with them. How about an endowment? 75 years of Madison Scouts and there isn't ONE alumnus or supporter who has become very successful and is ready to give back in a big way.....if someone would reach out to him? Not one person? Do the Scouts employ a full time fundraiser? A part time fundraiser? Hey, look, I'm not shooting holes in anything. I have nothing to do with the Scouts (or any corps) these days. I'm sure they are open to new ideas, but everything is a cost-benefit type deal. Volunteer manpower, which is the key to all fundraising, is stretched to the limit. Scouts have a board and management team stacked with successful business entrepreneurs. These are smart, dedicated, hard-working people. I doubt they are satisfied, but if the alternative is breaking the bank to make top-6, that's just not a good long-term strategy. The corps director is a full-time fundraiser, and, yes, they do have successful alums who routinely contribute big bucks. The Cavaliers started an endowment fund about 10 years ago. I think it has a few hundred thousand. A general rule on endowments is that you can spend about 4% of the principal every year. So, to make any kind of dent in the budget, you need about 3M in the bank. To fully fund a lower-tier world class corps would require an endowment of about 30M. It's really hard to accrue that much capital when you are also leaning on alums for operating expenses. Like I said, I'm pretty much outside of the activity. I don't even go to shows any more. Too expensive. Wife and kids are not interested. My sole contact is the donations I make to the Scouts and Cavaliers and a bit of online bull-chatting. Pretty pathetic considering I marched 5 years and my dad was one of the founders of the Cavaliers and DCI. But if you ask which corps are returning value to their members, Scouts would have to be near the top of the list. They probably have the most loyal alumni of any group. 450 guys turned out to do the Macy's parade. 300 did the alumni corps in 2006. They have an alumni performing group that played with the corps last night. For most DCI corps, about 30-40% of the members are one-and-done, 'rook-outs' who save up to march their last year. Overall, I would guess only about 10% of DCI alums continue to follow the activity for more than a few years after their 22nd b'day. Drum corps, from a competition and performance standpoint is just a weird niche activity that has little to offer the real world. And it just gets weirder every year. Talk to people who marched in the mid-2000's and they'll say they just don't "get" the activity any more. Scouts offer a real sense of camaraderie, tradition, and values, which is worth much more than the competitive ranking. </soapbox> Edited June 28, 2015 by vferrera Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zachariaswmb Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 Are you suggesting the last several years were as competitively successful as 1996 and 1999?Were they failures? I say no. The guys had a great summer, and performed a show to standing ovations. I thought that what Madison was supposed to be about? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyDad Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 Were they failures? I say no. The guys had a great summer, and performed a show to standing ovations. I thought that what Madison was supposed to be about? Way to twist my words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zachariaswmb Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 (edited) Way to twist my words.No no, my friend. I was talking about how the original poster considered so many years to be failures, and wished for the glory days. You are the one who started talking about degrees of success (twisting my words, oddly enough). I was simply answering your question through the frame of the original topic. Edited June 28, 2015 by zachariaswmb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeRapp Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 (edited) Did it hinder the Cavies? No.When was the last time The Cavaliers were a medalist? It seems as if one of the biggest challenges of any corps is to start with a base of talent, expeirence and support that gives you a chance to compete with the top half of dci. When you start with half of the eligible population ineligible, that seems like a difficult if not impossible hurdle jump.Look at the Blue Stars, not far from Madison. 15 years ago would anyone have believed that they would be regularly garnering scores higher than the Scouts? To me, you have to ask whether their non gender specific application helps them compete. Edited June 28, 2015 by MikeRapp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tesmusic Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 When was the last time The Cavaliers were a medalist? That's not a valid point. When was the last time many coed corps were medalists or champions. The Gender of the members does not hinder the corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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