Good corps for my rookie year? 2017

[Stu]

Thank you, I'm trying to get my doctor to take me seriously. "I want to march in a drum corps, how do I get in shape?" I ask. "You're fine" he says. But I don't think I am.

Most people outside the DCI activity, including many doctors, typically see this as 'just' marching band and thus have no comprehension on how close the physical requirements in DCI are to collegiate or professional sports. Take in your smart phone and ask your doctor to watch the video posted in this thread which show another doctor come to an amazing realization how strenuous a single run-through is for a DCI Cavalier Tenor Drummer (heart rate, oxygen rate, etc...) that match those of professional athletes. Then ask your doctor if you are physically ready for that high strenuous level of a sports activity.

[BassClefTristan]

Most people outside the DCI activity, including many doctors, typically see this as 'just' marching band and thus have no comprehension on how close the physical requirements in DCI are to collegiate or professional sports. Take in your smart phone and ask your doctor to watch the video posted in this thread which show another doctor come to an amazing realization how strenuous a single run-through is for a DCI Cavalier Tenor Drummer (heart rate, oxygen rate, etc...) that match those of professional athletes. Then ask your doctor if you are physically ready for that high strenuous level of a sports activity.

This is helpful. Thank you.

[Stu]

This is helpful. Thank you.

Also, after you have the doctor watch the video inform the doctor that this type of strenuous work-out occurs most of the day, every day, all summer. Hope that is also helpful, and you are quite welcome.

[jbeatty89]

Thank you, I'm trying to get my doctor to take me seriously. "I want to march in a drum corps, how do I get in shape?" I ask. "You're fine" he says. But I don't think I am.

I have your workout plan here:

Sit outside without sunscreen until you get a scorching sunburn, then go to bed that night on a hard floor with no air conditioning. When you wake up eat a bowl of cereal, Run around the block for five minutes at as fast as you can. Pick up your horn and play a very down tempo piece of music while out of breath. When it inevitably sounds awful do 25 pushups to punish yourself. Do this portion on repeat for four hours. At lunch have as many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as you like and wash it down with purple koolaid. Afterwards return to your running, playing, pushup routine. At dinner have some spaghetti and pudding. Do another 4 hour block and go to sleep on the hard floor. For variation if you have access to a smelly bus, sleep on there for the first 5 hours of your night and transition to the hard floor for the last three hours.

This is basically what you will subject yourself to. You can only physically prepare yourself so much for what you will experience. Drumcorps is hard for everyone. It doesn't matter how physically fit you are. At a certain point in the season it becomes a mental game.

But for real, run a lot and do lots of pushups. If you are mentally tough you'll survive.

Edited June 3, 2016 by jbeatty89

[Shempy]

To EVERYONE who replied. It seems the biggest points expressed were to get in shape, and not to rule out OC. I think what I'm going to do is audition for 3 corps, 2 WC, and 1 OC. 2015 yielded all of the 'big guys' (Crown, BD, Coats, Cavs, Phantom, etc) were on the same weekend, but a lot of the lower placing WC worps such as Colts, Spirit, Mandarins and the Academy were the next week, while almost all of the OC corps are much later. If 2017 yields no conflicts in this plan, what I'm going to do is audition for one of the three I mentioned before (BD, Crown, Coats; I'll have to make a decision), Spirit of Atlanta, and Music City. Thoughts?

I think that's a great balance - you're sure to learn a lot from all of the auditions, and hopefully you'll get a contract offer to one or more of the corps. Start saving the money and getting into a workout regimen now - you'll thank yourself come camp time. Best of luck!

[cfirwin3]

I have your workout plan here:

Sit outside without sunscreen until you get a scorching sunburn, then go to bed that night on a hard floor with no air conditioning. When you wake up eat a bowl of cereal, Run around the block for five minutes at as fast as you can. Pick up your horn and play a very down tempo piece of music while out of breath. When it inevitably sounds awful do 25 pushups to punish yourself. Do this portion on repeat for four hours. At lunch have as many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as you like and wash it down with purple koolaid. Afterwords return to your running, playing, pushup routine. At dinner have some spaghetti and pudding. Do another 4 hour block and go to sleep on the hard floor. For variation if you have access to a smelly bus, sleep on there for the first 5 hours of your night and transition to the hard floor for the last three hours.

This is basically what you will subject yourself to. You can only physically prepare yourself so much for what you will experience. Drumcorps is hard for everyone. It doesn't matter how physically fit you are. At a certain point in the season it becomes a mental game.

But for real, run a lot and do lots of pushups. If you are mentally tough you'll survive.

Oh my goodness... this is hilarious.

But just so the kid doesn't run the other direction. Let me put a slant on this...

^^^This is guaranteed to happen every day... but it won't happen at every second of every day. There are bursts of energy and moments of rest, water and shade.

1. USE SUNBLOCK, Lots of it and you will have kick'n tan at the end (with a pasty forehead, sorry).

2. You will eat the PBJ not in a manner of disgust, but rather out of a true craving for the calories (PBJ and oatmeal never tasted so good as it does in drumcorps).

3. You will have to do things while somewhat out of breath (like the show :-)... but the rehearsal day builds up quite reasonably and you can do.

4. He is right... your greatest challenges are mental. You just have to choose to do it. And as I have been saying... so many that audition at camp 1 CHOOSE not to come back. Going back to camp 2 is a MAJOR victory in the process (if the organization works this way).

[BassClefTristan]

Oh my goodness... this is hilarious.

But just so the kid doesn't run the other direction. Let me put a slant on this...

^^^This is guaranteed to happen every day... but it won't happen at every second of every day. There are bursts of energy and moments of rest, water and shade.

1. USE SUNBLOCK, Lots of it and you will have kick'n tan at the end (with a pasty forehead, sorry).

2. You will eat the PBJ not in a manner of disgust, but rather out of a true craving for the calories (PBJ and oatmeal never tasted so good as it does in drumcorps).

3. You will have to do things while somewhat out of breath (like the show :-)... but the rehearsal day builds up quite reasonably and you can do.

4. He is right... your greatest challenges are mental. You just have to choose to do it. And as I have been saying... so many that audition at camp 1 CHOOSE not to come back. Going back to camp 2 is a MAJOR victory in the process (if the organization works this way).

After quite a lengthy phone call with my physician (After I emailed him the links to both of the videos in this thread) He has given me a work-out plan individually for me. He says to start slow, and not to really work myself until July. By July, I'll be running laps, doing push-ups, burpees, horn holding, more laps, and even more laps. He put quite an emphasis on laps. ALSO, starting tomorrow, I'll be taking vitamins, as there are holes in my nutritional balance due to the fact that well... I'm a picky eater. I imagine this is gonna have to change too.

Edited June 3, 2016 by BassClefTristan

[BoyWonder1911]

*Sorry for the long post - I really get into threads like these -

musical ability is not one of the top things that staff looks at during auditions - I can tell you that from experience.

Attitude is 1st, physical ability is next.

Corps members work literally sun up til sun down, every day save 2 or 3, and sleep on buses while on tour. I'd bet if you can make it through a summer with a Top 12 corps, you could probably do anything. There is probably nothing more physically demanding, save playing football or hockey where you're constantly flying into people (on purpose).

One has to have the mental and physical fitness to make it through. They don't care much about your musical ability, as long as you can play at a basic high school level. You play the music so many times during the summer, that literally anyone with an ounce of talent will learn to master the book by Finals. (Percussion is a different story, that's much more difficult. Brass only has 3 buttons to press.) That's not to say they take everyone - once they sift through those that probably don't have the ability to withstand the mental and physical demands, then they sift through those that are the better players.

So if you want to work on stuff, work on fitness. Eat some food, for crying out loud. Start running, and start doing other things to make your legs and back stronger. Someone mentioned a slipped disc, well that could be a reality.

I like to mention a story of mine on posts like these - I drove a semi truck for a top 12 corps, and during the Texas tour that year, I remember waking up around 2pm or so (since we travel by night) and getting out of my comfy air-conditioned truck - stepped outside for maybe 20 seconds before the stifling heat and humidity forced me back into my air conditioning.

It was like 104 degrees and humid, and the kids had been rehearsing outside all day like normal. It was one of the most humbling experiences of my life. I realized right then and there that there was no way I or anyone could live up to what those kids go through on a daily basis during tour. So much respect for anyone that marches -

please go and march a corps, any corps, it doesn't even really matter - you'll regret not doing it - I wish I had tried out when I was younger with a smaller corps instead of trying to Rook-out with a top 5 corps and didn't realize that attitude was more important than my ultra trumpet abilities. Yeah, I pretty much nailed Carnival of Venice on trumpet and still didn't make it. So telling me that you are top HS player, or such and such, well okay that doesn't matter a whole lot. ATTITUDE is #1. Something I have much more of now than I did 14 years ago.

Again, sorry for the long post.

[CrownBariDad]

Oh my goodness... this is hilarious.

But just so the kid doesn't run the other direction. Let me put a slant on this...

^^^This is guaranteed to happen every day... but it won't happen at every second of every day. There are bursts of energy and moments of rest, water and shade.

1. USE SUNBLOCK, Lots of it and you will have kick'n tan at the end (with a pasty forehead, sorry).

2. You will eat the PBJ not in a manner of disgust, but rather out of a true craving for the calories (PBJ and oatmeal never tasted so good as it does in drumcorps).

3. You will have to do things while somewhat out of breath (like the show :-)... but the rehearsal day builds up quite reasonably and you can do.

4. He is right... your greatest challenges are mental. You just have to choose to do it. And as I have been saying... so many that audition at camp 1 CHOOSE not to come back. Going back to camp 2 is a MAJOR victory in the process (if the organization works this way).

Don't forget "Drum Corps Feet" -- like a black cat with white socks.

[Ghost]

Don't forget "Drum Corps Feet" -- like a black cat with white socks.

And earplugs and a boonie hat from Costco. They're wider than most.