Chester, PA - Wednesday, July 31, 2019

[Fran Haring]

21 minutes ago, ykw said:

Yes.  I've been a parent-volunteer for my kids HS band who've performed at USBands NJ Open Class Championships.  I have moved battery (marimbas, gongs and the like) as well as and props in and out of the stadium.   They'd have to close River Road to accommodate the trucks.   There is ample parking north of the stadium if no other events are occurring; these are all issues that could be mitigated or managed in advance with foresight.   I'd like to think the new YEA folks would be up to the task.

At least having this at Rutgers the audience would assured that they'd get to see the #### show.

I wonder if the "shuttle bus from the RAC" thing, used for football games, would work for a drum corps show at RU.

Don't know if it would too expensive to use the buses... but there is plenty of parking at those shuttle lots.

For those who don't know what the RAC is... it's the arena where Rutgers basketball is played (and other sports, I would think).

[Terri Schehr]

2 hours ago, dans said:

I was at the show and in the area all afternoon yesterday. I did not see any rain and the stadium area was dry prior to show time. The entire situation seems odd, for several reasons.

I wonder what the issue was then?  It’s all very strange. 

[Terri Schehr]

1 hour ago, Jeff Ream said:

well real grass is Talen. our band circuit inquired about moving our championships there when Scranton was converted to natural grass. they said that it wasn't artificial so we passed. Notice no major shows are on real grass anymore for pretty much any circuit. rain/wet is the issue

If I were running a show, especially this close to championships, I’d pass on the grass field. 

[Algernon]

Cavaliers props messed up the field. That's all there is to it

 

[Jeff Ream]

1 hour ago, dcikon2 said:

I do think there are many high schools (districts) who have fields with artificial turf.  I used to teach in Texas and I would say a majority of the larger high schools / districts had a stadium with artificial turf.  I am now in Kansas and there are several high schools with artificial turf.  I also remember when seeing many fields with artificial turf at our housing sites when on tour.  This was 20+ years ago.  

most states aren't Texas.

[ykw]

32 minutes ago, Terri Schehr said:

I wonder what the issue was then?  It’s all very strange. 

 

18 minutes ago, Algernon said:

Cavaliers props messed up the field. That's all there is to it

 

Yep.  I wouldn't say "messed up".  You could see flattened grass left from moving the Cavaliers' tower on/off the field, which probably disappear in a day or two.

But it was only going to get worse with the amount of props in the final 3 shows  (especially with all the movement of the Cadets stairs!).   

I think the stadium staff forces a standstill EVEN on a completely dry night; they must be adamant of maintaining putting green like pitch conditions for soccer.

The weather (brief light shower earlier in the day) allowed DCI and YEA a cop out; as other have mentioned, outside the stadium the parking lots and fields were completely dry.

Last year's show, on a hot dry night, Talen didn't allow tarps and supposedly they were unhappy with marks left by Boston's props.

It's time to find a new venue because I don't see corps getting rid of the props and tarps.

Edited August 1, 2019 by ykw

[E3D]

1 minute ago, Jeff Ream said:

most states aren't Texas.

It is a shame for sure that not all states are Texas. 

 

[E3D]

12 minutes ago, Algernon said:

Cavaliers props messed up the field. That's all there is to it

 

DAMMMM YOU "Caviliers" 

[Jeff Ream]

22 minutes ago, Terri Schehr said:

If I were running a show, especially this close to championships, I’d pass on the grass field. 

gotta find venues that are A) available B) affordable and C) will work. PA and NJ aint Texas when it comes to stadiums that are mini complexes. Hell there's still a ton of schools that have no lights at their stadiums. I believe one of the reasons it was moved from WCU was logistics surrounding the stadium and the number of available seats. The other major stadiums in Philly are real grass or the cluster that is the area around Franklin Field. So on that half of PA you have Hershey or Allentown, and well, there's a show there this weekend. UDel is possibly an option down 95 a bit, or you go to Rutgers or MetLife. I'm pretty sure they may be available, but definitely not cheaper.

with safety being a major push by DCI, even to extremes in some people's POV, and the escalating props race, grass fields will continue to be a huge risk. if it's artificial, their drainage systems should be fine and can handle the props. But then again even Hershey has weird rules about golf carts/tractors/gators taking stuff on the field, and now they have a fence along the sideline to the bleachers and were not going to allow anyone that came on the field with bands to go into the stands until we intervened and got them to allow one person that controls the sound.

[mfrontz]

2 hours ago, Tim K said:

I agree with much of what you say, but as meteorologists and climatologists often say, every storm is not an indication of climate change. 

'Sometimes a thunderstorm is just a thunderstorm' - Sigmund Freud