Jeff Ream Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 4 hours ago, ironlips said: It all depends on who's in charge. DCA is like the guy being airlifted to 4077 M.A.S.H. If he ends up on Hawkeye's table, he's got a chance at survival. Frank Burns probably won't save him. Here comes the chopper. Cue the music. take my advice....pull down your pants and slide on the ice. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironlips Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 1 hour ago, Jeff Ream said: take my advice....pull down your pants and slide on the ice. You know, there really is profound wisdom here. We Drum Corps folks do tend to take ourselves overly seriously. If DCA is around five years from now, God bless 'em. If not, something else will take its place and the universe will carry on. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Haring Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 9 hours ago, ironlips said: It all depends on who's in charge. DCA is like the guy being airlifted to 4077 M.A.S.H. If he ends up on Hawkeye's table, he's got a chance at survival. Frank Burns probably won't save him. Here comes the chopper. Cue the music. Frank, you were with Sunrisers when the corps made the transition from the Northeast Circuit to DCA, mid-1960s. Can you give all of us some background on that? Was DCA trying to destroy the Northeast Circuit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 4 hours ago, ironlips said: You know, there really is profound wisdom here. We Drum Corps folks do tend to take ourselves overly seriously. If DCA is around five years from now, God bless 'em. If not, something else will take its place and the universe will carry on. Walked away for ten years roughly 1993-2003. When I came back had DCA online one year and my dad came over. He said he was amazed the activity still existed due to costs and time involved for the members. Guy was blue collar and never went to college. But his common sense usually cut to the heart of things. Agree with him and will just be happy with what ever we still have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 5 hours ago, Fran Haring said: Frank, you were with Sunrisers when the corps made the transition from the Northeast Circuit to DCA, mid-1960s. Can you give all of us some background on that? Was DCA trying to destroy the Northeast Circuit? From little I know of NE Circuit only corps from there to do DCA Championships was Sun, Interstatesmen and maybe CT Yankees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hairbear Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 (edited) 23 hours ago, JimF-LowBari said: To be honest I never figured out what west coast corps got out of going to DCA. Nice to see them and sure they enjoyed the chance to go against a number of corps. But weekend warrior type drum corps doesn’t fit a coast to coast travel plan. Did pair of Saturday night/Sunday afternoon shows hours away a few years and 🤮. Getting home at o dark 30 and up for work Monday… 🤬 Try getting in your van and driving right to your employer's parking lot on a Monday morning for an 8 hour shift. I did that many times. It wasn't easy living 500 miles from Harrisburg! Edited June 16, 2022 by hairbear 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 10 minutes ago, hairbear said: Try getting in your van and driving right to your employer's parking lot on a Monday morning for an 8 hour shift. I did that many times. It wasn't easy living 500 miles from Harrisburg! Even with the love you had for this crazy activity still don’t know how you and your crew did it, year after year. But God bless you for doing it. 👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hairbear Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 2 minutes ago, JimF-LowBari said: Even with the love you had for this crazy activity still don’t know how you and your crew did it, year after year. But God bless you for doing it. 👍 Go back and read my post on this thread from June 10th. That'll give you the reason "why", but not necessarily "how". I don't know how I did it. In ten years from 1987 to 1996: no breakdowns, never hit a deer and only one speeding ticket. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 (edited) 1 hour ago, hairbear said: Go back and read my post on this thread from June 10th. That'll give you the reason "why", but not necessarily "how". I don't know how I did it. In ten years from 1987 to 1996: no breakdowns, never hit a deer and only one speeding ticket. Just reread and the Ohio Brass Factory mention jogged a few brain cells. Mainly corps being one of the first on the field for morning Prelims couple years in a row. (For everyone else's benefit Prelims and Finals were same day.) Always thought that was a crap deal and corps could have placed higher. As for no accidents, 1975-1981 Westshore: got hit by a drunk coming out of Meadowlands, got clipped by a guy who forgot he was towing a pop up camper, bus 3 getting nickname “Deer Killer” and one hitting a construction sign and replacing passenger side windshield while corps practiced. Hope you didn’t use up all your luck buddy. Edited June 16, 2022 by JimF-LowBari Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironlips Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 12 hours ago, Fran Haring said: Frank, you were with Sunrisers when the corps made the transition from the Northeast Circuit to DCA, mid-1960s. Can you give all of us some background on that? Was DCA trying to destroy the Northeast Circuit? If they were, I don't think it was their top priority. What they were trying to destroy was the virtual monopoly Hawthorne had on winning major shows and championships. It was felt that there was a kind of "good old hombres" club among contest sponsors and adjudicators. There may have been some truth to that among the latter category. The perception was that about 60% of all judges had marched with the Cabs, with predictable results. This may not have been so but DCA was formed to break the pattern, which is why Hawthorne was not invited for the first couple of years. As for the Northeast Circuit, there were some pretty solid corps swimming in those waters; Hurricanes, Carver, Marksmen, Amboy Dukes, Connecticut Yankees...etc. Of these, only the Hurcs were invited to join DCA when it formed in '64. The Sunrisers finally got into the club in '66, primarily due to some strong behind-the-scenes support they got from Sky director, Lefty Mayer. The Northeast Circuit still had plenty of mojo and the Agawam championship (won by Sun), still had some very strong corps like the Marksmen, Criterions and Yankees, in addition to a few dozen junior members like the Bronx Kingsmen...etc. Factoid: The first DCA show the Sunrisers entered was the '66 Championship, in Bridgeport. That evening they beat the Cabs (who were also admitted that year) for the very first time and finished a mere four tenths out of first place (on the tick system). The success of DCA may have contributed to the demise of the Northeastern Circuit, but I don't think it was a result of a full-scale assault. DCA didn't really want most of those corps, albeit most of them wanted in. Disclaimer: I was pretty young and naive at the time, having joined the Sunrisers at 15, so none of the political stuff was nearly as present to me as my hormonal situation. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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