What Can/Can’t Be Changed to Help

[Terri Schehr]

1 hour ago, Chief Guns said:

Lol my wife said with how much money we are paying for finals week tickets, you best believe we are seeing every corps all three days. She said for these ticket prices the corps should be serenading all of us at the hotels too lol. 

It’s something like $750 for two super three packs.  

[Chief Guns]

27 minutes ago, Terri Schehr said:

It’s something like $750 for two super three packs.  

Yes ma'am almost the exact price we paid. But it's totally worth it. 

[denverjohn]

1 hour ago, Terri Schehr said:

It’s something like $750 for two super three packs.  

I used to love doing the ticket price per corps math and coming up with something like $1 per corps BITD. Not so much now with 5 or 6 corps shows.

[Jeff Ream]

16 hours ago, rpbobcat said:

That's not true.

But, it would require DCI to be a true governing body for the activity.

Some examples:

   1. Have DCI handle purchases of non-perishable food and supplies 

   for all corps.

   Given the limited tour schedule, coming up with pick up locations

   for Spring training and the tour shouldn't be an issue. 

 

  2.Have DCI negotiate with fuel suppliers for "fleet" discounts.

 

  3. In N.J. an number of municipalities   formed Joint Insurance Funds.

Saves towns a lot.

Again, DCI could do something similar and handle insuring all corps

 

The "elephant in the room" here is that it would only work if the

corps make DCI into a true governing body for the activity.

Just don't see it happening.

 

no because the inmates then wouldn't run the asylum

[Jeff Ream]

13 hours ago, JimF-LowBari said:

I was a Computer Science (now called IT 🙄) major and transferred from a community college to a PA state school. Blue collar family so #1 priority was graduate (aka get the hades out) and start a career where I could support myself. 
Yeah I had different mindset than lot of people I was around. As for music … welI could play horn and that was it 😆

and where you went to college the drumline had their own house and produced a ton of drum corps people....Hestin, rennick...some others of note

[Jeff Ream]

12 hours ago, C.Holland said:

the basics... 

Find a way to bring housing cost down.  Schools charge more every season for use of their facilities. (and then add on admin costs, security costs, and yes... a la carte costs for every field and room used)

change the scoring sheets to be less geared towards 5-7 people in polos diagnosing the art on the field and reward the people buying tickets instead.  The activity is currently geared towards attracting students, on students, on students.  Because that's who fills the ranks.  Students and alumni are who largely funds the activity.  When you get outsiders with disposable income to fill the seats, those become more potential donors.  Marching music's major league can't get a TV spot as it often feels unapproachable for those outside of the activity. And the activity (band included) has become its own industry which feeds on itself.  Can't feed on yourself and expect to exist down the road. 

 

Find a way to get corps to stop monetizing the students.   
Read that last one again.  and read it yet again.  Seriously.  This means finding funding for non profit groups that is not dependent on students and their bank accounts. (or the debt they rack up trying to do this activity)

 

World class ( or at least the top 16) all have ways that they develop revenue apart from the students, yet still charge the students the cost of a used car.  Open Class are dependent on student dues, and their operating cash is largely dependent on how many students they bring in each season.  And yes, tours costs cash.  Rental of equipment, health professionals, athletic trainers, stage managers, drivers, housing, all costs cash.  Much of this is outsourced instead of donated.  For ethical, safety, and operational reasons many of these things are better off outsourced.  But the costs, when not afforded by the corps, are passed back onto the students. 

 

 

actually tv was explained to me several times for one simple reason...show length. look at non streaming tv...commercials how often? not every 17 minutes. like a 39 minute sitcom has 22 minutes of actual show. Price is Right is an hour long, but roughly 44 minutes is the show itself.

as for what the kids pay...in most cases it's still only 50% of the costs, mostly due to housing costs exploding

[Jeff Ream]

12 hours ago, IllianaLancerContra said:

But, you could have put instructors & support staff in these bus seats, perhaps removing a vehicle from the convoy, which would cost less $ overall.  

break- 

Here is a proposed solution-

Part 1 -Don’t limit props, amps, etc.  Instead, limit convoy size.  3 busses. 2 semi trucks.  One food truck.  One van for souvenirs, and one runner van.  That is it.  Any vehicle in excess is a 10-point penalty (per vehicle).  Creative side- design and whatever you want, but it has to fit in above convoy.  

Part 2 - Corps are limited to 3 in-person camps (including auditions) from Nov-May.  Online camps are unlimited.  Spring training is limited to 20 days (10 min show means 30 seconds of new material per day.  People in Marching Music’s Major League should be able to handle that.). 

Part 3 - Tour redesign.  Break country into regions:

Pacific Region- Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington.  

Mountain/West Region - Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho

Midwest Region - Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Tennessee 

East - Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, Carolinas, Georgia, Florida 

Other states w/ Corps will be fit in as appropriate 

First 2-2.5 weeks everyone stays within region   All Corps host home shows and other Corps in region attend.  End with some sort of regional championship.

Second 1.5 weeks Pacific & Mtn/West Corps work way to San Antonio; Midwest & East work way to Atlanta.  Seeding at SA/A based on ordinals from regional championships (winners draw to see who goes on last, then 2nd place Corps for next 2 slots, and so forth).

Next, Corps work way to Indy, but stay as East tour & West Tour.   No crossover.  First time everyone meets is quarterfinals in Indy.  Seeding is based on ordinals from San Antonio & Atlanta (top 2 in each group draw for last 4 slots, then next 2 from each, etc).   

Edit - note that I have intentionally spread out the pain between the design side (limit volume of stuff, plus rehearsal time), and the tour size (impacts fans; i.e., no more BD at Allentown, etc.), yet keeps some traditional venues.   Competition would be enhanced because no one really knows how they stack up until late Thursday in Indy.  And by spreading the pain, everyone has a stake in making this work.

 

in todays environment, staff and students on the same bus is an issue. not saying either side will act bad, but the liability risk isn't worth it.

 

spring training...shows start what 7/1? and corps moving in now? 6 weeks of cash draining non revenue generating time. paying whatever for housing at some college and their food program? yeah thats adding bucks. 

 

and the tour idea makes sense, but San Antonio is one of DCI's most profitable shows. you cut the number of corps attending in half, you lose paying fans. Same with Atlanta in whatever formart it is and Allentown. And Allentown is THE most profitable regional hands down. whatever night ( usually Friday) with BD and Bloo is the best attended.

[Jeff Ream]

10 hours ago, JimF-LowBari said:

Guess I’d better not go to a DCI show and say I prefer watching smaller size corps. I’d probably get burned at the stake or fitted for a straight jacket.

More interesting to me as I see a smaller corps and think: “not as many players, don’t fill up the field and can’t play as loud. Let’s see what they do with it!!”. 🤔😀

Open Class show in Dover 7/21. come on down.

[JimF-LowBari]

3 hours ago, Jeff Ream said:

Open Class show in Dover 7/21. come on down.

Planning on it…

[Terri Schehr]

8 hours ago, Jeff Ream said:

in todays environment, staff and students on the same bus is an issue. not saying either side will act bad, but the liability risk isn't worth it.

 

spring training...shows start what 7/1? and corps moving in now? 6 weeks of cash draining non revenue generating time. paying whatever for housing at some college and their food program? yeah thats adding bucks. 

 

and the tour idea makes sense, but San Antonio is one of DCI's most profitable shows. you cut the number of corps attending in half, you lose paying fans. Same with Atlanta in whatever formart it is and Allentown. And Allentown is THE most profitable regional hands down. whatever night ( usually Friday) with BD and Bloo is the best attended.

It is a bad idea.  My friend down here in Florida, one of the Cadets women in the first article by Tricia Nadolny, was sexually assaulted on the bus at age 16.