Tell US About Your First Time Marching....

[Walter]

I never had a chance to march finals but I often still dream about it.

Standing there with the lights on, looking up into the stands seeing all those

thousands of people. Then you here Brandt Crocker say: "You can take the field of competition" Then you mind goes completely blank, you forgot everything your

supposed to do, HOLY SH_T!!! b**bs :sos: :sshh:

That's MY dream almost every time.

Tell us about your first time at finals, your feelings, emotions, everthing!!!!!!!!

Edited May 10, 2004 by Old Dutch Boy Cadet

[Jimisback]

It does not happen that way for me at least. You are totally focused. It was the best time of my life. I will never forget it. It brings a tear to my eyes. Go and tell people to join. Be part of the movement.:)

[OrlandoContraAlum]

Well, the thing I remember the most from Madison 87 was from semifinals rather than finals....

We (Suncoast) went on right after Madison (gulp). As we lined up behind Camp Randall, I could only see a tiny corner of the left-side upper deck, which was full. When the Scouts hit the company front in Star Spangled Banner, that little corner went absolutely nuts, and I thought to myself "We have to go on after that?"

####

Edited May 10, 2004 by OrlandoContraAlum

[jacquesb]

My first finals was kinda surreal. The whole thing seemed like a blur. My age-out finals, however, was much more emotional. I think I cried the whole time I was out there.

[84BDsop]

Gotta agree with Jimi...by the time you get to the Big Show, it's just another performance...it HAS to be. if you focus on "This is for The Ring!!!" you'll choke.

Now...my FIRST BD show...that was different. Back in the day we had something called the Evaluation Show...a exhibition that gave fans a first look at the western shows, and the judges an advance look as well.

K'...I'm in the uni...we march out...do the warmup...face into the opening set...but it wasn't unitl the announcer said "On the starting line.....from Concord, California...the BLUE DEVILS!!!" That I REALLY realized "####...I AM in the corps!!!!"

I was so scared then I almost missed the step off...

[Ryan H. Turner]

FIRST TIME AT FINALS? Eeegads....1985 VK at Camp Randall, where I'd end up spending my finals night for the next 3 years. Trying to think back is difficult, because I don't remember much. The one thing I DO remember is coming around that corner to line up just before going on, and looking up at the crowd. Outside of performing at Allentown, this was THE largest crowd I've ever seen! And we were pretty much pumped up. I do agree with Sam though that while his thought process was a little different than mine (being in the running for the championships as opposed to us wanting to retain our top 12 status), it was JUST another show. Well, not exactly, but we couldn't OVERHYPE, which VK was known to do.

Now, 1987 though...THAT was totally different for me.

[BD2Rings]

1974 was a very long time ago. I can't even remember the first show I marched. It was some rather small event in northern Califiornia. Most of that entire first year has become a blur for me. I seem to remember most the feelings I had toward our competitors, like the Commodores, Blue Rock, Vanguard, Troopers.

I do remember my first DCI finals however. It was in Ithaca New York. A week or two before finals, we were scoring 83 something, and our expectation due to this, was that we would place right in the middle of the pack, about 7th. We had beaten the Oakland Crusaders, and expectations were high. Pretty good for my rookie year. It was not to be. Our scores dropped rather dramatically over that last week or two, and we barely squeeked into finals, in 11th.

Finals night, we were OTL before the sun was even down. It seems the crowd was still filtering in. It was still the biggest crowd I remember performing for, but I never had the feeling that this was it, the end of the season. I had become so accustomed to tour, I could have continued for a couple more months. That first year, when you have to learn what tour is, the only way to learn is to do. That first year ended with a small disappointment. I, if not the corps, expected to beat some of the corps we had previously beaten. Oh, well.

The crowd seemed casually receptive of us, but went bananas when the Muchachoes took the field. I felt we, as a corps, still had some barriers to knock down before we would be accepted.

Things were better at '75 finals, and we owned the field for '76 finals. That was a special night. I wish it were possible for everyone to know that feeling at least once. With all the work, effort, sweat, and the emotional roller coaster ride of drum corps, it would be nice if everyone who marched knew what it felt like.

[elphaba01]

"First Time":

First Time at "Finals": Jersey City's Roosevelt Stadium, (home to the famous National Dream Contest), 1963 World Open Junior Finals. This was the innugural World Open Championships, hosted by Drum Corps News.

Prelims was that AM, in the same stadium. Ten corps picked for Finals, one of them, the Connecticut Royal Lancers slipped in at tenth place, competeing that morning in their very first contest EVER (there must be a record of some sort here). Finals had 3 Connecticut & Massachusetts, two New Jersey and one each New York and Illinios corps in "Under the Lights".

The night show: Very COLD. Lots of problems in all the hornlines with numerous "cracks" and intonation. Only the third appearance of a Mid West corps, the Chicago Royal Airs at a East Coast contest (Norwood Park at the Dream, and Skokie Vanguard made the haul to Garfield's show).

Very small crowd, huge point drops from AM to PM shows, and the "Blow Out" win at Finals by Blessed Sacrament (swept all captions) with a five point bulge over Garfield Cadets and St Kevins Emerald Knights.

Elphaba

Edited May 27, 2004 by elphaba01

[bd5times]

My first time......I remember a few things.

I was a nervous wreck at our housing site in Montreal. I get on the bus, we start moving...CRAP! I forgot my uniform jacket...STOP THE BUS! I run back into the housing site and get my beautiful blue Blue Devils jacket.

We do the warm up and I remember everything was just perfect. We were primed and ready for finals. Vanguard pretty much asserted their dominance over the field by crushing everybody at Prelims....but for our mindset, we still felt that we would win.

After the warm up, the staff gives us the "whatever happens speach..thanks for a great year...etc.". We really didn't worry about the outcome of our performance, or what our performance would be like. We simply wanted to go out, attack that field and perform. That's what we enjoyed. We wanted to do our best and to be the best. Period.

I can recall walking into the stadium and, if I'm not mistaken, this was the largest crowd in DCI history (to this day)...39-40,000 people. We were on last, standing on the back sideline waiting for SCV to finish. I just remember looking at two decks filled with people. It was incredible.

I remember the hornline doing the company front from the back sideline to the front....flawless! One of the vets of the horn line that year used to say pick out somebody in the crowd and make him/her jump to their feet. I had my target picked as we approached the front sideline. If you don't know, the 81 Blue Devils show started with the horn line toeing the front sideline...facing the stands...and power punching the first note into the stands. It has been described as a sonic blast. I seem to recall the field being really close to the front sideline that year.

After that first note, I remember seeing quite a few people covering their ears as the horn line cranked out the opening phrase to New York Fantasy. First time I ever saw that.....we must've been really LOUD! At the end, lights are flashing during the gate turns, California flags are being waved from the stands, and we get a huge ovation at the end of the show. We belted out a home run that night!

We had our best performance of the season on Finals night. Regardless of what place we were going to be announced in, we knew we just nailed one of those once in a life time performances.......

Now....scores and retreat.

We knew that we would place anywhere in the top 3 that year. Madison was on fire and could easily win, SCV already won prelims, and we've beaten everybody and were defending champs.

I remember the horn line bunching up, holding hands and our breath as third place was announced, then second was announced. Based on the captions, we thought we won and would become the first three-peaters. "...And in second place......The Blue Devils"......

Vanguard beat us......we stood there and applauded them for their victory.....we didn't applaud very many corps during my time in Blue Devils....SCV usually was the recipient, though.

After retreat, we get the captions and soon realized how close we came.......taking out the drum caption, we were in first place over SCV by 1.7 points. Add in the drum caption, we were -.3.......If the drums were one place higher....we won.....

We were not happy....At all.

That August night in Montreal lit a huge fire in us for the 82 season. The 82 Blue Devils decided in January that we were going undefeated, would break Vanguard's score, would beat Madison's brass score, and would be the best corps to come from Concord. It wasn't "this is what we want to do".....it was "This is what's going to happen".

There was absolutely no question in our minds what the outcome was going to be in 82.......The 81 outcome was a huge driving force behind the aggresiveness of the 82 Blue Devils........and it was a FUN ride!

Edited May 21, 2004 by bd5times

[dugada]

First time in finals, 82 BD. Walking into Olympic stadium which is a partial dome and an acoustic nighmare! I was really nervous and the sounds bouncing off the dome made the whole scene very sureal. As we were marching along the back sideline, Phantom was on the field. I noticed one colorgard member taking huge slow tempo steps and she was out of step! This is not a bash against Phantom but that one moment completly calmed me down and gave me extreme confidence for some reason. I just went out and did my job at that point.