Tsar Nikk Posted July 20, 2005 Share Posted July 20, 2005 WARNING: The following post will likely upset some people. Read with caution. "Iron rusts from disuse; water loses its purity from stagnation... even so does inaction sap the vigor of the mind." -Leonardo da Vinci Stagnation is defined broadly as "a state of inactivity in which nothing grows or changes." I suggest to you that DCI has undergone a period of stagnation for several years, and may just now be snapping out of it. From 1997 until 2004, four corps have rotated amongst the vaunted DCI "elite" of the top three. Although we don't normally speak in such terms, the top three are the three corps with the best chance to win the title. We used to talk about the top 5 or even the top 6 in such a way, but it has been a long time since someone running in 4th place all year could vault every corps ahead of them and contend seriously for the title. So, for a period of 8 years, 4 corps have dominated the talk of DCI: The Cavaliers (4 titles in that span), the Blue Devils (3 titles in that span), the Cadets (1 title in that span), and the Santa Clara Vanguard (1 title in that span). Meanwhile, in 5th place -which once used to be considered elite- we have seen a revolving door of corps including the Madison Scounts, the Glassmen, the Boston Crusaders, and the Phantom Regiment. There was one blip on the map that suggested things might change in 2003, when Regiment and SCV flip-flopped for 4th and 5th place, but the very next year, it was business as usual. Meanwhile, competition has heated up in other segments of the DCI echelons. Competition for a Finalist spot has become fierce. Competition for 6th place status has become a catfight, and overall, more corps are putting on solid performances across the board. "Agitate! Agitate! Ought to be the motto of every reformer. Agitation is the opposite of stagnation - the one is life, the other death. " -Ernestine L. Rose And still, I have felt some sort of stagnation, and I know I am not alone. I don't expect this to please fans of any one of those "top 4" corps. Of course they are going to want to continue to see the Status Quo. There are, in fact, some people who would probably prefer that their particular corps stayed in the top 2/3/4 forever, and to H-E-double hockey sticks with the state of the activity. Hey, I know the feeling. I am a Yankees fan. The Yankees have the most championships of any baseball team, in fact, they have the most championships of any major sports franchise (26). And they are universally reviled by most non-Yankee fans. Most of those revilers will tell you it's because ol' George Steinbrenner buys his teams talent and spends money to buy players...and they will conveniently forget that money is not all it takes to buy a title. They will conveniently forget that Steinbrenner has only been owner for 8-9 of those titles, and the rest came before him. They will conveniently forget that when the Yankees won the title in 1996, 1998, and 1999 they were not the highest payrolls in baseball. No, the real reason most people hate the Yankees is because they win. A lot. Because they beat your team's butt on a regular basis, especially if you are a Red Sox fan (and no, one golden year does not reverse the trend). In many ways, the Cadets and the Blue Devils are the Yankees of DCI, and that is the main reason why a lot of people hate them. But I will get to that in a moment. So this year, it looks like there will be a new face in the top 4, perhaps two new faces in the top 5, and possibly...just possibly, three new faces in the top 6. Of course, this has to happen at someone's expense, and this year, it seems as if it is happening at the expense of the Santa Clara Vanguard, who happen to be one of my favourite corps. And I have already begun to hear the rumblings..."it's not fair, SCV has already gone through a down period, it's time for another corps!" This might be true...it isn't fair for SCV to go through another down period, maybe they don' deserve that...but as Clint Eastwood once said in his best movie: "Deserve ain't got nothing to do with it." Nor am I suggesting that I would like to see BD, Cavaliers, or Cadets fall just for the heck of it. Those organizations have shown the model it takes to be consistent, and like the real estate motto of "location, location, location," it consists of only one word: "staff, staff, staff." Those three corps are as successful as they are because they employ AND RETAIN(and isn't that the hardest part) the best staff. This is no different than baseball....good baseball teams employ and retain the best players...inconsistent baseball teams (like the former Expos, and the Marlins) employ the best players, but then fail to retain them. The Cavies, Devils, and Cadets know the formula to winning and being consistent, and they retain as much of their staff as they can, because they know that a competent and happy staff = top three corps. However...other corps have begun to catch on. They understand what it takes now, and though it is a slow process, they are making strides. From 1992 until this year, Regiment has employed the following as their drill designer: John Brazale, Tony Hall, Steve Hegemeir, Greg Cesario, Garret Decker, Brian Hildreth, Tony Hall (again), Leon May, Johnny Sanchez, and now Jamey Thompson. That's 10 changes in 13 years. Quick trivia question: What has been Regiment's weak spot the last decade or so? You got it....Visual. But Pat Seidling understands this. Sal Salas understands this. They understand that a staff/creative team is like a garden. You must tend to it, you must water it, and sometimes, painfully, you must weed it. A lot of weeding has gone on in both of these organizations, and it has been painful to many people involved. But look now! The flowers are in bloom, and the garden looks beautiful. More and more corps are catching on to this...in essence, the top three/four corps have shown what it takes to be at the highest level, and have become their own worst enemy. Any falls out of the top 3/4 WON'T be necessarily because Cavies, BD, or Cadets have a bad year, or bad staff changes in the offseason....but because the playing field is being leveled. "The greatest enemy of progress is not stagnation, but false progress. " -Sydney J. Harris Now, each of those corps above have had their one bad year...Cavaliers fell to 7th in 1997. Cadets fell to 7th in 1991. Blue Devils fell to 5th in 1991. But these were anomalies. In each case, the fall of these corps allowed another corps an opporunity: In 1997, the Cavaliers falling to 7th allowed Crossmen to finish in the top 6 again. In 1991, Devils and Cadets falling allowed for three Midwestern corps to finish 1-2-3. And each case, the corps involved bounced back and recovered stronger than ever. Don't weep for the Santa Clara Vanguard. They are a strong, proud organization. They are feeling the effects of staff turnover, something that is common in today's "free agent" DCI landscape. But they will bounce back. If you haven't read it, you should read Lee's story of the 1993 Vanguard sometime. By 1997, the corps was in contention for a title again. Regiment's down years appear to be over. Madison's down years are definitely over. But it will take some shuffling of the corps ahead of them to break the stagnation we have seen and experience for almost a decade. "That which stagnates dies." -Unkown At some point....unthinkable though it may be...Cavaliers, Cadets, or Blue Devils will fall out of the top five. And fans of those corps will weep and hate and pout and rail against the system. But none of those corps is going away for the long term. All the "sure things" in my life have failed at some point: Cisco stock plumetted. The Yankees blew a 3-0 series lead to the Red Sox. The FSU Seminoles fell out of the top 10. My long-time girlfriend and I broke up. And after each of the events above -some which obviously affected me more than others- I picked myself up and moved on. Life goes on. So what is the point of this post? I don't know....perhaps a warning? Everyone wants change....until that change affects their corps. Everyone wants new faces in the top 3/4/5....unless one of the new faces replaces your favourite corps. It's the same everywhere...but it's coming. The stagnation of the top 3 is coming to an end soon, perhaps not this year, but soon. We might as well prepare for it now, and though we can be sad that our corps may be caught up in it, we can rejoice to know that motion = life, and that the activity will be enhanced because of it. I now return you to your regularly scheduled anti-everything DCI has become rants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadwick Posted July 20, 2005 Share Posted July 20, 2005 Wow....very very long, did you start typing that last night? But I actually really enoyed your take on the situation and kind of agree. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bawker Posted July 20, 2005 Share Posted July 20, 2005 I now return you to your regularly scheduled anti-everything DCI has become rants. Cliff Notes version: Staff retention/stability = good for placement, and change is inevitable. By the way, you may not want to paint with the big brush with that last statement...or maybe you do. :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiritsop01 Posted July 20, 2005 Share Posted July 20, 2005 .The FSU Seminoles fell out of the top 10. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> That hurts... :( ^_^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsar Nikk Posted July 20, 2005 Author Share Posted July 20, 2005 That hurts... :( ^_^ <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yeah, tell me about it. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsar Nikk Posted July 20, 2005 Author Share Posted July 20, 2005 Cliff Notes version:Staff retention/stability = good for placement, and change is inevitable. By the way, you may not want to paint with the big brush with that last statement...or maybe you do. :P <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Does that answer your question? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bawker Posted July 20, 2005 Share Posted July 20, 2005 Does that answer your question? Well, last week I would have attempted to argued the relative merits of trying to elevate conversation levels here, but given a few choice PM's and posts around here lately, there's really no point. Just allow me to suggest a more apropos brush: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
decompressed Posted July 20, 2005 Share Posted July 20, 2005 (edited) The FSU Seminoles fell out of the top 10. And with Jeff and Bobby Bowden still running the show, they could fall out of the top 20!!!!! Nikk: ITS URBAN MEYER TIME....move over Bobby...i hear there are some nice condos in Ft. Walton Beach!!! :P b**bs :P b**bs :P b**bs Edited July 20, 2005 by decompressed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsar Nikk Posted July 20, 2005 Author Share Posted July 20, 2005 And with Jeff and Bobby Bowden still running the show, they could fall out of the top 20!!!!!Nikk: ITS URBAN MEYER TIME....move over Bobby...i hear there are some nice condos in Ft. Walton Beach!!! :P b**bs :P b**bs :P b**bs <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Urban Meyer = Overrated. We shall see, my Gator friend, we shall see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madalumni Posted July 20, 2005 Share Posted July 20, 2005 As usual Nikk, a very well written, thought provoking post. That being said....GO BREWERS! :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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