Dayton and Indianapolis

[kansasDC]

With DCI it's a bit different - you only need the one venue (2 if Div II/III are elsewhere) and corps can get rehearsal space pretty much anywhere you throw them.

Uhhhh, not exactly. The big problem with DCI in one place for so long is going to be finding housing and practice fields for all the corps. Just getting enough housing each year at a different city is enough of a headache (i.e., Boston last year). With the past history of school districts getting mad about the use of their fields, or damage to their facilities, or simply changes to their administrations who don't like outsiders in their facilities, this problem is going to be magnified over a ten year period. Unless the city government in Indy is able to get some iron-clad contracts from many of the suburban school districts for the ten year period (highly unlikely), there could be corps being forced to stay further and further away every year. No matter how well the corps try to maintain these facilities, there is still general wear and tear, and local school administrators love to blame anything on these "outsiders". I know this to be fact from years of finding housing for a local DCI show. Although the Band Directors loved having the corps stay at their schools, the Athletic Directors, Principals, and District Administrators hold alot more power over these type of decisions, and they don't always appreciate the benefits their music programs get from these visits. They just look at the wear and tear to their fields, the amount of trash left in their dumpsters, the use of their water, electricity, etc., etc.

[Matt_S]

Remember, though, Indy is one of the major hotbeds in the nation for high school marching. Many schools like Avon and Carmel have very close ties to the world of corps, and the list of schools in the area with competitive marching bands includes Ben Davis, Center Grove, Lawrence Central, Lawrence North, Franklin Central, Warren Central, Brownsburg, Hamilton Southeastern, Greenwood, and many more. In fact, with the regional already here every year, I see many corps that end up staying at the same school each year.

[Blackstar]

KansasDC, I would imagine that being in the same city would makle it easier to secure locations then harder.

We have our Firemen Conference every year in the same city, We keep a running security on the same rooms year after year. Many other states do also with much success.

Being in the same city would give the corps a chance to gain trust and partnership with the sites they use. I could see if the corps were tearing things up.

Plus the to me the biggest advantage is the Indy is almost centrally located. An equal ride from Mass or CA I believe.

[GmenBari78]

Plus the to me the biggest advantage is the Indy is almost centrally located. An equal ride from Mass or CA I believe.

San Francisco to Indy = 2290 miles

Boston to Indy = 930 miles

Not even close!

The geographical midpoint of the US is somewhere near Kansas City.

[gottalovit]

I can see both positives and negatives.

Some of the positives are for people going multiple years in a row, you get to know the town, where the stadium is, where the hotels are, and getting there and around becomes easier for the fans and the corps.

Another positive is for scheduling of other shows, it might be easier to plan for if the summer always ends in the same place.

One big positive is the roof. While it sounds like they will open it during finals week, in the event of storms, it can be closed, and the show can go on without delays, which can really be a pain. Maybe bad sound, but better than getting stormed out.

Ordering tickets for the next years show will easier, since you know exactly where the seats are.

I think the biggest positive is that they really seem to want us there.

The negatives are for people wanting to use this as a vacation to see other parts of the US, it would mean just seeing Indy and area instead of other parts of the country.

Other negatives could be housing(does anyone know how housing has been at the last several years regionals with 22 and 23 corps there?)

Another negative might be with scheduling is the fact that the towns close to Indy who host shows every year would end up getting the end of the year finished product shows whereas towns that might be close to other places finals have been would not ever get those end of the year shows(kind of like California has been stuck with all these years).

Accoustics may still be a problem even with the removable roof. The rest of the building will still be more enclosed than a normal football field. I think there could still be sound problems with that.

California corps still have a long distance to travel every year.

One big question-anyone know what seating capacity is?

[davam]

The geographical midpoint of the US is somewhere near Kansas City.

However, the geographical midpoint of the United States is not necessarily the midpoint of the country's drum corps fans. Most fans live in the Midwest and the East Coast. If you look at the back page of the latest edition of Drum Corps World, there's a map of the United States, with every DCI show plotted on it. Considering where all the points are, you'd have to say that the midpoint of the country, based on the concentration of drum corps fans, is somewhere around Indiana, Ohio, or even Kentucky.

[Michael Boo]

Indianapolis Airport is for some reason one of the lesser expensive airports to fly into and out of...I know people from the Chicago area who drive down there, not unlike people from Denver who drive to Colorado Springs (which is MUCH closer).

There are tons of hotels right downtown and tons of hotels on the city's perimeter...one can take their pick. One can walk to lots of restaurants and Indy is becoming quite the convention city. One reason for the new stadium is the convention center needs the room where the current dome is to expand.

It's clean, modern, the downtown is safe and when I was there for the BOA Concert Band Festival a few weeks ago, I noticed that everywhere I looked in downtown, I could see construction crane booms.

Having been to the Indiana state marching band championships more times than I can count, I've seen first-hand the MASSIVE built-in supply of band kids in the state, and a remarkable number of them are from that immediate area.

The concern expressed about administrations not wanting corps because of field usage shouldn't be a concern. Corps don't practice in the stadiums at their schools all day, but one should know that a remarkable number of schools in the Indy area have artificial turf, according to band directors I've spoken with.

This hasn't happened yet, but if it does, let's give it a chance. The DCI Board of Directors is not taking this decision lightly. They know a lot of facts and are considering ramnifications I don't know. We either trust their carefully considered judgment or we don't.

[Orpheus]

OOC, how many total paying fans does WGI usually attract? (Compared to DCI.)

[LaSqueegee]

This hasn't happened yet, but if it does, let's give it a chance. The DCI Board of Directors is not taking this decision lightly. They know a lot of facts and are considering ramnifications I don't know. We either trust their carefully considered judgment or we don't.

With all due respect, this is the same board that has brought us amped vocals, non-members running the soundboard, and the elimination of retreat.....so trusting their judgement is a little tough for me to do at this point!! ^0^

[SkyRyder_FMM]

Indianapolis Airport is for some reason one of the lesser expensive airports to fly into and out of...I know people from the Chicago area who drive down there, not unlike people from Denver who drive to Colorado Springs (which is MUCH closer).

There are tons of hotels right downtown and tons of hotels on the city's perimeter...one can take their pick. One can walk to lots of restaurants and Indy is becoming quite the convention city. One reason for the new stadium is the convention center needs the room where the current dome is to expand.

It's clean, modern, the downtown is safe and when I was there for the BOA Concert Band Festival a few weeks ago, I noticed that everywhere I looked in downtown, I could see construction crane booms.

Having been to the Indiana state marching band championships more times than I can count, I've seen first-hand the MASSIVE built-in supply of band kids in the state, and a remarkable number of them are from that immediate area.

The concern expressed about administrations not wanting corps because of field usage shouldn't be a concern. Corps don't practice in the stadiums at their schools all day, but one should know that a remarkable number of schools in the Indy area have artificial turf, according to band directors I've spoken with.

This hasn't happened yet, but if it does, let's give it a chance. The DCI Board of Directors is not taking this decision lightly. They know a lot of facts and are considering ramnifications I don't know. We either trust their carefully considered judgment or we don't.

Some good points. But others have also expressed as long and detailed a list of negatives. I just hope that ALL of the points are being given appropriate consideration. As LaSqueegee points out, there is good reason to be skeptical of some of the decisions made by the board recently (i.e., perhaps not enough consideration being given to the fans that support the activity).