US Open Memories

[audiodb]

August 11 Marion, OH

U.S. Open 'A' finals

Vagabonds 68.3

Etobicoke Crusaders 67.75

Opti-Knights 66.6

Belvederes 66.35

Grenadiers 65.95

Royal Crusaders 62.95

Charioteers 62.9

That was the year the Royal Crusaders debuted their new red/white/blue uniforms, and they tore the house down at finals with their show at Marion.

Yes, they did - and didn't they place third, not sixth?

I have the same scores on record for finals, but with Royal Crusaders listed in third place and Opti-Knights sixth. I know Drum Corps News had RC sixth, but I saw the recap once upon a time (don't have a copy) with RC third. The U.S. Open program's historical data supports this.

[Walter]

And in 1982 they were defeated in a football game in Montreal against the Renegades (NY).

Keith, the reason the Glassmen lost that football game is that they didn't know that the Canadian football fields are 110 yards long. The guy who would have won the game had he scored the winning touch down on the last play of the game, collapsed from exhaustion five yards short of the end zone !!!!

Sorry about that !! :sos: :sshh:

[KeithHall]

Keith, the reason the Glassmen lost that football game is that they didn't know that the Canadian football fields are 110 yards long. The guy who would have won the game had he scored the winning touch down on the last play of the game, collapsed from exhaustion five yards short of the end zone !!!!

Sorry about that !! :sos: :sshh:

Actually we had a guy who ran the crap around Glassmen and a big guy playing DE and Offensive Guard. They couldn't keep the big guy from getting to the QB so they put two guys on him and he still got in. This big guy broke a drum instructors finger and gave a horn instructor a fat lip. Man I was good!!!

[Storkysr]

Hey Bill,

In my files I have the '79 Blazers playing such music as:

El Cumbanchero, Tico Tico, Brazil, Bellavia

Does that sound right?

That would be correct. I also wrote Santana's"Oya Como Va"(I'm certain that's misspelled) for a perc fearure and "Pinball Wizard" for a Street beat. 6sn, 3 triples, 3 double congas, 4 bass, 4 cymbals and 4 keyboards on a good day. All 16 or under (most way under). Fun times.

[KeithHall]

That would be correct. I also wrote Santana's"Oya Como Va"(I'm certain that's misspelled) for a perc fearure and "Pinball Wizard" for a Street beat. 6sn, 3 triples, 3 double congas, 4 bass, 4 cymbals and 4 keyboards on a good day. All 16 or under (most way under). Fun times.

You were before Phil Lake?

Phil wrote some great percussion arrangements.

[Storkysr]

Yep. Phil took over in '80, the year I got married to the corps secretary. Phil was tight with the Smalley bros who were the horn guys at the time and I believe he had just obtained his BS in music so he had no trouble sliding right in. Phil previously played snare in '78 CRU when I was working them.

BTW, I also had some good times with Paul Villela, lost track, then a few years later I hear he kinda fell off the earth unfortunately.

Edited July 12, 2007 by Storkysr

[Puppet]

1 Blue Rock 84.600

2 Madison Scouts 83.150

3 DeLaSalle Oaklands 82.150

4 Cavaliers 81.550

5 Des Plaines Vanguard 77.750

6 St. Rita's Brassmen 77.450

7 St. Joseph's of Batavia 75.950

8 Bridgemen 73.200

9 Nisei Ambassadors 73.100

10 Beverly Cardinals 72.950

11 Appleknockers 70.250

12 Milford Shoreliners 67.850

1971 Was our only trip to the U.S. Open. Our close rivals from Delaware won and I remember being so sorry that The Scouts didn't take it all. I thought they were the class of the bunch that year.Blue Rock just never impressed me. Their shows were always kind of cheesy, the horn line weak for their size and up close, their uniforms were just plain dirty. A no-class organization of rich brats. A true precursor of Drum Corps of the DCI era. I'm not bitter - you just had to compete against those kids nearly on a weekly basis to understand the grime that they exuded. The Anaheim Kingsmen, Cavaliers, Blessed Sacrament Golden Knights, Boston Crusaders, (I'm using their real names from back in the day!) Garfield Cadets, Casper Troopers, 27th Lancers, Santa Clara Vanguard and many more great Corps from the sixties and early seventies were the true backbone of what represented the Open era - World and U.S.! But that was when all those corps had only one enemy - the tic! BR had a teflon ability - we always thought it had something to do with their color guard (most of whom were in their twenties, or looked it!) and the judges - to get unusually high scores that didn't have anything to do with their performances. Sorry to go off this way but no other corps has ever left a sour taste in my mouth. To read so much glory about them in this post - I just had to respond with a bit of perspective from the ground.

[Geneva]

1 Blue Rock 84.600

2 Madison Scouts 83.150

3 DeLaSalle Oaklands 82.150

4 Cavaliers 81.550

5 Des Plaines Vanguard 77.750

6 St. Rita's Brassmen 77.450

7 St. Joseph's of Batavia 75.950

8 Bridgemen 73.200

9 Nisei Ambassadors 73.100

10 Beverly Cardinals 72.950

11 Appleknockers 70.250

12 Milford Shoreliners 67.850

1971 Was our only trip to the U.S. Open. Our close rivals from Delaware won and I remember being so sorry that The Scouts didn't take it all. I thought they were the class of the bunch that year.Blue Rock just never impressed me. Their shows were always kind of cheesy, the horn line weak for their size and up close, their uniforms were just plain dirty. A no-class organization of rich brats. A true precursor of Drum Corps of the DCI era. I'm not bitter - you just had to compete against those kids nearly on a weekly basis to understand the grime that they exuded. The Anaheim Kingsmen, Cavaliers, Blessed Sacrament Golden Knights, Boston Crusaders, (I'm using their real names from back in the day!) Garfield Cadets, Casper Troopers, 27th Lancers, Santa Clara Vanguard and many more great Corps from the sixties and early seventies were the true backbone of what represented the Open era - World and U.S.! But that was when all those corps had only one enemy - the tic! BR had a teflon ability - we always thought it had something to do with their color guard (most of whom were in their twenties, or looked it!) and the judges - to get unusually high scores that didn't have anything to do with their performances. Sorry to go off this way but no other corps has ever left a sour taste in my mouth. To read so much glory about them in this post - I just had to respond with a bit of perspective from the ground.

Interesting perspective which you had on Blue Rock! While I did not compete against them on a weekly basis, I did have the opportunity to compete against them several times a season late 60's and early 70's and I saw them many times from 1965 on. I always really enjoyed this corps especially 1968 when we hosted them at our show in Geneva. By the way, they did have a great horn line that year. I did feel that during their most successful years in the early 70's that horns were their weak caption and that it was primarily drumming and marching that carried them. Nice picture of the Brassmen!

[KeithHall]

Paul got caught with "the hand in the till." after the 1982 Renegade season.

Yep. Phil took over in '80, the year I got married to the corps secretary. Phil was tight with the Smalley bros who were the horn guys at the time and I believe he had just obtained his BS in music so he had no trouble sliding right in. Phil previously played snare in '78 CRU when I was working them.

BTW, I also had some good times with Paul Villela, lost track, then a few years later I hear he kinda fell off the earth unfortunately.

[Brassman53]

Wow Puppet, you certainly had the kids in Blue Rock pegged all wrong. I marched 71-73 with BR, and believe me, we were far from rich kids. We had kids from a sixty mile radius of Wiliington, DE with a sizable number of city kids from Baltimore, Philly, and Atlantic City. Our suburban kids were primarily from blue collar family backgrounds. Geez I always thought our uniforms looked classy ( both up close and far away). Our guard members were mostly in there mid to late teens ( I think we had approximately two 20 years olds in '71) and none after that. Yeah, our horn line in 71 was inconsistent ( sometimes really good, most times average), but our drum line was excellent and a trendsetter- avery musical line, and our visual show was way ahead of it's time (I think sometimes the judges didn't know HOW to tick it). Now our busses, they were pieces of junk... had to be push started almost every show.

We never has a problem with St. Rita's. In fact I can remember in '73 we lent you guys our rifles at the Kingtson, NY show- we received 3 points in penalties for not having trigger guards on them...you guys were penalty-free (HMMM a little Metro All american judging magic maybe). Funny how we all have our different perceptions, and in fact things are often not quite the same in reality. Anyhow some of the Brassmen shows were among my drum corps favorites, partucularly '69 and '73 ( not that the others weren't good as well).

RCC