August 11, 2024 – Indianapolis, Indiana This is sort of a reprise of the DCI Finals 2024 blog. It is a place to record my reflections on the events of the past few days and months following DCI shows. I will run the numbers when I return home, but last night was my 14th show… Continue Reading →
August 10, 2024 – Indianapolis, Indiana This is it, the final drum corps show of the year. Tonight, the final twelve drum corps will compete in the World Championship performance at Lucas Oil Stadium based on their placement from the semi-finals. Last night was another incredible night for drum corps. Every corps seemed to notch… Continue Reading →
August 8, 2024 – Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana I am in the clubhouse in the oil can, Lucas Oil Stadium. This cavernous structure is the home of the Drum Corps International (DCI) Championships. Over 35 drum and bugle corps from across the country converged here to compete for high honors among their peers. Thousands… Continue Reading →
August 7, 2024 – Indianapolis, Indiana I have comfortably settled into my new home away from home for the next few nights. It is a hotel across Missouri Avenue from Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the DCI World Championships, which start with preliminary finals on Thursday. The long and not-so-winding road across Central Ohio into… Continue Reading →
August, 6, 2024 – Canton, Ohio Yesterday morning, the six unaffiliated drum corps fans departed central Pennsylvania for Canton, Ohio, one more leg of our journey to the DCI World Championships in Indianapolis this week. The Ohio Valley is west of the Appalachian Mountains. Travelers heading westward through Pennsylvania have endured the long slog up… Continue Reading →
August 4, 2024 – Victory Brewing Company, Downingtown, Pennsylvania I’m finally catching up with you on Allentown Saturday while enjoying a nice ale and lunch at the Victory Brewing Company in Downingtown, Pennsylvania, with my co-traveler, Chuck. We are now two wild and crazy guys traversing the landscape in the Silver Bullet. This is a… Continue Reading →
August 2, 2024 – Easton, Pennsylvania By the grace of the road angels, I have completed most of my journey to Allentown this morning. I left Lawrence, MA late in the evening after the show. A cat nap at the service area broke up the nocturnal travel after blurry eyes and a nodding head signaled… Continue Reading →
July 31, 2024 – Burlington, Vermont I am sitting comfortably in the Volvo dealership in Burlington, Vermont. The storied Silver Bullet, my aging XC70, is in the shop for a last-minute repair before I embark on my auto tour of DCI competitions today. It will be ready for another drum corps sojourn with a new… Continue Reading →
July 28, 2024 – Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina I am in the comfortable embrace of the South in North Carolina. Yesterday, I was picked up at the airport by my drum corps brother, Tim, and a friend for two days of the annual reunion and to attend NightBEAT in Winston-Salem. This is one… Continue Reading →
July 27, 2024 – Nashville International Airport After two days of love in the south and the spirit of Music City, alas, I must leave. I am seated at C13 at the Nashville airport with plenty of time to catch up while I wait for my flight to Charlotte, North Carolina. I am meeting up… Continue Reading →