BAC performs a standstill to a full house in the rain.
July 31, 2025 – Along the Mill Brook
9:00 AM
I am packed and ready to begin my late-season auto tour of Drum Corps International (DCI) competitions, starting with the home show of the Boston Crusaders Drum and Bugle Corps (BAC) tonight in Lawrence, MA. The weather forecast is grim. Heavy rain is expected in the Boston area all day and into the evening. This does not bode well for the third matchup between the Boston Crusaders and the Bluecoats, who are separated by a whisker in the standings. So far this season, they are one-and-one when head-to-head. Based on what I am seeing on the radar, this show will not go on, as modern drum corps drills are too fast and complex to be performed safely on a wet, slippery field. If it does, the entire drum corps world will be watching. I know every Boston fan is hoping the wall of rain on the radar lifts north and bypasses the stadium. This is an optimistic bunch of folks who have endured much worse over the past eighty-five years.
The Grey Ghost II
After my trip south to attend NightBEAT in Winston-Salem, NC, I utilized the time to prepare for the next phase of my project to save the old Number Nine Schoolhouse. Four years in the making, the Friends of the Number Nine Schoolhouse has reached a deal to purchase the iconic 1903 two-room schoolhouse at 831 Mill Brook Road, Waitsfield, Vermont. Inspired by many years of following DCI, I am working with my neighbors to provide a venue for music education in my community. However, it takes a lot of time, effort, and money to make this happen, and it comes at an awkward time as I will be focusing on my drum corps tour through Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana. It takes a whole village to raise an old schoolhouse, and maybe a drum corps world, too. Please consider supporting at: https://numbernineschoolhouse.org
The Number Nine Schoolhouse.
Now it is time to focus on driving for three hours through Vermont and New Hampshire in the rain. The famous Silver Bullet will sit idle in the driveway this year. The stalwart Volvo XC70 has seen its last tour to Indianapolis. The aging beauty will be reserved for local driving to the trailheads and ski areas, and teaching my grandson to drive. My local Volvo dealer and I have been treating it well toward longevity. This year will be a one-way drive in a rental SUV. My co-pilot, Chuck, and I will be flying home this year, leaving this hunk of metal on wheels behind.
Let the tour begin!
4:00 PM – Lawrenece, Massachusetts
After a three-hour slog in the rain through Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts, I have arrived at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, the home of the Boston Crusaders’ home show. The sky is dark and ominous. It has been raining steadily for three hours now on the field. This is usually a great opportunity to watch a rehearsal. For now, I am sitting in the car because it is raining cats and dogs outside. The BAC volunteers are undeterred by the tasks necessary to host avid Boston-area drum corps fans. This is all-hands-on-deck for the board of Inspire Arts and Music, Inc., and the staff and volunteers of BAC. This particular year will be exceptionally busy with BAC in the hunt for a medal again. What element it will be is yet to be determined, but Au is in their eyes. The rain is easing up a bit, so I will venture out to see if I can help. Rolling down the window, not a note or beat is heard. My guests may not be up for a wet evening, so I checked with my friend Mary from Wakefield. For now, we plan to meet for dinner at 6:00 PM and will wait and see what happens.
10:00 PM – Somewhere in Southern New Hampshire
Well, that was an interesting, disappointing, yet still inspiring evening of drum corps. I have arrived at my friend and co-pilot Chuck’s house just north of Boston after an abbreviated show in Lawrence. We leave for Allentown first thing in the morning, so I want to give you a short update. Time, distance, rain, and romance conspired to keep me from most of the performances. Beforehand, I enjoyed a nice dinner with my friend Mary in Wakefield, a 30-minute drive each way. She did not want to go to the show in the rain, so I went to Wakefield while others persevered in Memorial Stadium. The call was made to cancel the competition and send the judges home. But the BAC organization, with the agreement of the visiting corps, decided to perform standstill encores in the rain in front of the avid and eager Boston drum corps fans. I was torn between two options: staying with Mary in her beautiful, comfortable home after dinner, or returning to the stadium and coming here as planned. Mary and I met hiking in 2018. She is the person responsible for my beloved Steinway. Her piano teacher had to sell one of his two pianos. She was helping him move into assisted living, where only one would fit. He graciously held the piano for four days so I could come and play it. One chord and I wrote him a check. Mary visits me in Vermont for skiing and hiking trips. Her visits light up the Russell Ranch.
While on my way back to the stadium to catch what I could of the show, I immediately regretted not taking Mary up on her invitation. However, drawn by the story and not wanting to miss out, I sped in the driving rain, hydroplaning back to Lawrence. I arrived just as BAC’s drumline was warming up with “Spanks.” This ensemble draws huge crowds to the lot, where even the simplest warm-up pieces are applauded with enthusiasm and wonder. Tonight, they had garbage bags around the drums, and in ball caps and shorts. They were unfazed. Next, the brass came in with their well-rehearsed renditions of Mahler’s Second Symphony, Game of Thrones Theme, Sweet Caroline, and Conquest. It was precious to witness their grit and spirit in the rain, and the sea of umbrella-covered drum corps fanatics still eating it up. While the rain may have cooled down the BAC reactor this evening, the inspiration of watching the kids out there tonight, with buttery fingers and slippery lips, pouring out the love, triggered that certain reaction that makes my eyes water. I had made the right choice.
Bluecoats roll into Allentown.
August 1, 2025 – Allentown, Pennsylvania
Hurray! Chuck, my drum corps associate and driver extraordinaire, and I have arrived in Allentown, Pennsylvania. We hit the high side of the left lane at a leisurely 8:30 AM from the Boston area and kept a steady pace in the value, mid-sized SUV rental. We made it here in record time. In past years, I would drive overnight in stages, eschew the interstate for the Delaware Water Gap route, and take a long nap in my hammock along the Delaware River. Companionship and shared driving made the six-plus-hour drive today a snap without a nap.
Now it’s time for a family reunion of sorts, as drum corps friends are like a family. How odd it is that I have some of the most dear friends that I see every summer, that I would not have known if it were not for my obsession with drum corps. My brothers and sisters from other drum corps mothers are a growing, welcoming family. There is such a passion and familiarity. No matter what corps one identifies with, the pathway to the heart is wide open among them. Fold-up chairs, coolers, and tailgates provide places to sit while stories are told, opinions are shared, and laughter abounds in the lots and grounds surrounding J. Birney Crum Stadium. As we cavort, cajole, and carry on, the buses and trucks begin rolling in. These caravans carry the entourage and regalia of the many corps that will perform this evening on the hallowed field. Let the games begin!
Phantom Regiment will pull back the curtains again tonight.
MORE FROM DRUM CORPS 2025