Occasional Musings by Kevin Russell
July 31, 2025 – Along the Mill Brook 9:00 AM The forecast is grim. Heavy rain is expected in the Boston area all day and into the evening. This does not portend well for the match-up between the Boston Crusaders and the Bluecoats at the show in Lawrence, Massachusetts tonight. These two corps are neck and neck in the rankings and 1:1 so far … Continue Reading →
July 28, 2025 – Charlotte, North Carolina 9:00 AM I am once again in the loving arms of the South, and with my younger adopted brother Tim and his family, just outside of Charlotte, NC. Yesterday, I took the direct flight from the Queen City of the North to the Queen City of the South. Before that, I made a trip to the Volvo … Continue Reading →
July 20, 2025 – Along the Mill Brook I’m standing here at my kitchen counter with large awning windows overlooking the Mill Brook with a breakfast beer in hand, a custom blend of Focal Banger and Luscious from the Alchemist in Stowe, VT. I am crying. Last night, the Boston Crusaders set a new record with the highest score ever performed by a DCI … Continue Reading →
July 14, 2025 – Along the Mill Brook “Boom!” is taking the country by storm. After an arduous tour in California, concluding the 6-show circuit on Saturday, the Boston Crusaders headed to the proving grounds of Arizona and are now on their way to the crucible of Texas. This is a record of nine straight wins, and so far, undefeated in 2025. I was … Continue Reading →
My hiatus from my DCI tour is just about to end. The five-day pause was very refreshing and needed to restore me for the long journey ahead to several more shows. Taking the efficient and affordable Southwest Airlines from San Francisco to San Diego after DCI West was the right thing to do. Staying with high school buddies who migrated here fifty years ago … Continue Reading →
July 6, 2025 – Sacramento, California After a necessary reset, I am back on my 2025 DCI tour. Yesterday was a long day of travel that began when the alarm rang at 3:30 AM to catch the early bird special out of BTV. I flew the friendly skies to San Fransico from our humble little airport in Burlington, Vermont. Thankfully, the connection from Newark … Continue Reading →
You know when you have overextended yourself when you hit the wall, or in some cases, the floor. My grand plan to attend the first BAC show, Drums Along the Rockies in Fort Collins, Colorado, was interrupted by such an overextension. At seventy, all of those seven-mile runs, Peak-a-Week hikes, and long ski days in the Green Mountains have begun to catch up with … Continue Reading →
What is in a name? Last year the title of my DCI Tour blog series was The Long and Winding Road for DCI. This year, maybe it should be the Shoot the Wad tour, as I am all in on traveling back and forth across the country again for this obsession, but mostly by air. This year, I am stopping off in Michigan to … Continue Reading →
May 29, 2025 – Vermont State University – Castleton I’m sitting here on a hillside overlooking the campus of Vermont State University, Castleton, Vermont. The Boston Crusaders Drum and Bugle Corps are in residence for spring training for the 2025 season. It is 2:30 in the afternoon, and the horns are in block, meaning each section is dispersed around the immediate area. Professor Steve … Continue Reading →
August 22, 2024 – St. Ignace, Michigan Yay! I am in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. After a long and winding road trip from Vermont, I have reached my destination for the third phase of my summer tour. I am at the Little Bear Sports Center in St. Ignace, Michigan, the hub of activities for the North Country Trail Association Annual (NCTA) Celebration. If … Continue Reading →