June 29, 2024 – Muncie, Indiana
If there is one major thing that I have come to equate with the State of Indiana, it is youth music education. I have found that no matter what political color a state is, music education is a core value. When a drum and bugle corps competition comes to an Indiana town, all eyes are fixed, and ears are perked. This was the case last night at Ball State University in Muncie, where six World Class Drum Corps International (DCI) drum and bugle corps competed in DCI Central Indiana. Last night was the second show of thirteen shows planned for my 2024 tour, beginning with four shows in four states in eight days. My body and mind are acclimating well to the travel and excitement, especially my eyes and ears. Those visceral, autonomic, emotionally connected body reactions have been sparked again. DCI is off to a great start.
There are free days in between each show day, so I have plenty of time to travel between the shows and enjoy the countryside and unique places that I find along the way. I am solo, so every decision is unanimous. On show days, I have a clear destination. On the days between, the destination and route will be determined more based on a lark rather than a plan. Today is one of those days. The budget rental car is performing fine, though it is not the Silver Bullet, my intrepid cross-country Volvo. I picked it up in Grand Rapids four days ago, and it will dutifully transport me to Chicago tomorrow. After spending the past two nights in my hammock, I’m glad that I decided to get a room and a welcome shower here in Muncie. I try to alternate between sleeping in my hammock and hotels. I also noted the thunderstorms that came in early this morning, as predicted. As I sit in the comfortable lounge area watching the rain out the large windows, I will take this time to catch up with you on some drum corps.
At the appointed hour, the stands were packed with drum corps fans, including thousands of young music students from around the country in attendance at the Music For All symposium. Oh, did those collective ears and eyes have a treat! The weather was warm but overcast, with a slight breeze. Perfect for this outdoor event. I did not have a solid plan to attend this show, so I did not purchase a ticket in advance. Usually, there is a single seat somewhere in the middle of the stands up high that I can snag at the last minute. Alas, I purchased one far left, outside of the 20-yard line. Little did I realize how cool it is to be in the outer seats? My seat neighbors were so much fun to enjoy the show with. Moms, dads, and kids all surrounded me to take in the excitement together. I realized that the viewing was easier in some respects as you can take in the big picture more easily from the angle of perspective over the field. Many interesting moments happen on either side of the center. When something happens on the far side, one can hear the audience react over there. Drills and movements on the left side were right before us to enjoy. I now realize that just about anywhere in the stands is a fine evening of entertainment. Heck, given the amplification, I could be two blocks away and enjoy what I am hearing.
It is still quite early in the season, and I am still acclimating to the programs. The first five corps performed on Thursday in Michigan, so the themes and repertoires are beginning to sink in. The order of the performing corps was not congruent with the eventual scores. First, Blue Stars brought the planets, the music, and the movement. My second viewing at a competition and the experience attending a rehearsal yesterday afternoon, this show is growing on me nicely. I love the horns and music; the visual elements are great! Be sure not to miss the split-second uniform change for the entire brass line during the ballad. Blue Stars’ well-rehearsed performance garnered 5th place. The Cavaliers also had a uniform change in mid-program over several minutes. Vestiges of green appeared slowly until the entire corps was transformed. Transformation is a key concept of this and many of the shows. The Corps reached out of the traditional realm to reveal the inner side, earning the Cavies a 4th place. Phantom Regiment brought it right to the end to the standing audience. This program shows the corps’ prowess in the nearing-mid-21st Century with creative uniforms, drills, and music with the power and confidence we identify with Phantom. The crowd reacted favorably, endorsing the ranking in the top three they earned. Colts had the most recognizable tunes, including my favorite drum corps musical composers, Metheny/Mays. The look is a monotonal dark red uniform with an accented white left side and leg, one white shoe, and one black, which augmented the creative drills. This is a fine show, performed well by the dedicated and talented members, and an example of how prepared these corps are this early in the season. Bravo!
The final two corps of the evening just simply blew us away. The match-up of the night came down to two-tenths of a point. Boston Crusaders took a close second, but they brought the house down. This BADASS corps magnificently projected energy, speed, precision, sound, and color, but not without a few more glitches that I detected. They lit up the field, and they certainly lit up the crowd. Carolina Crown wore its crown well and performed solidly, scoring just ahead of BAC and taking first place. This could be a repeat of their scoring battle last season. The Crown 2024 program is new to me, so I look forward to seeing it again at the next two shows. I was thoroughly entertained and impressed by the quality of sound and motion, leaving me more in awe and wonder rather than excited. I think we are in store for a more dramatic ending in the future.
I confess that Carolina Crown is as much a favorite corps as any of my several favorites. I have had the privilege and pleasure to meet the people behind the scenes. The Crown family, like every corps, is a deep support network with dedicated board members, volunteers, moms, and dads. I have the privilege of meeting up with three of them tomorrow in Chicago. Two who founded them almost four decades ago. It was the first 2017 DCI show in Massillon, Ohio, when I met Doug (Crown founding father) and Garry (BAC board member and now my adopted drum corps brother) sitting under a tree before the show. I had recognized Garry from the Boston Crusaders encampment earlier that day. I introduced myself and told them of my running away with the drum corps and chronicling the experience in my new blog. Our friendships have been enduring since then. I will reunite with them and three others for the next two shows in Lisle, IL, and Mason, OH.
The morning thunderstorm has passed, and the forecast is great for the next few days of touring, so now it is time to check out of this hotel. Today, I will leave Muncie for a destination to be determined on the way to Chicago. It’s time for an easy cruise across the Indiana landscape. My first goal is to head north and pick up the Old Lincoln Highway. I’ll catch up with you later.
June 30, 2024
7:30 AM – Indiana Dunes National Park, Lake Michigan
I am sitting comfortably in the sand at Kemil Beach, Lake Michigan. Yesterday afternoon, after a casual cruise across the Indiana countryside on the way toward Chicago, I decided to check out Indiana Dunes National Park. I headed north in search of the Lincoln Highway, the first paved cross-country highway. Disagreeing with Siri, I chose the Old RD 30 two-lane highway rather than the current 4-lane US30. The original route is mostly straight with graceful curves as it traverses through the villages between Warsaw and Donaldson, Indiana. Eventually, I arrived at the Dunes National Park welcome center to check on camping opportunities and an evening hike in the dunes. As I first approached the shoreline, cresting a rise, the sudden view took my breath away. After a day of driving across the Northern Indiana countryside, it is somewhat unfathomable that there suddenly becomes a great divide between land and water. Thinking you are on an ocean beach does not take much imagination. As they say, “Lake Michigan, unsalted.” I arrived on time for a good hike along the dunes and a swim in the lake. The sunset across the lake was spectacular. I could see the silhouette of the Chicago skyline just to the left, where the sun dropped off the edge.
Every day is different, especially here in Lake Michigan. Arising early, I walked the Dune Ridge Trail to a high overlook of the lake and the wetlands. The tread was variously soft, fine sand and hard-packed soil. The ridge is a high sand dune, making it a slog going uphill. Yesterday, the weather was hot with a slight breeze. This morning, it is 60 degrees and windy. The waves are high, crashing on the beach with a constant din. The water is dark blue-grey and green with white caps. Warnings of hazardous swimming were issued, so I combed the beach for unique stones before resting here to write sitting in the sand. My night sleep was a little restless. I chose Casa de Kia at the overnight lot to avoid having it towed from the beach parking lot. The sleeping bag I picked up Thursday performed again last night as the temperature dropped, but it was not the comfort that I am used to in the Silver Bullet, home in the driveway along the Mill Brook, waiting for my return. A little jealous, I assume. That will be my conveyance in August.
Today will be a transition day for my tour. I will head to Chicago airport to drop off the rental car and meet five friends flying in for the show tonight in Lisle, Illinois. They rented a van and a B&B for two nights. I will be on board with them, a departure from my solo tour of the past few days. These are friends that I would not otherwise have made if it were not for the drum corps—my drum corps brothers from another mother. Brother Tim, Garry’s real brother, will be our tour manager and driver. Carolina Crown Hall of Fame and the Buglers Hall of Fame are just two of Tim’s accomplishments. Tim is everybody’s best friend, and he pulled me into the Carolina Crown family upon meeting him in 2017. His good friend Jim will ride shotgun. The other old guys, including another Crown founding father, Bill, will sit in the back and heckle. Posthumously, drum corps sister Sandy Bertelle will be going with us. Prophetically, it was Sandy who purchased the tickets for us all last February. It’s time to eat the apple and banana I grabbed at the hotel yesterday, get my butt out of this sand, and head out to the Windy City. I’ll catch up with you later if I can—no guarantees with these guys.