My nephew, who is now marching Pioneer, is on his way to New Orleans this week. The Corps was invited to participate in some of the activities tied to Marti Gras...mostly parades. Several weeks ago..I told Roman Blenski that I've been to New Orleans for VFW Nationals. He asked me to speak to the Corps about what it's like to be in New Orleans in hopes of getting the complete Corps to attend. I had to turn the offer down. Other than a few memories of Bourbon Street, I actually have no memory of the show itself. The only memory I have not related to Bourbon Street is the practice the day after we went to Bourbon Street. I remember being treated to a big pancake breakfast put together by the local Jaycees (no matter how much O. J. I drank..those pancakes felt like I was eating cotton)..and how difficult it was to practice the following afternoon in the hot and humid afternoon sun. But that's it. Nothing else about what should have a great show memory.

Hands down, the show I remember the most has already been discussed in a separate thread. State Fair. I was so jacked up for it...If I close my eyes and think about it, I can still see the grandstands, smell the race track, hear the standing "O" we received after prelims and finals. In the early 80's, I marched in the DCI Championships, U.S. Open, and DCM Championships and for some reason, my memory of those shows pale in comparison to State Fair.

I also have a vivid memory of the American Legion Nationals parade in Houston, TX. Fresh blacktop in the August Houston sun. Was it just my imagination, or was that parade REALLY that long?? I bought a newspaper in Houston while on tour and for some reason I never read it. I still have it.

What do you remember?

What years were you a Corps member? 2nd Sop in 1979

Great question, Keith.

There must be thousands, even millions, of memories the alums have! I know that I have so many I'd have to list them and think about them to even give a reply!

Parades, contests, Nationals, practices, trips, personal experiences on these trips, people that you met (sometimes of the opposite sex!), bus rides (yuccch!),
hot summer practices, etc.

SOME of the memories are common to all ... and should be posted to the "Special Things We Remember" segment of the Corps History.

Let's hear from everyone on this one.

What did you do in the Corps? member 1958-63, asst. instructor 1964-71

What years were you a Corps member? 1958- 63 drum line

I remember in '73 there was a hurricane headed toward New Orleans. I also remember how hot it was in that parade at 10pm.

but the funniest thing is the Larry Schlenker/Nick Zadalak story.

I'll say no more.



-Terri

What did you do in the Corps? french horn

What years were you a Corps member? \'72 - \'73

I think everyone has something to say about traveling on buses. I think we could all contribute to a book, "101 Ways to Sleep (and other assorted thing) In a Bus Seat".

It always seemed that the girls had the smallest changing room wherever we went. I know the boys was bigger because I got disgusted at some point and went and changed in there. The guys never seemed to mind, they paid me no attention. I think the chaperones were a little uneasy with it.......but it taught me a valuable lesson I used later in life, just use the men's room, there's never a line.....

What did you do in the Corps? Drum Line (Bells & Xylo)

What years were you a Corps member? 77-79

Rose,

I never liked sleeping on the bus seat. I preferred to sleep on the floor between the seats. I do remember making the rookie mistake of sleeping with my head on the isle side of the floor. You learn quickly that when the bus stops, someone sitting behind you will want to get out and that person WILL kick you in the head. Even so...there were several occasions where even a blast in the "melon" didn't seem to wake me up after a long day of practicing. Of course, I only made this mistake once.

What years were you a Corps member? 79 Sop

The second contest I marched with the A crops in 1962 was VFW state in Springfield, Illinois. That show was memorable because it was the first time we wore the new battle jackets and just as we finished the sky opened and the new uniforms were soaked. However, I have another memory of that show.

Coming out of concert the guy (Jim Boyce) next to me slipped and fell. My squad was in the last rank in concert (next to the drum line) and we turned to the rear of the field by doing "banana turns." I managed to sort of execute the turn around him without tripping. However, he was in the path of the squad behind us as they marched to the back of the field. So Bart Blum stepped right on him as they passed. Bart said that he decided that if he didn't step on him hard he would have probably gone down as well. Jim's uniform jacket had a muddy shoe print on it. (Jim was not hurt.)

I also had two close encounters with judges on the field during my career. Later in 1962 we were in Indiana for a judged exhibition at Indiana Legion State Contest. I was in the back rank in the concert formation and positioned about a step out from the back rank. During concert the drum judge was evidently kneeling behind me looking at the drum line. As I moved back I stepped on him, but some how didn't fall. The judge did apologize to me after the show.

About a month into the 1966 season we changed our out of concert number to "Dancero" and had some drill changes as well. I was on the end of front rank of the concert formation and as we turned to go to the back of the field, my horn missed the back of the brass judge's (Dave Richards)head by about an inch (the Holton Bass-Baritones were long). I remember thinking how close he came to messing up my horn and probably my lip (Dave was about as big as Rick Maass).

What did you do in the Corps? Baritone

What years were you a Corps member? 1959-66 (Cadets 59-61 Imperials 62-66)

Like John, I too had close encounter with a judge. Don’t remember the show (my mind is not a steel trap like John’s), but it was out East. At one point we used to peel off, turn and head to the backfield. Well, I was on the end of the squad and the first to make the turn. I always did that turn with as much “snap” as I could. So I turned, whipping my horn around (it must have been traveling at the speed of sound),and there was the judge.

I have no idea how I managed to miss him, but I did. Now my concern was to get out of the way of the next guy to peel off. Well, we made it through with no injuries. I swear, if I had hit the judge with my horn, he would have been out like a light . . . and there would have been blood. The bell of that Big-A## Holton Bari was on a collision course with his head.

Another great memory was of a small show - late in the season - in Wilmot, Wi. Wally Pennington (may he rest in peace) had a solo in a Spanish number that we played. Well, I guess he had already gone back to school or something, but I was elected to do the solo . . . even though I played Bari and it was a soprano solo. So, I march up to the front sideline to do the solo, take a deep breath, and inhale a bug. Sent me into a paroxysm of coughs . . . and I missed the first 3 or 4 notes of the solo as a result. Just can’t trust those doggone Wisconsin bugs.

What did you do in the Corps? Baritone - the only horn with TONE

What years were you a Corps member? 62 through 66

Rose's comment about trying to sleep on the bus brings back a couple of thoughts.

My corps jacket probably was used more as a pillow (the original jacket fabric didn't wrinkle and you could wad the thing up and use it as a pillow).

Drinking a can of warm Coca Cola first thing in the morning after waking up somewhere on the Pennsylvania Turnpike (the water jug was usually dry by after the first couple of hours on the road).

Bruce B, Koenig, Blomquist and others standing at the side of the bus and passing around a giant bottle of Scope like a bunch of winos before going into a Pennsylvania Turnpike Howard Johnson's for breakfast.

I'll always remember Springfield and the State Fair
and staying at the Army Camp,I think it was called
Camp Lincoln,sleeping on army cots those couple of days that we were there,fun,fun.fun.

What did you do in the Corps? soprano and than french horn

What years were you a Corps member? 1957 through 1963

Ah yes! CAMP LINCOLN! I remember it well!

As I recall, we'd usually arrive LATE at night, after the drive from Chicago. We'd wake up from the "great" sleep on the bus and have to open up the barracks, clrean it out ... especially driving out the bugs and varmints ... then bring in the cots and set them up.

After all that, we'd get to go to bed and sleep again. With all the usual wise-acre stunts of teenage boys! (The girls were in a different barracks.)

Then, up early for washing and breakfast .. then, to the drill field!

What did you do in the Corps? member 1958-63, asst. instructor 1964-71

What years were you a Corps member? 1958- 63 drum line

I only recollect staying at "Camp Lincoln" once in my years in the Imperials--1962 VFW State. The only other time we stayed in Springfield (1964 VFW State) we stayed at an armory near the Capitol. (The other years VFW State was held in Chicago or Peoria and we didn't go to the State Fair Contest.)

What I remember about "Camp Lincoln" in 1962 is that we were in a building with the Cavaliers and that the Cavaliers did some pretty disgusting things to their "rookies." Actually, during my time in the corps Norwood didn't seem to do any organized "hazing" of new members. Maybe that was because a lot of the new Imperials came up from the Cadets. Only time I remember a rookie initiation was Spring Camp in 1966 (the one year we had a lot of new members from other corps) and that was minor compared to what I saw the Cavaliers do in Springfield 1962.

What years were you a Corps member? 1959-66 (Cadets 59-61 Imperials 62-66)

Another event to remember,our New Years Eve party that
we had held at my parents house for a number of years
that was always a big hit with everyone in the corps.
Dave I think you might have been part of that,not sure
One highlight of this event,besides the alcohol that
was consumed,we would bring our horns,and I'm not sure
if we had any drums,might have,but at the stroke of
midnight we would march up and down our street and around playing our music,even though it was freezing
outside,that was great fun at the time,I think our
neighbors even enjoyed it,nobody ever called the police about it.

What did you do in the Corps? soprano and than french horn

What years were you a Corps member? 1957 through 1963