Posted October 5
Festival of Bands weekend comes at a great time in the marching season. The season's midpoint weekend treats many different fans, and the band only travels across town for performances.
This week's halftime show was the annual Senior Night tribute, where parents of senior band members get to take the field for the band's warm up. The parents must have inspired the kids, as the band turned in what Director Bob Carlson called "our best show of the season so far". At his post-game press conference (okay, so it was Bob and Neil chatting under the grandstand) Mr. Carlson said the directors were waiting for all the pieces of the show to click, and they were starting to. He said they are really looking to put on the show the next two weeks after what he'd seen that night.
Saturday morning the band headed down town for the Festival of Bands parade, where co-host LHS was the final band down the parade route. Stepping off just before noon the band marched the complete route, before returning to 10th and Main where they practiced and filmed their 75 second Macy's Thanksgiving Day show.
And of course the evening was highlighted by the LHS exhibition performance of Spellbound, held in the wind tunnel we call Howard Wood Field.
For the Roadies, FOB was like "homecoming", as 6 "retired" roadies helped move the band on and off the field. With over 40 years of Roadie Oldie experience, the crowd was treated to their expertise, which included nearly tipping the giant drum major platform over into the front row of the pit.
But the rookies were not left out of the picture. Jeff had Rookie Bob Visser pull a platform behind the band to the midpoint of the parade for the filming of the Macy's music ... only to set up 50 feet from where Jeff parked the truck. GOTCHA!!! And 1st event rookie Brad Rhoades completed his bloody-knuckle initiation before taking the field.
Among the other highlights of the weekend ... We might have left a platform unlatched Friday night and that made it a bit exciting for the parents on one of the platforms as it sloooowly tipped toward the field ... pit kid Hailey had her hand smashed between two marimbi (marimbas?) in a chain reaction collision behind the locker room ... Jay Hardy saved the band from impact by removing the hand rails to the BFL just as the band trooped the stands ... Dean Versteeg invited Neil to pilot an atv - a move possibly motivated by the nearly empty fuel tank (which was discovered just before we staged at the stadium) ... Jim (the Toolman) Fitzgerald permanently attached our flatbed license plates in the parking lot ... if you wondered: yes, Neil and Robert were racing around the track on Saturday night ... at the FOB post-performance analysis meeting (at Stubbies Bar) two familiar looking but un-named bandparents bought a round for the Roadies in attendance!
