As Director in 1980, I had to "hob nob" with the various DCA personages as well as be the guy who went into tabulation to verify scores and sign the sheets. At the final show of 1980 I was standing outside the judges room with Mickey Petrone after the scores were announced. Usually I would work my way back to the corps on the field since I was also in the horn line, usually before the socres were announced. The tabulator always swore me to secrecy and let me escape the judges room.
Anyway, right up front before the American squad were two members holding a Schacker sign, like you see in parades announcing where you're from, etc.
Mickey looked surprised and turned to me with a questioning expression on his face. Just then, one of the sign holders had moved even with us and said "All others call collect" and kept moving on, straightfaced.
All I said to Mickey was " I think they have an 800 number". He just shook his head and sidled away.
During my tenure as Director I always got the feeling that the DCA didn't really know how to take us. We kind of kept them on the edge. It was fun.
Often after 1976 winter Sunday rehearsals our carload-me, Mike C., Cousin Joe McCaffrey - amongst others - used to drop by Brian Callahan's place in Northern NJ on the way home. He was the in-house drum guy and had a lot to do in conditioning us mentally in our rise to the top echelon in DCA that year.
Well, we usually talked about rehearsal, the music, listened to music and become somewhat enhanced. Sometimes the ride home from there was very interesting.
One time we were cruising along the southbound lanes of the Turnpike when I screeched to a halt. Right in the middle of the turnpike. Mike et al yelled out things like What the F...etc. I remember replying that didn't anyone else see the stopsign? Total silence. I felt eyes on me. We started up again with no further ado. Luckily no one else was on the road at that time.
On future trips, it was obvious that NJ DOT had removed the stopsign.
In Johnstown NY, in 1977, we did an OK performance for that point in the season - in first half - but I recall Yar Schearer chewing us out after we got off the field - "you guys can't march...you forgot what we worked on...you suck..." etc. (you get the picture). Well we were a bit down after that, and we split up to do whatever we did while the other corps were on. I will not go into detail on these "activities" to spare the guilty.
Well, there was the normal retreat - I think we came in second overall - I say I think because the after show stuff sticks in my mind not the score/placement. We were marching off and stopped within the show area. The staff was in the judges meeting doing their normal thing.
The stadium lights were on and the janitors were sweeping out the stands. Someone called out "Why don't we do it again?". The idea caught fire. We lined up, the drummers went and got the stuff that they didn't have and we marched back onto the field, lined up and proceeded to blow the stands away as we did the show, book 2. The staff came out onto the stands and cheered. A few other staffs stood in bewilderment, as did quite a few fellow competitors.
It was the only show performance I recall where a "number" of members were somewhat "enhanced" or "fortified" prior and this lent a bit of a "slightly less precise but a whole lot more ballsy" air to the performance.
Once we were done - the stadium lights clicked off somewhere in the exit - we lined up and marched back to the busses, a bit more happy with our day, and proceeded to "stand down".
Just another indication that the Sunrisers were and most likely still are "Now For Something Completely Different" than the rest of the pack.
Reading Pete's stories prompted this remembrance of Geoff Oatman. Geoff was in the bari line, and contracted spinal meningitis, really bad. We were all concerned since it is contagious and we had all partaken from the same water bucket. Fortunately, no one else came down with it.
Geoff was out a while but recovered and came back, relearning the show. Management was told that there may be some "relapses", so at Geoff's first show after his return, the drum major removed his plume from his hat, spoke to the chief judge who notified the other judges of the potential problem.
I happened to end up near Geoff most of the show. It went well up to a point. One of the drill numbers was a company front, and here we go, moving into it then the big hit. Geoff was not next to me! I took a quick look ... he had stopped and was looking at his horn like he had never seen it. He then looked up with an "Oh S--t" expression and ran up into line, and continued on. Needless to say, I was a little wary after that, but all went OK through the end of the show.
It looked like a 60's flashback when it occurred, sort of like slow motion, but only a second or two.
Geoff was OK after that and finished the season in fine form. Great guy ... a real trooper to come back the way he did (with that minor "blip").
Yo, Geoff ... if you're out there, this one's for you!
Lenny Haring 1974-1987 Mellophone, Baritone, director 80-82, 85
