Rained Out ... kind of

The Band practiced music and small marching sets at the school Saturday. It had been raining on and off all day, but still CV had not cancelled the Tournament of Bands by 1:30 pm. So we returned to the school at 4:30 to find that the TOB was still on. So was the rain, but light or misting, at least. But we'd been wondering all day about the condition of the football field that they'd be performing on, and how the woodwind instruments would play in all the wetness.

CV is a huge school district with huge facilities. There were supposed to be nine bands in competition, with three bands performing exhibition pieces - one at the beginning, two at the end. The host band always marches at the end, and this time Clarion University (at least a three hour drive away) was performing, too. Even so, we expected to be home by 8:30 or so after the award ceremony (as usual for this season, our band was near the end of the schedule).

What we didn't know was that Littletown HS had cancelled their afternoon performance due to the rain and that five bands had called CV to be added to the schedule. You see, the bands need to get in as many TOBs as possible so that their average score by the end of the season is good and they make Chapters and Championships. CV hosted this weekend and will be in two TOBs next weekend, for example, to make up for it.

I had gotten to the TOB near the beginning of the Group I performances - I like to watch as much as I can, DH was coming later to see our band. I forgot the schedule so I didn't catch on that there were more Group I bands going on the field than was on the original list. So when 7:38 came along and a different band was waiting to take the field, I finally realized that we were going to be much later (an hour later, as it turned out).

So I had been sitting in the rain for about an hour - thank goodness I got smart and bought rainpants. I went and found DH and he was complaining about the rain, etc. Then I heard a band helper say that "the field is done." I wondered if he meant that the equipment (snare drums, xylophones, etc.) could not be rolled out and would have to stay on the track. Then I heard a parent who had just left the stands say that the judges had packed up their briefcases and left without saying a word (a number of judges are at the top of the bleachers, several more are on the field walking around the band as they perform).

There was a band in the endzone waiting for their turn, and another at the gate waiting, too. They'd been standing there in the rain, which had indeed gotten to be steady and harder, for about half an hour without raincoats (bands don't perform in raincoats, just uniforms). About five minutes later we heard the announcer say that the competition had been cancelled. The parents of the kids that had been standing in the rain, unprotected, were furious.

As it turned out, our Band was at the other end of the school property, practicing small marching sets under the overhang of the middle school building. They had gotten back on the busses to be driven down to the stadium and were waiting to get out and wait. They saw that the stadium was emptying and people were leaving - that's how they found out it was cancelled.

If three Group I bands had not been added, then our Band would've been the one left wet on the endzone waiting to (not) get on the field. Soooo ... in a way it worked out.

But that leaves the Band a score short to help with the final average. There is one more TOB next weekend that we're scheduled to perform at. There are actually two TOBs locally, but our HS has a football game Saturday night.

Yes, TOB in the afternoon, football game in the evening. I'm wondering if our Band Director will consider not playing at the game in order to get a second TOB in. LOL - don't laugh, he had already told the kids at the beginning of the season that they could miss playing at a football game, but not a TOB!

Naturally, the sky is blue and the sun is shining this morning - NOW!