9/13/13: HEB Drumline Pit Crew itinerary

Hi folks!

Here is our itinerary for Saturday's HEB drumline contest:

2:30 pm - meet at MHS to load Big Red
3:30 pm - depart for Pennington Field
4:30 pm - arrive at Pennington and unload
5:30 pm - assignment distribution
6:00 pm -Lot Performance. Anyone wishing to be on the field must be here by this time.
6:30 pm - Stadium Performance

Notes:

• Here is the link to the route we will be taking:  CLICK HERE
• Because of the eternal construction on 183, make plans to follow Big Red to Pennington Field, because the route will involve back roads. If you absolutely cannot meet us in time to caravan to Pennington Field, and don't wish to attempt to navigate the back roads there, allow for traffic and road closures and general chaos surrounding 183 at Pennington.
• After the performance, we will load Big Red, but Big Red will be staying at Pennington until the end of the contest. This means you are free to stay or go once Big Red is loaded. Some post-performance options:
  1. There are gobs of restaurants around there, including a very good Mexican place we ate at last year. Perhaps we can all go grab a bite to eat while waiting for the results;
  2. Anyone wishing to do so can go in and watch the rest of the competition. I can't guarantee you won't be charged admission, though.
  3. You can head home and then meet us at Martin when we get back to unload. Of course, I'll be sending the PitCrewTxt when we depart from Pennington.

As always, feel free to contact me at 817-675-5604 with questions, comments, suggestions, complaints, pictures, etc etc etc. We're gonna have a blast tomorrow, folks. Drumline Competitions are the height of my marching season!

GO WARRIOR DRUMLINE!!!!

Al

9/12/13 football game sign-up details

Greetings all!

Another heap big THANK YOU to everyone who came out to help this past Friday night! Our man DW Nabors was going crazy with the camera as always and got some GREAT pictures which you can see at the Pit Crew FacePage by clicking HERE!

A few things of note that I haven't previously covered, and need to get into everyone's minds:

1. When the performance is over and the kids have wheeled the front ensemble instruments to the truck, it is their responsibility to take their instruments apart and covered up. Once they are done, then we can start loading them into Big Red.
2. Except in certain situations, when pushing anything up/down the ramp, make sure you have someone to help you. These are big, bulky, and almost impossible to control on an incline.
3. Before moving anything up the ramp, wait until the previous item has cleared the level area just past the ramp. In other words, don't push anything halfway up the ramp and try to hold it there; you risk harming yourself AND the instrument doing that.

As I'm getting ready to pass this job off to the next person, I'm putting together a Pit Crew Guide that will reside here on the blog. Once it's up, I'll send y'all the link and ask for feedback, comments, and things I forgot to mention. Those three items are going to be part of this guide.

Now, back to the present! In an effort to streamline the sign-up process, I've created a Google Form for this week's game that I need EVERYONE to complete by clicking HERE. This should be self-explanatory, but please contact me immediately if you have any questions about completing the form.

This Thursday's game is going to serve as a dress-rehearsal for this Saturday's Drumline Competition. (If you are unable to help on Thursday but CAN help on Saturday, don't fret! Just please let me know!) Positions will begin to be assigned for the season and we're gonna need to make sure we all know where to be and when to be there come contest-time. I am still waiting for word about next Saturday's Drumline Competition (load time, departure time, performance time, etc), but please set aside next Saturday for this. Even though it is not a full band marching contest, it is a contest that involves our band and we *will* need people to help!

Finally, we are still needing someone to prepare this week's 3rd-Quarter Meal! Check out the sign-up sheet by clicking HERE.

We've only just begun, and I hope everyone is having a great time! Let me know if you're not!

GO MARCHING WARRIORS!!!

Al

9/6/13 itinerary and a couple of clarifications

Hi folks!

Here's the itinerary for Friday's home game at Cravens Field (Lamar High School) against Skyline:

4:30 pm: load truck at MHS
5:30 pm: depart for Cravens
6:00 pm: arrive at Cravens, unload
7:30 pm: kickoff
8:45 pm: halftime (approx)


The third-quarter meal is taco salad, prepared by Don Irvin, and it is worth every penny of the $5 you pay for all you can eat.

Sign-up confusion: the column for "3rd-Quarter Meal" on the football game sign-up sheet (click here to sign-up) is for those of you who want to EAT the 3rd-qtr meal. If you want to make future meals, that sign-up sheet can be found by clicking HERE!

Finally, I will be leaving the game after halftime for a wedding in Austin on Saturday morning. Greg Dunnihoo and Duncan Granger will be running the show after I leave the game, and trust me when I tell you that y'all are in phenomenal hands with these guys!

See y'all Friday night!

GO MARCHING WARRIORS!!!!

Al

9/6/13 Volunteers, 3rd-quarter meal, other stuff

Hi folks!

First, a HUGE round of thanks to everyone who made the first night football game a ROUSING success! Did you see Carbone's shout-out to us on the Martin Bands blog?

"Thank you to Mr. Rearick and the Pit Crew for their amazing work, loading transporting, unloading, pushing, loading, transporting, and unloading again.  It never ceases to amaze us.
Also, congratulations for setting a new record for unloading and securing the equipment in the band hall.  We dismissed less than 15 minutes after arrival!" (emphasis mine)

And this was on our FIRST NIGHT as a Pit Crew! Just when I think this group can't get any more awesome, y'all blaze past my expectations, and I want to thank ALL of you for that!

Since we're still working on getting the sign-ups on the volunteer calendar to a point of efficiency for the Pit Crew, for this week's game I've taken the liberty of creating a shared sign-up sheet which you can access HERE. You may see your name on the list; if so, simply check off the boxes for each time you're available.

As of right now (late Wednesday night), we're still looking for someone to make this week's 3rd quarter meal. Remember that the sign-up sheet to make 3rd-Quarter Meals is here, so sign up when/where you can! Let's see if we have any hidden chefs in our midst!

As soon as I get an itinerary, I'll pass it along to y'all. Hope you're having a great week!

GO MARCHING WARRIORS!!!!

Al