Drum Corps vs. Capital Regiment

[Capitaldbc00]

Hello all!

Just figured I'd give you a ten year ago vet's perspective on things, and you'll understand why this corps, of them all, is the only one that I could have ever marched.  

I was lucky enough to meet Rick Bays at the Southwind audition camp in 1999 for the 2000 season, and we got each other's information, but I never thought that I would ever march with them, since I was working full time, and did not really think that I could afford to take off for an entire 3 month period.  When I returned home, I decided to look into my finances, and see if it could be done.  During that timeframe, one of my close friends was only 14, and a freshman in high school, going through a parent's divorce, and not sure what the future held for him.  We got together, discussed things, and decided against it.  Rick called about four days later, and I told him about my concerns, and spoke with me for about forty-five minutes before we hung up.  We had several issues, since I was working at a machine shop, and was unable to get off work, so Rick volunteered to drive to Bowling Green, KY (I believe it's somewhere in the neighborhood of 5 hours from Columbus) Friday before camp to pick us up, and drive us back.  I was blown away.  Talked to my buddy, and we decided to give it a shot.

First camp, there were somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 of us, and my buddy and I were half the contra line.  Ellie, horn sergeant extraordinaire, and Vern were the other half.  Everyone welcomed us in, especially Rick and Karen.  After just a couple of hours, we'd made our decision, but were unsure about the transportation issue (Driving my car was like asking for a miracle just to get to work each day).  Rick told us he would drive down every month to pick us up, if we paid the gas and tour fees and everything.  We agreed, and were part of a family that has helped shape every decision that I have made in the past six years.  Before that, I can honestly say that I wasn't mature enough as a person to really understand the lessons and examples that I saw that year, and it took me several years to get to the point in my own maturity that I realized what I was patterning myself after.

Rick Bays

The man that went and picked us up every month the day before a camp, sometimes not getting in until 1am the next day because he saw a spark of something in the two of us (and one other Owensboro guy, don't think I forgot you for a minute Nick!), that would add to the corps he was trying to build.  The man that always had the best interests of the group, and doing the right thing at heart.

The man that rearranged the corps banquet the next year so that I could attend, because I was in the Armor School at Fort Knox and only had one weekend off during that timeframe, and scheduled it so I could attend.

The man that packed up the Capital Regiment chow truck and drove down to New Orleans and fed people right after hurricane Katrina.

The man that went on tour with another corps (Southwind) after their chow truck broke because he would want someone else to do it for him.

The man that spent countless hours, days, building a corps from nothing, with no thought to any kind of personal gain.

The man that walked away from a six figure income to start something to help kids like us, who had nowhere else to go to live a dream.

The man that built this corps, which we went on to place six in the world in our division that year.

I can't honestly tell you how much I appreciate, and will continue to appreciate the stories that I can tell about that year, and I would have marched the following year, had I not gotten into a car accident on the day that he offered me a spot in my ageout year (in the middle of the season!).  I will regret forever not going, and I truly appreciate the gesture you made in offering it to me, Rick.  

The point of all this is not to just make him out to be a great person, but at the end of the day, when you have your choice in being another person who put on a uniform for a corps, or being a part of something that you will never regret, regardless of the placement in the standings at the end, remember that sometimes it's better to be part of something honorable, true, and worthy of respect.  

THIS, Capital, is the tradition of excellence that you have to live up to.  It's not about talent, ability, or anything of that nature.  I was a saxophonist in both high school and college.  I played tuba for two marching seasons in high school band, and that was two years before I tried out for either corps.  It's about attitude, determination, and hard work.

I'm not going to lie.  Standing on the field at World Championships was amazing, and will be remembered to my dying day, but it's not the biggest memory that I have of that season.  There were a lot of great times that we had, and there were a lot of hard times that we had as well, but at the end of it, the great times far outweigh the bad.  This corps is a family and a team.  

Marching Corps was the hardest thing I have ever done, to include a ten year servitude to my country in the United States Army and Kentucky Army National Guard, two tours in the war on terror, basic training, and countless other trainings that I've gone through.  It was also one of the best experiences that I have ever done, and Rick Bays, Scott (Both of them!), and several other staff members that I can't remember the names for were the reason.

Thank you, to those of you who have helped keep this corps, and my memory of it, alive.

Sincerely,

Staff Sergeant Michael G. Murphy
Kentucky Army National Guard

Contra Line, 2000