Day 1: Thursday, November 4th; The Trip to Indianapolis

6:20am
Three busloads of students and one busload of followers left Schroeder headed for Indianapolis. Mr. Pustulka, the principal of Webster Schroeder High School, visited with each bus to wish the band luck and express the pride he felt watching the band's performance at the football game last Sunday.

10:15am
We arrived at our practice site in Ashtabula, OH. It was raining lightly when we first arrived and the students started to practice. However, it soon began raining harder, so the decision was made to pack up and practice later at an alternate site in Indianapolis.

11:30am
Left Ashtabula. We will be stopping at a mall in Columbus, OH and then continuing from there to Indianapolis.

2:45pm
Arrived at Tuttle Crossing Mall in Columbus, OH. Everyone got a chance to stretch their legs and get a bite to eat at the food court.

3:45pm
Departed Columbus, OH.

7:00pm
The Followers' bus arrived at the hotel. The students went directly to the practice site where they will practice for a couple of hours. They are expected to arrive at the hotel at about 9:30pm. The weather is dry here right now.

9:30pm
The students arrived at the hotel. The practice reportedly went well. They were greeted by the boosters who, in an attempt to thoroughly embarrass their kids, were dressed in their best pajama bottoms, hoodies, and slippers. See photos below (click on the thumbnail to view a larger image). Lights out is scheduled for 11:00pm with a wake-up call at 6:30am.

Day 2: Friday, November 5th; Preliminary Competition

7:45am
Everyone has finished breakfast and the students are getting into their uniforms and preparing to board the buses. There will be a silent bus ride to the Dome as they focus on the upcoming 10:15 performance.

12:45pm
The kids did a great job in prelims! They have just finished lunch at the hotel and will be heading back out for practice shortly. We won't know whether they made semi-finals until at least 9:00pm or later tonight.

Photos from prelims:

6:45pm
Most ot the students are back at the hotel following practice. Students who went to the Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser seminar will be returning a little after 7:00pm. Dinner is now scheduled for 7:45pm, so students are enjoying some free time at the hotel. Some are making use of the pool and hot tub, while others are just visiting with friends.

9:15pm
Mr. Fischette and the drum majors returned from the Dome and announced that the band did not make semi-finals this year. The students are disappointed, but are supporting each other and quickly bouncing back. Mr. Fischettte emphasized that he has had a great year with the band and they have nothing to be ashamed of. The competition here is very tough with many incredible bands. As Mr. Fischette said, the friendships and experiences gained will last a lifetime.

Plans for tomorrow have not yet been finalized. We will post an update once we find out.

Arlington HS did made semi-finals and will be performing at 11:30am tomorrow.

11:15pm
The students will sleep in tomorrow morning and have breakfast at 10:00am. Afterwards they will go to a mall near the RCA Dome and return to the hotel at 3:30pm. They will have dinner at 4:30pm and then return to the RCA Dome to watch Finals. After Finals, they will be returning to the hotel for a pizza party.

Day 3: Saturday, November 6th

11:30am
Breakfast is over. The students appear to be in good spirits and we even saw some dancing in the hallways (see photo below)! We will be leaving around 12:00 for the mall. Pending permission from the hotel, the updated plan is to return to the hotel around 3:00pm to perform a final parking lot run-through of this year's show. We will then have suppper and head back over to the Dome around 6:00pm to watch Finals.

4:30pm
The students just finished a wonderful standstill run-through out in the hotel parking lot. It's now time for supper followed by the trip to the Dome for Finals. Here are a couple of photos from the run-through. We'll try to post more later if we have time.

5:30pm
Dinner was a lot of fun for everyone. The seniors were recognized by being allowed to be first at the food tables. Then, everyone sang Happy Birthday to the students who had birthdays this weekend. There was also a rematch of the pasta-eating contest from Massillon between Mr. Landgren and one of the students (current record: Mr. Landgren 2, student 0). Now we are getting ready to board the buses for Finals.

1:00am (Sunday Morning)
The Finals competition was amazing! We saw 14 great bands (12 finalists plus the Class A and AA winners). The winner was Lawrence Central High School from Indiana. The students returned to the hotel and had a quick pizza party prior to turning in for the night. Mr. Fischette announced that the band had finished in 32nd place in prelims.

Breakfast is scheduled for 8:00am. Please check the hot-line at (585)234-8684 (option 7) during the day tomorrow for updates on our progress on the trip home and estimated arrival time.