hank you to everyone who joined us for our fourth-annual Tour of Champions event at HighPoint Solutions Stadium at Rutgers University on Thursday evening. We understand that there was a great deal of frustration on behalf of many attendees, and for that we sincerely apologize. The magnitude of a large drum corps show must be seen and experienced in order to be fully understood. As is the challenge of bringing an event of this magnitude to a new venue, despite months of planning, one cannot understand the size and uniqueness of our activity until everything comes together. Original plans called for this Tour of Champions event to be held at MetLife Stadium, but due to a scheduled concert, the facility was unavailable. MetLife is a fantastic facility which provides ample parking and smooth traffic flow. Having previously run marching band events at Rutgers with 40+ ensembles on a given day, our relationship with the university made it the best second choice by far. The majority of the issues that confronted attendees on Thursday evening stemmed from traffic and parking difficulties. Residents from Central New Jersey understand the normal rush-hour traffic in the region, and steps were taken when we originally announced the event by moving the start time from 7 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. However, additional obstacles arose including road construction, an auto accident, and a soccer match on Rutgers campus. This perfect storm created a gridlock that not only trapped guests but also two of the drum corps on their way to the stadium. Parking was also a source of concern, and original plans were made for parking in the main lots and all overflow lots to handle the volume of expected traffic. It is clear that those expectations were underestimated, and we needed to be better prepared as a team with campus officials to accommodate. At 7:15 p.m., with the assistance of DCI, and at the request of George Hopkins, event organizers determined to move the start time back by 17 minutes in hopes of accommodating guests without affecting the local neighborhoods with a later end to the program. By the time the third corps took the field, the majority of audience members had gotten to their seats and were enjoying the remaining five performances. At 8:00, the same group of officials added another 10 minutes to the intermission, providing additional preparation time for the corps to safely navigate the hill outside the stadium. Youth Education in the Arts would like to thank the staff of DCI, the individual drum corps, and the Rutgers officials who all worked to make the best of the bad traffic situation and do as much as possible to delay the show while still taking into consideration the noise impact on the surrounding neighborhoods. We sincerely appreciate the support of all of the fans who attended the event, and despite the issues, we hope audience members enjoyed the performances of these great young people and appreciate the hard work they put into their productions. As will always be the case, YEA! is back at work to improve this event for the future. In plans for the events return to HighPoint Solutions Stadium, MetLife Stadium, or possibly another venue in 2015, we will carefully consider the lessons learned and work to make it a truly magnificent experience for all.
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 16:38:01 +0000
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