BRONZE MEDAL!!!!

Another day in the sun, and we have graduated from strawberries to pickled beets. This time, we were prepared with hats, battery operated fans, sunblock and lots of water - but the heat was relentless. I now really understand what is meant by the sun "beating down" on things.

The show was even better than yesterday. You could feel the enthusiasm from the field and the crowd was involved right from the start of the 2001 fanfare.

Wes' solo was flawless. David has so many parts that stand out, and he carried them all off perfectly.

The other corps performing were all excellent, which is to be expected at the finals level, so the competition was very stiff. Getting to the finals at all is a huge accomplishment at the DivIII level - getting a medal was beyond their wildest dreams. I'm sure they will be wearing their medals to bed for the next little while. In addition to the bronze, the corps also won a "Most Improved Corps" award, for improvement over last year, and the president of Disney World awarded them with a special "Spirit of Disney" trophy - given to the corps with the most exciting show from a Disney perspective. These awards were all given at a full corps retreat, where, as was fitting, we had the biggest flag.

So they are off to have fun now. Plans for the beach, shopping trips and some sort of amusement park have been set, and given the three hours of time between us and them, we will not likely see them again until we get home.

As for us, we have no idea what our plans for tomorrow are. We are hoping to get to the coast, and maybe do some shopping. Whatever we do, we are also hoping it doesn't include our usual 5 to 6 hours of travel, or sitting for hours in the sun.

The main point of the trip has been completed. I wouldn't have missed this for anything.