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poltr1Continuing my march down memory lane....
My high school -- Sweet Home -- was in Section VI, Division I of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA). Section VI covered western New York -- Niagara, Erie, Chautauqua, and Cattaraugus counties. Division I was for the larger schools. The schools (and teams) I remember us playing against were Amherst (Tigers), Kenmore East (Bulldogs), Kenmore West (Blue Devils), North Tonawanda (Lumberjacks), and Jamestown (Red Raiders). Games were held on Saturday afternoons, and occastionally on Friday nights.
We played at both the home and away games. During the game, we'd play in the stands, and for halftime, we marched on the field and did our show. (We did one show a season -- the same show every game.) For the away games, we'd travel in school buses to the opponent's field or stadium.
Oh, we had fun on the bus trips! I forgot what we did to pass the time -- talk, play cards, etc. There was always a couple or two in the back seat, necking, or as I liked to call it, "working on their embouchures".
The trip to Jamestown was two hours long -- south on I-90 to Fredonia, and then south on NY 60 to Jamestown. We'd stop at the McDonald's in Fredonia for lunch or dinner. Andy Weinzler once demonstrated "the dribbles" there. He took the lid off a McDonald's chocolate shake, took a big swig, smiled, and the shake just dribbled out of his mouth. (Dude! Sick!) Jim Pancook said he liked being the first one off the bus, just to see the expression on the faces of the crew members when they realized there was a bus of hungry high schoolers in the parking lot.
When we played North Tonawanda, I tried to get our marching band to play Monty Python's "The Lumberjack Song". Unfortunately, only a few of us knew how to play the song.
Someone in the sax section was playing "Yakety Sax" -- the theme from "Benny Hill".
One of the cheers we did: When the opposing team scored a touchdown, we'd say "Awwwwww...... shit!" (Since we had the letters "SH" on the front of our uniforms, it seemed to fit.) That only lasted a few weeks, until the school board told us to cease and desist.
My worst moment: In my freshman year, at a home game, we were marching on a muddy field. I executed a sharp left turn.... and fell over. My whole left side -- and my clarinet -- were covered in mud. My reed was broken. But I continued the show, miming playing, as if nothing happened. I'm told there's a film of this, taken by one of the teachers. But I've yet to see it.
Speaking of uniforms.... our colors were blue and gold. We wore blue jackets and pants, with a gold stripe down the side, with a white overlay that had the letters "SH" on the front (as mentioned earlier), and a panther on the back. Our hats were big and yellow, with a chinstrap. They had a plastic shell or liner, coated with yellow fuzz or fur. We called them "Twinkies", due to their resemblance to the snack food. One year, for our yearbook pictures, we were in uniform and practicing on the field after school. One person's hat came off, and was run over by a truck.
I'm sure I'll come up with other memories after finishing this article.
My high school -- Sweet Home -- was in Section VI, Division I of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA). Section VI covered western New York -- Niagara, Erie, Chautauqua, and Cattaraugus counties. Division I was for the larger schools. The schools (and teams) I remember us playing against were Amherst (Tigers), Kenmore East (Bulldogs), Kenmore West (Blue Devils), North Tonawanda (Lumberjacks), and Jamestown (Red Raiders). Games were held on Saturday afternoons, and occastionally on Friday nights.
We played at both the home and away games. During the game, we'd play in the stands, and for halftime, we marched on the field and did our show. (We did one show a season -- the same show every game.) For the away games, we'd travel in school buses to the opponent's field or stadium.
Oh, we had fun on the bus trips! I forgot what we did to pass the time -- talk, play cards, etc. There was always a couple or two in the back seat, necking, or as I liked to call it, "working on their embouchures".
The trip to Jamestown was two hours long -- south on I-90 to Fredonia, and then south on NY 60 to Jamestown. We'd stop at the McDonald's in Fredonia for lunch or dinner. Andy Weinzler once demonstrated "the dribbles" there. He took the lid off a McDonald's chocolate shake, took a big swig, smiled, and the shake just dribbled out of his mouth. (Dude! Sick!) Jim Pancook said he liked being the first one off the bus, just to see the expression on the faces of the crew members when they realized there was a bus of hungry high schoolers in the parking lot.
When we played North Tonawanda, I tried to get our marching band to play Monty Python's "The Lumberjack Song". Unfortunately, only a few of us knew how to play the song.
Someone in the sax section was playing "Yakety Sax" -- the theme from "Benny Hill".
One of the cheers we did: When the opposing team scored a touchdown, we'd say "Awwwwww...... shit!" (Since we had the letters "SH" on the front of our uniforms, it seemed to fit.) That only lasted a few weeks, until the school board told us to cease and desist.
My worst moment: In my freshman year, at a home game, we were marching on a muddy field. I executed a sharp left turn.... and fell over. My whole left side -- and my clarinet -- were covered in mud. My reed was broken. But I continued the show, miming playing, as if nothing happened. I'm told there's a film of this, taken by one of the teachers. But I've yet to see it.
Speaking of uniforms.... our colors were blue and gold. We wore blue jackets and pants, with a gold stripe down the side, with a white overlay that had the letters "SH" on the front (as mentioned earlier), and a panther on the back. Our hats were big and yellow, with a chinstrap. They had a plastic shell or liner, coated with yellow fuzz or fur. We called them "Twinkies", due to their resemblance to the snack food. One year, for our yearbook pictures, we were in uniform and practicing on the field after school. One person's hat came off, and was run over by a truck.
I'm sure I'll come up with other memories after finishing this article.
