U.S. Open Brass Championship - 2009

Waiting for my last load of laundry to exit the dryer.  In an hour or so, I start the long road trip to St. Charles, IL to compete (along with the Fountain City Brass Band) at the 2009 U.S. Open Brass competition.  First leg of the trip is to drive to Lathrop, a small town in Missouri north and east of Kansas City.  There lives one of my fellow FCBB-ers, and we're to carpool together across Iowa to the FAR western Chicago suburb.

Further details about the competition can be found on their website: http://www.usopenbrass.org/index.php

We're contesting against eight other bands, including an international band from Toronto.  Afterwards, we all put on our fancy suits, new FCBB formal ties (used extensively in our upcoming UK tour), and get scandalizingly drunk at the "banquet", conveniently held in a room with copious alcohol.

It's a good time, though.  Good people, too, which makes it certainly easier to play and work hard for the group.  FCBB won the competition in 2007 and 2008 (and won five national contests in a row), so we'll have to see whether or not we can continue our high standards before we board the plane for parts beyond the sea.

More details on Sunday!