I travelled down to Rotorua on Friday night with some other band members to be well rested and ready for the competition on Saturday.

We were up dressed, getting breakfast early to be ready for the Street March at about 10:18.  Surprisingly, after some lateness, minimal tuning, the band was able to step off from point A, sounding very good.  With all the drama, once we started I think all the stress disappeared.  I am not sure what the result was but I think everyone was happy.

We then had to drive across town to get the the competition circle, build up was a bit more relaxed than previous competition build ups, we did not work on specific parts in isolation, or spend much time putting air through the pipes.  The day was warm and overcast, perfect conditions for tuning buildup which allowed the band to be relaxed and ready when stepping off point a.

The band was confident going into both the Set and Medley, and as a result, the band played very well together in the circle.  Tim, the pipe major, was very happy with both performances, and we had several past band members approach the band, to indicate how impressed by the quality of the band they were and to congratulate the band on its performances.

Even better was the confirmation of the results.  We got first in the Set, having come first in ensamble, chinching the victory from Tauranga.  We were only a point behind Tauranga in the Medley, making it only one point difference between first and second place.  This has given the band confidence going into the nationals in 2 weeks time.  The small size of the band has made it hard for it to compete with the other bands in the grade, but this result says that the band is capable of achieving success in this climate of competition.

We also marched behind our Drum Major for the mace flourishing competition, giving him a good shot.  He is getting better at controlling his footwork and keeping in time with the music, although there is still room for improvement.

Another change the band made was to test out the borrowed green waistcoats and see if the dress comments improved.  This was also a great success, having all of us try them on to see what it looked like, then continuing with the rest of the competition in them.  These button up higher than the prince charlie waistcoats, and also come down at the back to cover the tops of the kilts and shirts where the prince charlie ones didn’t do a good job here.

All in all, a satisfactory result, the band left the ground happy with some silverware, and the core leaders happy with the performances.  Hopefully the band continues to grow and improve before the nationals in 2 weeks time.