What are you doing this summer?

Southern Knights - Summer Activities

Having originally been a Drum Corps, since changing in 1998 to become a Guard only organisation the Southern Knights have continued run all year round and are not just a winter only operation.  The summer for the Cadet, Junior and A Guard members is normally spent in a slightly more leisurely fashion than the winter but the members are still kept busy and a number of performances are undertaken.  A small handful of members also take part in the summer season DrumCorps/marching band season although in most cases also continue to attend the weekday rehearsals.  Whilst the Open Guard don't actually meet during the summer a number of the members help with the other Guards. 

What happened following the end of the season?
This year the first few weeks following the WGUK Championships were spent settling in new members who had made enquiries over the winter about joining and also moving members between units.  We currently have a waiting list for both the Rugrat and Juniors Guards and so time is spent ensuring the new members are aware of the winter commitment required as trying to integrate new members once the winter has commenced is always a lot harder.

Performances
We get numerous requests to attend local and in some cases national, events but we actually try and keep these to a minimum as the winter is so busy and therefore the more relaxed summer gives a chance to recharge the batteries ready for the new competitive season.  This year the younger groups have attended a few school fetes  plus most of the A Guard (and a couple of the Open Guard) appeared on stage at The Dome, Brighton as part of a performing arts festival and a short clip from this performance can be seen by clicking here

What's next?
Rehearsals will continue for the Cadet, Junior and A Class guards throughout August with early preparations now taking place for work to start on the their 2011 Winterguard in September.  The Open Guard does not start formal rehearsals until the second week of October but a number of the members, especially the 2010 A Guard who are moving into the Open Guard for 2011, will keep their hand in over the next couple of months by coming to some rehearsals.

You can find out more about Southern Knights on their website - http://www.southernknights.org.uk or become a Facebook "fan" at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105221512853069 plus check out their YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/southernknightsuk

23rd July 2010