Raider Rhythm made school history when they were announced champions of the annual Putnam City Marching Classic in Oklahoma City Sept. 24.
A total of 12 bands competed in the competition. Each band performed in a preliminary round in hopes of advancing to the final round. Raider Rhythm advanced to finals along with three Oklahoma schools: Mustang, Edmond North and Sapula High Schools.
“When we were preparing for finals, I was a little nervous because we had a lot of free time,” band director David Wright said. “I thought our focus wasn’t at 100 percent, but during the performance everyone seemed to give it their all.”
When contest directors began announcing the winners, senior Payton Lockman said he became nervous when the band wasn’t called for the lower places. However, it soon became clear they had won.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Lockman said. “It was almost like we had won a war. It was a fantastic feeling because it was my last chance at winning the contest.”
Jay Francis • Oct 7, 2011 at 9:25 am
Firstly, thanks for your support Megan. And yes, being in the band is a lot of hard work. It takes concentration and lots of practice, even though some people think it’s just for nerds and it’s easy. Payton cried, for pete’s sake, that just shows how rewarding and amazing it feels. It sets standards for our band getting 1st. And I’m also excited on how we will do at tomorrow’s competition 🙂
Go band!
Eve • Oct 6, 2011 at 7:16 pm
I believe band is a lot of hard work, and that it’s a very time consuming competition. But any member will be happy to tell you they have the best time with the band, and its that insane loyalty to what may seem like such a boring activity that puts them at the top. Raider Rhythm deserved their win this year, so congratulations to the band.
Erika DeWitt • Oct 6, 2011 at 6:12 pm
First of all, GO RAIDER RHYTHM! They work so hard. I noticed that the lead is written in past tense. The writer could of said something about the upcoming songs that the band will play in future contests or games. And then the nut graph could’ve included information on how they did at Putnam. The writer has a really good transition that links the first direct quote with the following one. Overall, I really like this story! 🙂
adviser • Oct 7, 2011 at 8:03 am
Ha ha… Good job Erika! 🙂 — Mrs. Neese
Megan • Oct 6, 2011 at 2:22 pm
Even though I am not in band anymore I still support the band in any way. One because my sister is in band and a lot of my friends are in band. My freshman year we got so close to winning first in Putnam that I knew the Raider band would eventually win first in the contest. So I have to give my congradulations to the band and keep working hard so y’all can win area and move on to state.