A totem pole, bagpipe and drum
competition, and band performances? Yes indeed, another very enjoyable Saturday
spent on the campus of the Highline Community College in Des Moines (just few miles
south of Seattle) attending the Washington Piper's fourth Mini Gathering of the winter
season.
As we have come to
expect, this mini was well organized, well run, and a lot of fun. The photo to the
right was taken, at the registration table, shortly after the 9:00AM rush.
Registration started at 8:30AM (I'm told), but we arrived with the late crowd, at around 9:00AM. I think many of us have been spoiled by the efficient manner in which registration, and all things related to the WPA minis, are run. Next time - we'll try to arrive on time (honest)... Competitions were concluded by 12:15, and band performances followed.
A very pleasant surprise (for me) this day was the presence of the Grade 2 Maple Ridge Pipe Band from .... Maple Ridge BC. Well, in fact there are 4 or 5 members of the band from Portland, so the band decided the WPA mini offered a reasonable mid-way point for a full band practise..
This seems to have worked
very well for all involved.. A number of Maple Ridge band members were 'volunteered'
to judge solo competitions (thank you very much), and at the conclusion of the competition
events the entire band gave us an excellent performance as well. This was fun.
Truly an excellent day - lots of solo events, an MSR performance by a mini band from the Washington Scottish Pipe Band, and a very nice concert from the Maple Ridge Pipe Band - At the end, in a comfortable, and relaxed setting, PM Angus Macpherson explained: " I think we're done, we don't know anything else"
And finally a
quiz..Remember the color coding from last month?
To the right is a photo of the Wall Of Stewarding (my name for it).. Pretty great idea -eh?.. You can tell at a glance which color is up, and if you know the color you know the grade - It does work very well.
(Orange is G5, Dark Blue G4, Green Gr 2, and Yellow Grade 3)
OK.. Now on to the results: