Despite not competing this year, I did have a bit of a pipe band season, with gala days running from early June until late August. (We also have one event in September, but I'm considering that to be part of our Autumn/Winter, rather than of the season proper.) I think I probably attended a bit more than half of the events - several were cancelled for one reason or another and there were some I just couldn't make it to (and one I just opted out of).
All in all, it's been a good summer. There has been a lot less stress than in previous years, and obviously a much smaller set of events. And absolutely no weekends with two events, which is nice. On the other hand, the standard just hasn't been as good - that's an obvious and unavoidable consequence of not competing. And there's no prospect of that changing, as attendance at practices is just too erratic to allow for significant improvement.
The one thing that I do miss is that there's no opportunity for teaching at the new band, which is a shame. Again, there's no sign of that changing. (And, if I'm being honest, I'm not minded to fight very hard to change that.)
Otherwise, things have been pretty positive for my first year with the new band.
(Incidentally, my previous band have had a banner year, being placed in the prize list at four of the five majors. They also came higher in the Worlds than I ever saw in my tenure, and came second in one major, where the best I ever saw was third. So well done to them - surely now that means they'll be promoted back to Grade 4A?)
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