1988 - Yahoo! We rise from the ashes

Strike Up The Band	Sabre Dance	2001 Space Odyssey
Battlestar Galactica	Where No Man Has Gone Before	Can You Read My Mind?
Cantina Band	Star Wars

At the end of 1987 we once again lost a number of members due to work and family commitments, but thankfully we were able to maintain the standard of previous years with recruiting and another reshuffle of instrumental categories. One of our first public performances of the year was at the Nat West Festival of Marching Bands at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday 16th February.
It was again decided that this year's show would be based primarily on a theme, so selections of music from various space anthems were chosen. Strike up the Band was kept as an opening piece to the routine.

The year was filled with fund raising events at Weston-super-Mare, Paignton and Weymouth in order to pay for the previous year's trip to the USA and our forthcoming visit to Alberta, Canada. Almost every weekend from April to July was taken up with engagements around the country so it was an extremely busy time for the band. Supreme titles were won at three regional championships in June (Hornchurch, Eastleigh and Midsomer Norton). We were unable to compete during the competitive season's busiest month because during the first two weeks of July the band was off to Calgary, Canada to take part in the world famous Stampede.

At 9am on Friday 1st July we left the Bristol Polytechnic for Heathrow Airport. All the suitcases, uniforms and instruments had been packed two days previously and were already at the airport awaiting customs clearance. An employee of BBC Radio Bristol was travelling with us for a week to carry out interviews, whilst also keeping up with the bands progress in Calgary. At 1315 Air Canada flight AC857 departed Heathrow for the seven hour flight to Toronto. From here the band were split into two groups for the onward journey to Calgary. There were two separate flights and most of those under eighteen years of age were taken on the first flight with the others leaving just over an hour later for the two hour journey to our final destination. It had been an exhausting days travelling and by the time we got to the Central Memorial School in Calgary, it was past midnight (7am GMT). Thankfully all excursions the following day were cancelled, leaving the day free to settle in with our billets who were hosting us for the full two weeks.

SUNDAY 3rd JULY

In the morning we assembled outside of the Central Memorial School and were taken on school buses for a sightseeing tour of the Winter Olympic venues situated on the western edge of the city. Later, there was a guided tour of the Calgary University and time to do our own sightseeing in the afternoon before returning for a free evening with our host families.

The next day we met again at the school to rehearse the display for a half time show at a local football game the next evening. The band hadn't practised for nearly a week and it was necessary to acclimatise to the humid conditions. With the rehearsals over we boarded the buses for a shopping trip to the Chinook Mall for a couple of hours and then onto a swimming pool in the Southlands area of the city before once again being given the evening off to spend at our leisure.

We arrived the following afternoon at the MacMahon Stadium for a final rehearsal and were told that the officials were expecting 20,000 spectators for the game between the Calgary Stampeders and Edmonton Eskimos. The allocated period for the half time show was ten minutes, which had to include the march on and off the field. This was some five minutes short of the usual time so we had to be prepared for Richard Lorriman, who in this instance conducted the show, to cut us off at any time and leave the field immediately. Fortunately this didn't happen and we were able to complete a full display which was well received by the crowd.

A trip to the Ice Fields was scheduled for the next morning, but because of the inclement weather it was cancelled. Instead we travelled by bus for a sightseeing tour of Banff, a town situated in the Rocky Mountains some fifty miles west of Calgary. We looked around the town visiting the world famous Banff Springs Hotel before taking a gondola lift up into the mountains for a spectacular view over Banff. Even with the poor weather conditions it was still possible to appreciate the stunning scenery. The coaches then took us took the hot springs and sulphur pool. For those that could stand the smell it was an opportune moment for a quick twenty minute bathe before hopping back on the buses for our final excursion to the Rafter Six Ranch. On arrival we were "accosted" by some cowboys before we were able to enjoy (?!) an hour's horse riding through some of the wilderness or relax on a hay ride around the ranch. There was then time to relax at a barbeque, and nurse those sore nether regions for those who'd taken the opportunity to go horse riding! (I'll never forget "Coco the donkey" and his unnaturally upset stomach! Who did win the "YAHOO" competition?) It was a great end to a tiring, but fun day. The coaches returned to Calgary and we were given the evening off.

There was a rehearsal at the school the next afternoon in preparation for the Stampede Parade the following day. If we were placed within the top eight bands in the parade, we would then be invited to compete in the Band O'Rama Championships on the 12th July at the Olympic Saddledome Stadium. After marching up and down the length of the school field a few times we rehearsed the display in what turned out to be a terrible rehearsal overall. The continuous heat got to many people and there was a lot of bickering between sections within the band! Thankfully this was resolved and we were later taken to Heritage Park where we put on the marching display in an arena half the size we were used to. Heritage Park is one of Calgary's major tourist attractions, because as the name suggests it exhibits artifacts and preserves buildings from Canada's past. However the afternoon turned out to be dull and overcast so many people stayed away! We were then given three hours to look around the Park before returning to Calgary for a free evening.

FRIDAY 8th JULY

Already, at only 9am the temperatures were soaring. We were participating in the Stampede Parade with over twenty other bands from all over Canada and the USA. The band were taken to downtown Calgary and at 11am, after warming up the instruments on the buses (because of the air conditioning no doubt!) we formed up for the start of the parade. The temperatures by now were well into the nineties and many of us were beginning to feel a lot of discomfort. Thousands of spectators were lining the streets to watch the procession which was being presented live on National television. The parade took us into the heart of the city through some seemingly never-ending streets and lasted for over two hours. The spectators were magnificent, clapping and cheering all the bands and floats as they went past, but that aside it was a great relief to eventually finish the parade as we were all feeling the effects of the punishing heat.
The rest of the day was free to look around the Stampede grounds where there were hundreds of amusements and a fun fair, before witnessing the famous chuck wagon racing and a performance by our hosts, the Calgary Stampede Band. It was here that the band was told we were runners-up in the parade behind the band of the Virginia Blues from the USA. This obviously meant that we had qualified for the competition at the Saddledome in a few days time.

Today the band learned of the sudden death of one of our most loyal supporters, Mr. Ken Young. Ken was an active and vocal member of the supporters and their committee. It was a tragic loss for the band and he was greatly missed.

Over the next two days the band performed at Spruce Meadows for the show jumping competition between Canada, the USA and the United Kingdom. On both occasions the Calgary Round-Up Band, a younger version of the Stampede Band took part in the event. They commented on how surprised they were that males and females were allowed to change on the same coaches. This prompted some scenes of semi-nakedness by Christine Butler who went all out to prove that we Brits were in no way prudish!
The following day was given as a free day to spend with hosts.

TUESDAY 12th JULY

Today the band was to compete at the Band O'Rama Competition inside of the Olympic Saddledome. This was home to the Ice-Hockey and Skating contests during the Winter Olympics only months earlier. The outside structure was shaped like a saddle, hence the name and was part of a multi-million dollar promotional campaign to hold the Olympics in the city. It has a capacity of 20,000 spectators and is now used for all kinds of events.
We held a brief rehearsal before making our way down to the stadium where we were given three hours off before having to get ready for the competition in the evening. Although the stadium wasn't filled to capacity, the main stand at the front of the arena was packed with spectators.
After a poor rehearsal only five days previously at the Memorial School we gave a performance worthy of the championship title, with the Band of the Virginia Blues being awarded the Runners-Up position. It was a relief, as by our own admission, with the exception of the show at the MacMahon Stadium all of our displays on the tour had up until today been distinctly average.

Our planned visit to the West Edmonton Mall the next day had to be cancelled so the day was once again free to spend with hosts.

THURSDAY 14th JULY

Much of the day was spent visiting Drummheller, a small town two hour's drive away in an arid region of Alberta. There was a museum here with many prehistoric artifacts, although as the temperatures were once again in the nineties much of our time was spent sunbathing by the side of a man-made lake, or taking various walks around the hundreds of footpaths on the complex.

Before returning to Calgary we were taken by bus to Calaway Park, (Ricardo Giuliani knows the jingle!), a pleasure park with rollercoasters and other amusements. We stayed here until closing time and returned home to the hosts for our last evening in Calgary. There were strict instructions to meet at the school for 530am and there were to be no repeats of people "oversleeping" as with the previous year's trip to America!
Our two week trip to Calgary was sadly drawing to a close. We were once again privileged with superb hosts, fantastic sightseeing tours, great laughs and tremendous successes wherever we performed.
As with everyone else who went to Calgary, I have many fond memories of this trip. They include seeing Elliot Osborne being wheeled onto the plane for our return journey home after consuming way too much alcohol! Admittedly not many of us knew how serious his condition was, and it was touch and go as to whether he was going to fly back with us. Thankfully he did. As a result of being at the same party as Elliot, I had to share a sick bag with Ian Womack on the bus ride to the airport. I don't remember too much about the party as I made good friends with a bottle of vodka, spending the next few weeks writing to my hosts apologising for the consequences! (Its ok Dave, they forgave me!)
Then there was Paul Phillip's famous "mooner" on the gondola lift in Banff!

On returning from Canada the band were given a week off before going to Lyme Regis for a carnival parade and the Badminton Air Day to put on a marching display. We were then given a well earned four week break, returning at the end of August and rehearsing for the three days at the Bristol Flower Show. September was extremely busy with many engagements at various locations around the country. On the weekend of October 29th and 30th October we spent a weekend at RAF Colerne rehearsing the marching display for the forthcoming British Championships on Sunday November 6th.

Throughout the competitive season we had only entered three regional contests, and as a result it was difficult to assess the overall standard of other bands or how well they had improved over the year. We did know however, that the 3rd Glasgow Boys Brigade would be returning to defend their British title with a hugely popular rendition of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. Travelling to the Wembley Arena we knew we were entering the unknown, as it was rumoured the Conquest Alliance would be competing along with the Blue Eagles, Concord, Beechmen and Thurrock who were all enjoying a good competitive season on the Drum Corps UK circuit.
For some reason the Conquest Alliance did not turn up, so all the reports were of a three horse race between us, the Blue Eagles and 3rd Glasgow.
The final award ceremonies were always a nervous experience and this year proved to be no exception. The Blue Eagles were announced in 3rd place with a score of 818.5. Then the announcement came that for the first time in the history of the competition there was a tie for first place. However the championship title was to be decided on the band with the most points awarded in the Overall General Musical Effect caption, judged by Jim Mason. Out of a possible 100 points 3rd Glasgow were awarded 79 and the Bristol Unicorns 80. It was a tremendous relief, after possibly the tensest moment the band had ever experienced. Once again the Bristol Unicorns had made history, this time by becoming the first band ever to win the British title four times. It was a great feeling to eventually march off the arena with heads held high, once again holding the championship trophy despite a small, sad minority who had taken it upon themselves to try and ruin our triumph! Some of the organisers were even concerned enough to ask some of the stewards to escort us off the arena. As well as being subjected to this, we had to answer some of the critics from the British Marching Bands "Quarterly" magazine, who reading between lines, were perhaps suggesting that the results did not necessarily reflect upon the differing quality in performances. Thankfully Nick Tippet wrote a rather diplomatic reply putting the record straight!

During the second week of December we again "toured" North Bristol on our carol float to raise more funds for the band, before winding up the year on Sunday 18th December with our annual Christmas Concert at Patchway High School.

This year was undoubtedly the band's busiest year in terms of engagements and fund raising events. Once again it proved to be a highly successful year, in particular following our achievements on the trip to Canada, and after regaining the British Championship title.

About a month before the British Championships Dave formed a dance band which at the time was made up of fifteen members from the marching band and one of the supporters, Tony Giuliani. It was established to produce a "Big Band" sound, which Dave had always wanted, using electric guitars, keyboard, slide trombones as well as trumpets and saxophones. Dave has since retired from the dance band, but it exists today, performing with some of the original members under the name of Serenade.