Laura Phelps wrote:
                                                                    Second, if
>you pay attention, you should notice that whenever the student section begins
>one of its more inappropriate cheers, the pep band will (almost always) start
>playing to try and drown out the cheer along with its inappropriate language.
>This may have relaxed in the last few years, but when I was there, we were
>told by the arena director that it was our job to play when the swearing
>started.
>
 
I can't speak for the Clarkson Pep Band's actions at Cheel, since
for some reason, the SLU administration won't let us travel to Clarkson
for a game, but that's a long story which I won't get into.  However, I
can speak for the behavior of the Clarkson Pep Band when they came into
Appleton this year.  Frankly, I was disgusted by what I saw and heard.
First of all, they showed no respect for the SLU Pep Band.  There were
numerous times when we would start to play, and they decided that they
would just start playing and trying to drown us out.  The usual
procedure that we follow is that the bands take turns playing during
the spots when the puck is not in play.  We showed them that courtesy,
but it wasn't returned to us.  Secondly, the Clarkson band STARTED many
obnoxious and vulgar cheers themselves, much to the delight of the other
Clarkson fans attending the game, who chimed in with the band.  The
Clarkson band got so out of hand, that they had to be asked by the
Appleton arena staff to tone it down or they would be kicked out.  And
how about that "RPI Sucks -- SLU Swallows" T-shirt -- that was really
classy (extreme sarcasm).
  I should also comment by saying that yes, there were some SLU fans
who got out of hand, but the vast majority showed respect for those
around them and contributed to many positive cheers.
  I have also had occasion to see other pep bands in the ECAC.  The
Cornell band is notorious for its chants and cheers, but they have
never gotten really vulgar when they came to Appleton.  They also were
civil, friendly, and showed courtesy when our band was playing.
  I saw the RPI band at Houston Field House this year, and they were
perhaps one of the most positive bands that I have seen around.  They
only initiated positive motivational cheers and used no profanity, as
far as I could tell.
  In my opinion, the purpose of the pep band is to get the crowd further
into the game and to motivate their team.  Pep bands shouldn't be used
to ridicule opposing fans and subject them to disgusting, juvenile
behavior.
 
 
                    ___
                   /=|====\     Nathan Mastro '98
                  (  | ===      St. Lawrence University
                   \=|==|=\     Co-President--Saints Pep Band
                     |     )    http://it.stlawu.edu/~nmastro
                   \=|====/     [log in to unmask]
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