Parking
The parking lot will be very crowded. Please encourage your parents to carpool as much as possible!! Cars parking on Clayton Road or on Hwy. 109 may be ticketed and/or towed. Parking on private property around the school is also prohibited.
Additional parking is available at Babler Elementary School, a quarter of a mile north of Lafayette on Highway 109. The equipment vehicles will be parked in the parking lot with your busses. Temporary rest rooms will be available in the bus parking area as well as the warm-up areas. For bands bringing equipment in a tractor trailer, it will be easier to enter Lafayette’s parking lot if you come to the school via west on Clayton Road.
Finalists
The 10 bands in the finals will be:
- The winners of each class
- The next 6 highest scoring bands regardless of class
Finalists will draw numbers to determine the order for finals. The 5 lower scoring bands will draw for the first 5 spots and the 5 higher scoring bands will draw for the last 5 spots.
Escorts
An escort will meet you when your bus arrives and stay with you until after your band performs
Warm-Up
You are scheduled for 30 minutes of warm-up in either area #1 or #2. It will not be a lined warm-up area. Please be sure that your band faces away from the stadium, and that your students DO NOT play their instruments other than during this warm-up time and during the performance. The use of amplified metronomes is prohibited during warm-up. This is the only time that you may warm-up.
Entry
You will enter the field from the west, (left of audience) and exit to the east (right of audience). Please do not deviate from this. You may do a "pass in review" if you would like, but you would need to exit the field to the audience's left, and pass from the right.
As you exit, Jolesch Photography will be ready to take your group photo. Announcements
The announcer will announce your band name, school name, city, director(s), and program. Then he will say, "Are the judges ready?" then, "Drum major(s)__________, is your band ready?" (salute) Then, "You may take the field in preliminary/finals competition." Judging Staff
We are particularly proud of the judging staff that we have been able to assemble for this year's contest. Once again, this year's staff is from the Central State Judges Association. The judges will be asked to provide constructive, positive comments on your performance.
The judges and their captions are as follows:
Music: TBA Visual: TBA The breakdown of the scoring is as follows: | Music Performance General Effect | 20% + (Total x .25) = 25%
| Music Performance Ensemble
| 20% + (Total x .25) = 25% | Percussion Performance
| 10% | | Visual Performance General Effect | 20% | | Visual Performance Ensemble | 10% | | Visual Performance Auxiliary | 10% | | | Total 100% |
Power Outlet
A grounded power strip will be available on the sideline.
Storage and Changing Rooms
Your buses and support vehicles must serve as your storage and changing areas. Entry into the high school building will not be allowed for any reason. ***Please instruct your students NOT to use the restrooms to change!!*** This has caused big problems in the past. Awards
Prelims:
Trophies will be awarded to the first, second, and third place bands in the A, AA, AAA, and Open class.
Trophies will also be awarded for the following captions in each class:
Music (GE & Perf. combined)
Visual (GE & MM combined)
Percussion Performance
Auxiliary
Finals:
Trophies will also be awarded for the following captions in finals:
Music (GE & Perf. combined)
Visual (GE & MM combined)
Percussion Performance
Auxiliary
All bands in Finals will receive a trophy.
The winner of the Finals Competition will also be awarded the traveling trophy. Food
No open flame or propane grills are allowed on LHS property.
Our concession stand will be open throughout the day with many menu items to choose from. I encourage you to take advantage of the convenience of the concession stand. We will have anything your taste buds may desire!
You can order a variety of pizzas for your entire group through our Boosters by filling out the enclosed order form and faxing it to 636-458-7219 by September 18. Our concession stand generates most of our profit. If you feel it is important to ensure the continuation of a high quality event, please patronize our concessions rather than seeking other options so that we may continue to bring you the finest event possible. Wristbands
Wristbands to enter the competition will be sold at the west gate and are priced at $8.00 for adults and $5.00 for students (non-participants). Each band director will receive complimentary wristbands when you arrive. You will receive a minimum of 10 complimentary wrist bands. For bands larger than 100 members, the number of complimentary wrist bands will be 10% of your total band number. For instance, a 150 member band will receive 15 complimentary wrist bands. These are for you to use as you see fit for staff, equipment crew, administrators, etc. These are NOT for directors, bus or truck drivers, or students. Videotaping
One representative from your band may videotape the performance of your band only from the area immediately to the east of the press box. Please do not go to this area until it is time for your band to perform. We will be providing you with a professional video from the top of the press box along with close-up shots of your kids. Rain Plan
Of course it will not rain, but on the outside chance that we could be wrong, here is the plan:
In the event that the contest is called off the night before, we will call each band director at home. If it is raining on the morning of the contest, we will make a decision as to whether or not to try to hold the contest by 7:00am. You may call the band office at 733-4100 ext 44004 if you are unsure of the situation.
If it rains after that point we will continue if at all possible, and decide with a consensus of the Directors whether or not to continue.
Please understand that in the event of a rain-out, we would not be able to refund the entry fees due to the thousands of dollars that we would already be losing, however, we will give you a $200 credit toward the entry fee for next year's Contest of Champions.
"Director's Only" Section
The top two bleachers in the center section will be reserved for the directors only.
Seating
Please have your students sit on the visitor side of the stadium. I know that this is not ideal, however, we need to keep the home side open for fans that paid admission. Your parents will thank us both when they have a place to sit and watch the competition. First Aid
We will have a first aid station open. In addition, St. Luke's Urgent Care, 314-256-8644, is less than ten minutes from the Stadium. The Ballwin Fire Protection District is about two minutes away and available by calling 911. Building Interior
The interior of the school will be off-limits the entire day. Please instruct your students NOT to enter the building under any circumstances.
More Info?
Call or email Mr. Balog or relate questions to your parent escort when he or she calls the week of the Contest of Champions. | 
