"Northwest" Century 21
By John J. Broderick
DCN Aug. 8, 1962

The 4th of July competition was held in Everett, Washington with a big upset in the Junior competition. Three Juniors and two Seniors competed before a crowd of 8,000.

In the Junior competition, the SHAMROCKS of Seattle, took first with a score of 89.1. The THUNDERBIRDS of Seattle were second with a score of 87.4. The BLUE ANGELS of Seattle took third with a score of 82.9. This is the first time the Thunderbirds have been beaten in a field competition. An upset was predicted for this year but not this early in the season.

All Juniors put on a terrific show. The THUNDERBIRDS of Seattle seemed to be the crowd pleasers with their GE-packed show. The SHAMROCKS have shown great progress this year and the BLUE ANGELS will be a close contender before long.

Thunderbirds' "Besame Mucho"; Shamrocks' "What A Difference A Day Makes"; and the Blue Angels' "When The Angels Sing", were the top numbers of the evening. Some comments from the audience were: "Thunderbirds overdo the concert by pulling too many individuals out of line". - "Shamrocks weak on concert". - "Blue Angels show uncertainty in their numbers". (new corps)

Girl Color Guard add much GE to all Juniors - Good Show!

Now for the Seniors.
The Everett Blue Knights took first with a score of 90.4. The Hurricanes took second with a score of 83.4. The Blue Knights show great improvement over last year and the audience knew they were first before the scores were announced. Comments from some in the audience were: " 'Grandfather's Clock' should be replaced; it has no crowd appeal." Drill is much improved over past years. Many predict this corps will be new Legion Senior Champion in August?

The Hurricanes of Seattle showed with a much smaller corps than the last four years. Completed their drill 2 days before competition and it showed. Much uncertainty in drum line - had top drum line for many years until this years. They had the lowest drum score of all corps, including juniors. The horns were not playing together. The Hurricanes need more togetherness in all captions.

Perpetual 4th of July flag donated to the Association four years ago by the Blue Knights was finally presented to them for the first time at this competition. The Blue Knights really celebrated that night.

John Broderick and Vince Tarasco