Racer Band travels to St. Louis for Bands of America

Story by Alec MullinsContributing writer

The Murray State Racer Band will take the field on Oct. 17 in St. Louis, Missouri, at the Edward Jones Dome for Bands of America’s Super Regional event.

This competition for high school marching bands will feature 60 bands from across the U.S. performing over two days. Performing in an exhibition-style class, the purpose for Racer Band will be to entertain not only the competition’s regular spectators but also all the bands that compete on the final day.

Jacob Baker, junior from Kuttawa, Kentucky, said the band is accustomed to playing in front of large crowds as the team averaged more than 4,000 fans at home games last season, according to GoRacers.com, but it will be a different atmosphere.

“I actually played there in high school, but it wasn’t much different than a regular competition, but It’s going to be way more intense with 250 people in the band instead of 25,” Baker said “Also, the crowd is going to be huge, so the reactions are going to be great.”

With a show that consists of a medley between “The Tiger of San Pedro” and “Malagueña”, followed by Chicago’s “25 or 6 to 4” and closed with a pop mash-up of Mark Ronson’s “Uptown Funk”/Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off”, Racer Band attempts to showcase a variety of music, but usually “Uptown Funk” gets the best energy from the audience Baker said.

“We have a part where the pit is clapping and hyping the crowd up, and it always gets a huge response,” Baker said.

The focus of the day will not be solely around the performance though, as many Racer Band members are excited to share a day with their peers. Cody Ball, sophomore from Mayfield, Kentucky, said the show will be the main priority, but a chance to connect with other members of Racer Band is also important.

“My friends that I have made through Racer Band are some of, if not, my closest friends that I have made in all of my life,” Ball said. “Imagine being in a group of people you feel like you have known for your whole life and then imagine all of those people coming together for one goal, that is Racer Band.”

With only a few performances left in the season the Racer Band can be seen during halftime at all of the remaining Murray State home football games and Saturday’s homecoming parade.

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