The band entered the Uncle Sam Birthday Parade, an annual event in downtown Troy that pays tribute to Samuel Wilson, the Troy native who came to personify America. The band hastily prepared with a few crash courses in playing while walking. “I had no idea how it was going to go, but we were going to go with it either way,” said Conductor Tim Tesluk ’07, adding, “Everybody was pretty enthusiastic.”

That enthusiasm paid off. The band won first place in the adult division, and now has a wooden plaque hanging in West Hall to commemorate the achievement.

Given the inexperience of the band in an event like this, the results weren’t entirely expected. “We were surprised,” said Manager A.J. Macey ’08.

“Honored,” added Manager Neil Havlak ’07.

Macey, who is from the area, thought the parade would be a good opportunity for the band to expand its horizons and bring some of its intensity to the community. “I’ve been in the parade for various other things. We saw an ad that said they were looking for new bands and they wanted to make it more spectacular. We contacted them and said we would be willing to participate,” he said.

You’d have to go back to 1993 to find the last time the band took part in a parade. “That’s the last known time we marched,” said Tesluk.

The large gap between marching events isn’t likely to become a trend, though. While Tesluk is somewhat hesitant to consider marching in other parades, he does relish the opportunity to repeat as adult division champs.

“It takes a lot of energy out of the band, so it’s something we can’t do too often. But marching in this parade is something we’ll probably do every year,” he said.

“They invited us back,” Macey stated.

With this award under their belt can other opportunities be far away? “I’m sure if Macys wanted us, we’d go,” said Havlak.