Urban 15 goes to DC!

Sightings and a chance to campaign for U-15!

2009-01-23T13:15:00.005-06:00

We have been receiving reports of U-15 sightings from friends since the end of the parade Tuesday, here are videos from those sightings:

C-Span's parade coverage (links directly to our performance)
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (edited, very funny segment)
WOAI (NBC) San Antonio (delivered by mefeedia)

Use this e-mail form to contact The Daily Show-- tell them how much you love Urban-15, and that Mr. Stewart should have us on his show! Make sure you select "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" as the topic.

Leave 'comments' with your U-15 sightings!

Photos!

2009-01-23T12:24:00.004-06:00

As promised, here are some photos from parade day, enjoy!

We were there! We made History!

2009-01-22T22:31:00.004-06:00

The parade was awesome, groups from all over the country were there. We were only able to see those close to our grouping (6, the last of the parade).

So after being energized by our new President's speech, we were ready to brave the cold and deliver a great show! NOT. Man, it was cold, mid 20's before the wind kicked in dragging it down to low teens. We were almost dressed to perfection for combating the cold, but our trusty hot packs came in handy.

Parade prep came in a few stages:
* Drive to parking lot "A", sit on the bus and wait
* Drive to parking lot "B", meet your assigned escort (a GREAT guy by-the-way. Not sure if I can reveal his name, so I won't), sit on bus and wait
* Get out of bus, get bus searched (and you, your equipment, etc.), pick up a box lunch
* Get back on bus, eat box lunch, wait-- are you starting to see a pattern here?
* Go to hosting place "C" get out of bus go into warm cozy tent, wait
* Get called out of warm cozy tent to stand in formation outside in 20° weather, wait (let me tell you-- it was HARD to go out into that cold air, but we did)
* Start parade...

So we're finally on the go, all is going well and spirits are high, we're hoping for the "signal"... ok, let me explain.

The "signal" is a special hand and/or arm gesture assigned to our group to let us know if we will get the privilege of doing an extended performance for the President-- it is only revealed to you if the extended performance is a go... did I tell you only eight groups would have this potential privilege and U-15 was selected as one of them?!

We approach the viewing stand for President Obama and the First Lady... no signal, bummer-- or maybe not.

As we passed the viewing area we took our chance-- we stopped in front of the viewing booth and started to perform the 'special' section of our song which included a new dance move designed especially for the President-- a gesture/motion symbolic of blessing him.

Here is the real special part, performed by our President.

President Obama made a conscience effort to make eye contact with several of us and acknowledge us with finger points, thumbs-up signs and waves. This act shook most of us to the core-- many of the drummers (including myself) missed our queues and started playing all different rhythms, dancers lost train of thought and started doing a variety of dance moves.

Amazingly all the pieces fit together to make a beautiful presentation-- the beat from the drums blended into each other and filled in gaps missed by mesmurized members, the dancers awe-inspired movements became organic and blended to each other creating patterns and spins that looked perfectly choreographed.

Oh, I left out something pretty significant, we were caught totally off guard (at least I was) that President Obama and the First Lady were practically a few feet from us. I had no idea they would be that close and it blew my mind to see them-- it was a beautiful sight. My guess is I wasn't the only one caught off guard and awe-struck based on the groups reaction (noted above) and excitemet well into the night and following day.

Needless to say we overstayed our welcome and was told to "move it along", it was kind of funny actually, but our mission was completed and the First Family looked pleased with our performance-- many smiles, pointing and waves were aimed our way. The First Lady even danced a bit.

I'm putting together photos from our group and the next posting will have plenty of photos.

Parade Day!

2009-01-20T01:34:00.003-06:00

This post is mostly informational, since there will be a lot of things going on tomorrow (or later today technically-- it's nearly 3am right now) and I feel all those who are following this blog or have friends/family in "U-15" need to know... note all times are EST

Parade Day is a long day, with many hoops we will need to jump through. We found out today that we cannot have cameras on the parade route (but we can pre-parade) so its important you all have your DVRs set to record so we can have a record of what happened when we get home!

Phone calls, texting, etc. will be difficult if you are trying to reach any of us after about 10am-- don't think we're ignoring you. As I am sure you all are aware of, this Inauguration is unlike any other, many security procedures are in place and this is one of them.

We're heading out at 7:30am hoping to reach our destination 23 miles away before 10:30! Yes, 23 miles and we're hoping three hours is enough time to get there.

Look for us to pass the reviewing stand around 5pm, if things work out you may even see a little something special from us... keep your fingers crossed that whatever this "something special" is can happen.

On a special note, please be in prayer for the day's events that they go smoothly and without incident. Be in ferverent prayer for President Obama and his family on this day and throughout his candancy.

Rest assured, the Inauguration Day blog will be amazing, stay tuned.

What a Night!

2009-01-20T01:27:00.007-06:00

Even though I have to be prepared to leave for the parade in five hours I felt I owe you all some 'bloggin', so here goes...

Tonight was amazing! We performed at the Texas Black Tie and Boots Ball and what a show it was. There were a few celeb sightings, many photos taken and lots of energy from the crowd. They were definitely ready for a show like ours.

I can't express how excited the people were to see us, it was like they had been waiting for us to get there. As soon as we started playing the whole building was electric with energy-- countless numbers of people cheered, screamed snapped photos and danced with us for our entire performance. I can confidently say we were the highlight of this event-- Urban-15 made their mark tonight.

Below you will find photos from tonight festivities, and a few from our first full day in VA. I know I'm cheating, I didn't blog yesterday-- but at least you get some good photos-- and there's quite a few.

Ok, I was wrong... but in a good way

2009-01-18T14:57:00.004-06:00

Thankfully, we haven't had to endure bad weather-- so far, and what a blessing- God is Good! Snow is expected in around 'central' Virginia, right where we're heading, but we shouldn't experience much of it.

Our bellies are full and our spirits are high, but a 'chick flick' is now the movie of choice, The Women, how much more chick-flickish can you get!

Ok, now for some substance, our schedule. All times EST:

Tonight, we should get to our destination, Manassas, VA around 10pm
We will unpack and put our drums and other things together- not sure what time we're going to bed.

Monday, the 19th, Martin Luther King Holiday:
* 4pm, our illustrious leaders George and "Cat" Cisneros will visit the Pentagon for a briefing with the Presidential Inauguration Committee (PIC) about the parade
* 1opm performance at the Texas Ball "Black Tie and Boots" estimated 10,000 guests!

Tuesday, the 20th, the Inauguration and Parade!
* 7am Prep and leave the Hotel
* 10am arrival at the parade site (security check, etc)
* Listen to the Swearing in ceremony over loud speaker (or hopefully television)
* Have lunch
* Wait- Wait- Wait for the parade to start
* 4:30-5:00pm-ish, parade performance. We should pass the 44th President of the United States BARACK OBAMA!

Look out for us--
We will carry a black sign with "Urban-15 Carnaval de San Anto" and our web address http://www.urban15.org (my beautiful wife will be up front w/ the sign)
Our dancers will be wearing 'patriotic' outfits w/ stars, sparkle and lights
The Drummers (which I am one) will wear mostly black w/ Blue Tux jackets
We are group #72, if you ever hear numbers called during the televised event

Here's the trusty map.

Tonight I will upload a lot of 'action photos-- exciting stuff like: unpacking the bus, putting together the drums and stars, glueing and sewing, etc... cool huh?

Just wasting time

2009-01-18T10:13:00.004-06:00

Me again, just had to get back on and blog. This time Hulk is the movie of choice. We're still in Tennessee so I'll hold on the map for this one.

Yes, we are back on the road... again after a quick rest stop. We're in for a least 3 more hours of riding before we stop for chow.

Tennessee is actually a pretty nice place, what I can see from a moving bus anyway! Still pretty much a peaceful ride; good people, good food, good conversation, just too bad we have to drive (ride) so far.

More photos, enjoy!

To Maryland we go!

2009-01-18T07:23:00.007-06:00

On the road... again. I wonder how many times I'm going to use that phrase on this trip. Oddly enough, we are approaching the home of Country Music (not that I would care, but I like to keep you all informed)

I have a treat for you all, photos! I cannot vouch for the quality though, I didn't take them :-) More will be added later-- as people wake up and let me download their photos... and who knows, maybe even a little video from yours truly.

Ok, one last post for the night

2009-01-17T22:35:00.001-06:00

We're in Jackson, TN, all relaxed and trying to go to sleep (for at least a little while) before our 5am wake up call.

Forecast for tomorrow says rain and 14°, the only expected change along the way is that it will get colder... rain and clouds the entire way. This will probably make the 12-14 hours estimated drive longer.

I will try to blog from the road tomorrow, but not sure what kind of connection I will get in the expected bad weather.

Good night all, see you tomorrow.

Here's another little song for you-- Samba Merengue

Still on the Road...

2009-01-17T14:50:00.000-06:00

We're in Arkansas now, home of President Clinton. Just passing through on our way to Tennessee where we're pulling this bus over for the night.

I will try to add some photos (and vids) later, not much to see out here though-- if you've seen 'the country' you've seen it-- we're in the Piney Woods of the Ark-La-Tex, where I was born and raised.

Here is a semi-trusty map of our trip to DC (and where we presently are)...

Hey, I'm trying to keep this thing interesting.

We're on the Road

2009-01-17T11:57:00.000-06:00

We're heading due east right now towards Arkansas then Tennessee. I'm realizing now all the things I forgot-- set my DVR, bring my Tony Dungee book, upload the rest of my music from my office computer... its all good though.

To check out a more professional (and spell-corrected) blog check out David's, he's a real writer from MySanAntonio.com that's riding along with us.

Here's a little riding music for you. Timbalada from one of our CDs, enjoy.

More to come.

Final Preparation Begins

2009-01-16T17:46:00.001-06:00

This is the first post as we make final prep for the trip. Our bus leaves San Antonio in the morning around 6, and a few hours later my wife and I will board here in Dallas.

Its going to be a long night.

To keep you going, check out this video shot by 210 SA, an entertainment mag from San Antonio.