Students March To Pasadena Parade Ferris Marching Band, Drill Team A Part Of Tournament Of Roses

Full of yawns, sighs and stretches, members of Ferris High School’s marching band and drill team packed into Spokane International Airport at daybreak Saturday as they headed to sunny California.

The 250 students will perform with 11 other school bands on New Year’s Day in the Tournament of Roses parade in Pasadena.

“I told the kids to be here at 5:30,” said band director Dave Weatherred. “I got here at quarter ‘til and the line was way down there.”

Way down there meant a tangled mess of Ferris and non-Ferris passengers queuing up through half the airport terminal to check suitcases, baby seats and hundreds of bulky musical instruments. Other instruments were trucked to California midweek.

“Good morning,” said a throng of too-tired students in unison as they shuffled past Weatherred.

“Where do I go, Dave?” asked one of the trip’s 78 chaperones.

“Are all the students here?” asked another.

“This is just crazy,” said a bewildered Weatherred.

Indeed. Students and chaperones traveled on four separate flights - two groups on Southwest, one on Delta and one on Alaska Airlines.

Surprisingly, only one plane was delayed. The Alaska Airlines flight, which was scheduled to leave at 8:30 a.m., took off an hour late.

Members of the drill team didn’t mind.

“It’s all good,” said Natalie Gulsrad, a junior. “We get food. People on Southwest get peanuts. We’re getting the better deal. Plus, the buses will still have to wait for us.”

Waiting is what the group did a lot of.

Between 6:30 and 7 a.m., the line for security checks at Concourse A and B crawled back so far, it crossed the path of passengers waiting to check in with Alaska Airlines.

In line, band members chattered about the beach, the balmy weather, volleyball and Disneyland.

Tonja Brown, a sophomore trumpet player, got up at 3:30 a.m. to finish packing and had just one thing on her mind.

“The sun,” she said, through chapped lips.

In addition to seeing sunny sights, Ferris students will join an exhibition of all Rose Bowl bands on Monday. They’ll have one last chance on Tuesday to practice “My Favorite Things” and “Washington Post” for the parade.

The band’s been preparing since school began in September. When snow filled Ferris’ fields, Fairchild Air Force Base became the band’s new rehearsal grounds.

“They did a lot of practicing,” said Vivian Shields, mother of Lakedia Davis, a Ferris sophomore trumpeter.

Most of the kids said they were “a little nervous” about millions of people seeing them on television. But not nervous enough to stay home.

Katie Herrbach, a sophomore flutist, could only smile about news of more snow heading toward Spokane.

“Oh, yes,” she said. “We’re leaving.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo