Blue Devils B spent 2019, in a way, lying dormant.
The corps was still competing, and still putting up astounding numbers; the Concord, California group’s scores by the middle of July were comparable to Top 15-caliber corps.
Nothing incredibly new for a corps that has cracked the Top 15 in two of the last five seasons.
But in 2019, Blue Devils B wasn't a part of the competitive conversation heading into August, because for the first time in nearly two decades they didn't compete at the DCI World Championships.
However, the five-time Open Class champions are coming back in 2020. And they’re ready.
Blue Devils B kept its 2019 summer tour stops within the state of California but will venture back to the DCI World Championships in Indiana in 2020.
“The 2019 Blue Devils B corps far exceeded everyone’s expectations,” director Efrain Hinojosa said. “The product, performance, and delivery makes the return to Indiana in 2020 the next logical step in the corps’ journey and provides the most positive membership experience in DCI.”
The corps’ reasoning for turning 2019 into a shortened tour — which consisted of nine performances, all in California — was sound. The aim was to consolidate resources and continue to lay the foundation for years of organizational success to come.
“The membership exceeded every expectation demanded of them,” Hinojosa said. “The members, staff, and parents all hold a special place in my heart. I smile every time I look back at moments from the 2019 summer.”
Blue Devils B’s return to national Open Class competition comes in what is already shaping up to be an intriguing season at the Open Class level. In 2019, Spartans won their first gold medal in more than a decade, and posted a championship-winning score that rivals many of Blue Devils B’s first-place tallies from recent seasons.
Read more about Spartans' championship season
Corps like Legends and Gold, which both established themselves not only as Open Class medalists last year but also placed themselves firmly within the overall Top 25 at the DCI World Championship Semifinals in Indianapolis, will also be looking to take another step forward in 2020.
Adding The Battalion to the mix only makes things more exciting. The Salt Lake City corps has been building for four years toward its DCI World Championships debut, which will take place this coming summer.
Fifth-year goal realized for rapidly-growing Battalion
Blue Devils B last competed at the Open Class DCI World Championships in Indiana in 2018.
But for Blue Devils B, 2020 is about giving its members the best experience possible, and for a corps that has tasted victory and elite levels of performance on a world-class stage, the opportunity to head east this summer does exactly that.
“One of our primary goals for the 2020 DCI season is to continue to elevate our member experience,” Hinojosa said. “Our return to the Open Class World Championships serves this goal by allowing our members to partake in a more complete tour schedule.”
The corps will once again perform nine times in California before making its trek east. After July 19’s event in Pittsburg, California, the corps will have two weeks off before returning to the field on August 1 in Charleston, Illinois.
That said, other than Gold, the two-time defending bronze medalist, Blue Devils B won’t be meeting up with any of last year's top Open Class competitors until the tour reaches Marion, Indiana and the DCI Open Class World Championships August 3-4.