Name, age, hometown: Ashley Pittman, 15, Bluffton, S.C. What corps are you in and what is your role this summer? I am in the Cadets and I will be marching again in the color guard. Where I go to school and what I'm studying: I go to St. Vincent's Academy in Savannah, Ga., and I am a freshman in high school. Give us your full drum corps/marching music background. I have marched 2003 and 2004 with The Teal Sound out of Jacksonville, Fla., and 2005 with the world-champion Cadets. I also marched one year of winter guard with ad Astra per Aspera, out of Atlanta, and will be participating as a dancer this year with Epiphany indoor drum line.

Ashley Pittman
What's your practice schedule like? My winter guard practices will be every weekend starting in January through late April. I will have one camp with Cadets in April and in May we will move in for the summer. As far as practice on my own, I regularly prepare for the upcoming Cadets April camp -- meaning my sabre and my flag are my best friends. What does your ideal free day consist of? My ideal free day would be spending the whole day in Bristol, R.I., (one of the Cadets favorite stops on tour). I would spend the day eating some ice cream, doing some shopping and hanging with my friends. Favorite pig-out food: Chips and salsa, I could eat them all day. In the shower you can hear me singing: Any song from "Rent"! The last good book I read: "Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare. The last great film I saw: "Rent"! Jobs I have/have had: I'm too young to get a job, plus I go on tour all summer. My favorite TV show: "Gilmore Girls" and "The Fabulous Life." What has been your formative drum corps moment? My formative drum corps moment has to be the Allentown regional this past summer. It was the climax of my season, because it all finally clicked. I was marching in the Cadets color guard. My instructor, Jonathan Schwartz, was in tears in our post-show meeting. He told me that I was a beautiful and mature performer and put me into tears. What would you be doing next summer if you were not marching? Sitting around looking for something to do. How did you decide to be a member of your corps? I have been going to drum corps shows since I was four years old and my favorite corps has always been the Cadets. In the summer of 2002 I grew tired of being a spectator and decided to march the following summer. I learned how to spin and march at Teal Sound and in the fall of 2004, I was ready to try out for the Cadets. What first attracted you to the drum corps activity? My dad marched Drum Corps in the '70s in New Orleans and brought me to tons and tons of drum corps shows when I was little. We planned our summer vacations around drum corps. What advice would you give to young people who want to march? Don't let age be a factor! Put your mind to your goal and work hard for it. What I want to be when I "grow up": A sports medicine physical therapist. I want to focus on pediatric care, for example, children with sports injuries or child weight management. Best drum corps show ever and why: Cadets 2005, it was an indescribable experience, winning a world championship. I also love listening to SCV 2003, "Pathways." The year is 2030. What does a DCI show look like? Well, I age out in 2012, and I am going to experience a lot of change anyway, but I hope to see more voiceovers, more amplification, synthesizers and guitars, and more crazy props (like doors).