ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – This time last year, the Abilene High School band (AHS) was packed up and leaving the UIL regional marching competition at Wylie High. The band made it back without issue, but its equipment truck, Eagle 1, did not. With a new-to-them trailer, the vibe just doesn’t fit.
“Somehow, the person that was driving it got it stuck where it kind of high centered… We were able finally to get it loose but when it did there was some damage that was done to the belly, boxes and things underneath, and the insurance company just totaled the trailer,” said AHS band director, Jon Kraemer.
Without Eagle 1, the band used Pesnke box rental trucks for the next nine months. Luckily, an Eagle 2 was found through a sales listing in Kentucky.
“It’s beautiful, but it looks like a giant pumpkin spice latte, and if you know anything about Abilene High, our colors are black and gold,” Kraemer explained.
The 53-foot semi truck trailer is five feet larger than the last, but its bright orange paint job stands out against the other schools. To fix its branding issue as well as retro-fit the trailer with better shelving, storage and ramps, band boosters have organized a raffle.
“We are partnering with Kent Beck Motors to raffle off a gift certificate for $25,000 towards the cost of a used vehicle on their lot,” said Kraemer.
Only 500 tickets will be sold at $100 a piece. All proceeds will go towards the modification of AHS’s trailer, Eagle 2.
This is a change that can’t come soon enough, according to AHS junior, clarinet player and loading crew member, Caleb Irwin.
“The ramps, they should be a little bit bigger and so it’s usually like one lane of traffic,” Caleb added. “It’s not very efficient.”
To enter the raffle, click here to shoot an email to Kraemer.
