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On 1^st May 2012 I had the honour to play with The Massed Bands of the Sea Cadets at the Receiving of the Crystal Diamond Ceremony for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee at HM Tower of London. 60 Cadets were chosen in total to be part of the Band, and we all joined up at RMR Wandsworth, which was to be our home, on Friday 27^th June for, 4 hard days of rehearsals before the main event on Tuesday evening. We worked almost non- stop in the rain in the run up to the event perfecting the music as well as our drill for the high profile event. Most of us had no idea what we were actually going to be doing, as the first full rehearsal we had was on Monday evening at the HM Tower of London. After the music and drill was sorted we had to get our number 1s uniforms immaculate, our boots like glass, and our instruments shiny. As the parade approached you could feel the level of anticipation, everyone was on edge. The parade itself was a once in a lifetime opportunity that none of us involved will ever forget. The atmosphere that was created is one that cannot be put into words; I was still feeling the buzz for weeks afterwards. I was very proud to be on parade with everyone, and look forward to performing at the National Trafalgar Parade in October.

The Parade and Ceremony can be seen here:

Part 1 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvU1hUVreEQ&list=UU2r3e2qHCTJ0_WW8Ft7Uf2g&index=4&feature=plpp_video

Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RJSTkPdXXQ&list=UU2r3e2qHCTJ0_WW8Ft7Uf2g&index=3&feature=plpp_video

Thank you to Bugler Chris Mace, CORPS BANDMASTER (SCC), ROYAL MARINES BAND PLYMOUTH and his sister Kat for filming and editing such an amazing event so that we can share the experience with them.

A/C Martin Smith

Musician – Solo Piccolo

Sea Cadet Bands

On Sunday 20th May I made my way by train to HMS Raleigh to attend the Ocean Diver Course.  There were only 3 of us on the course, PO P McCleester - Basingstoke Unit, Lance Corporal David Bell, Yeovil Unit, and myself.

The first 2 days were spent in a classroom and the dive pool learning the basics – breathing technique, hand signals, equipment and dealing with pressure.

On day 3 we drove to New England Quarry, Devon for our first open water dives.  I was the first one kitted up and ready to descend to the platform, the water was 13°C (cold) with good visibility.  We put into practice everything that we had been taught on the previous 2 days.

The best day of the course was day 4 when we descended to the bottom of the quarry, )13.9 metres down).  David and I were buddied up and allowed to lead the instructor out to the SeaKing WhirlWind Helicopter that was ‘wrecked’ on the quarry floor.  Sophie our dive instructor took photos of us with my underwater camera. 

It was an amazing course and I can’t wait to put my skills into practice over the summer in Hawaii before I apply for the Sports Diver Course.