Sean McWilliams of Syracuse NY---is the winner of the Crocken Excelsior Drum Sticks contest
These Excelsior drum sticks are handcrafted by John Crocken using persimmon wood, an increasingly rare find in drum sticks. Sturdier than other varieties of wood and perfect for high end performance playing on the drums, these drum sticks are built to last.
“The feel and bounce of this stick is perfect. Its butt end is the diameter of a typical 5A while the taper is very long which accounts for its springy but solid feel. While most of Crocken’s sticks are meant for traditional marching snare drum or concert snare drum, this model is also an excellent drum set stick. The small round tip gets an excellent woody sound from cymbals. There are only 75 pairs being made from this particular lot of persimmon wood which is very rare. So order now from John Crocken’s site and enter this drawing to win a pair of Excelsior sticks.” - George Lawrence, owner and editor of Not So Modern Drummer Magazine.
To win your pair of the Excelsior Drum Sticks, or your choice of any of John Crocken’s stick models, send an email to John at jc@mybrandbuilders.com with ‘EXCELSIOR Stick Contest Entry’ in the subject line and your mailing address, phone number and email in the body of the email. The winners will be chosen in a blind drawing on January 25th, 2024 and will be notified by Mr. Crocken. The winner will be announced in the Not So Modern Drummer monthly email magazine and on the website. Please peruse Mr. Crocken’s website to see the wide array of drum stick models he makes.
Click this picture to see Mr. Crocken making sticks in his work shop. You will appreciate the skill, care and dedication that goes into making these excellent sticks.
About the word, Excelsior…
Being a word nerd, I always wondered what the word Excelsior really meant, so I looked it up, hoping to find something that would tie the name of these sticks to history and their unique feel. I thought it meant superior. I found that the word was a noun, used for the name of a number of posh hotels, and for wood shavings used in packing fragile objects. Nope, that’s not it. It’s a Latin word, and also an adverb meaning upward or rising. Close. Then I found this about Stan Lee, famed Marvel Super Hero comics writer who used the word as his sign off in his comics. The word Excelsior is very closely associated with Lee. It was his chosen motto! For Lee, “excelsior” wasn’t just a catchphrase . What began as a clever sign off for Lee’s comics became his life motto and philosophy. Stan Lee has always been working hard in his life to create equality for all, oftentimes through his comics. I am not a comic book collector, but I applaud Stan Lee for making the world a little more super.
We drummers strive upward to get better and better at our skill and craft. So, I think it is fitting that Excelsior is the name of this super drum stick. Mr. Crocken strives upward to create perfect sticks. Excelsior! -George Lawrence
Marvel Comic’s Stan Lee - EXCELSIOR!