Field and Floor

Mini Doughnuts don't even rate

Here, for the first time ever in pageantry: something beloved by both old fan and present performer alike!

Happy 50th birthday! Glad you outlived Atkins.

... and on the subject of judges' critiques

How best to handle them, both judge and judgee?

Charles' Rules of Argument wouldn't hurt.

If you get no further, Rule Number One resonates:

You will never change anyone’s mind on a matter of opinion. Someone going into an argument believing one thing, and coming out the other side not believing it is a freak occurrence ranking somewhere alongside virgin birth and victorious English sporting teams.

And so it goes for the judging process on both field and floor.

Crunch time of the year

Take a break ... relax ... inhale / exhale ... there's nothing to worry about, especially if you are a color guard director or instructor attending a judges' crituque on this last weekend of regionals before the national competition!

What makes you think they're nervous?

101st movie that needs more love

These folks cite 100 movies that deserve more love, but with the Independent Film Channel set to air drum corps' own "Hard Corps," I say we can feel the love already!

And then Madonna can learn flag from these ladies

Dateline: [LANSING, LYNWOOD IN]

Papa, Don't Preach

Santa Clara Vanguard's Allan Dekko probably won't do much preaching to Miss Ciccione, as he instructs her and some of the dancers on her upcoming tour how to twirl a rifle. Yes, the children's book author and one of entertainment's most chameleon performers will show off her knowledge of field and floor, beginning this summer.

Is her show scheduled for Denver ... in August, perhaps?

Wrong decisions, well?

It's the debate that will never be decided, nor will it ever end: tradition versus innovation on the field. But everyone's favorite drum corps director attempts to, even as he and his staff plan and teach what just might be the best show of the summer season!

2004 anthem: by Evanescence

"My Immortal" has officially been named anthem for the 2004 color guard season, what with guard after guard using the hit Evanescence song for their twirl-along. They're even adding to it: guitar solos, even some dialogue from "Interview with a Vampire." Just goes to show you the vast music library available.

They can speak!

With the on-again, off-again nature of online color guard forums, you had to wonder if it would ever return. Here's a very good-natured forum, guard member to guard member ... friend to potential friend!

Laginappe

You never know what you can do until you try! is the motto of this independent Louisiana color guard. These self-written bios of both staff and students -- the guard serves elementary school through college students --will likely give you as much XSNRG as the unit has in its performances!

design this: Top 10 things you should do

Design is design, and this Top 10 list from this architect, is must reading for any of us who work in fields, floors, print, electronic and new media ... whatever the medium.

Just consider it homework for the 2005 season!

Judged cliche

``When readers or listeners (guard instructors/members, too?) come across these tired expressions, they start tuning out and completely miss the message -- assuming there is one,'' according to John Lister, chairman of the Plain English Campaign in naming the most irritating cliches in the English Language.

Number One: "At the end of the day"
Close Behind: "At this moment in time"
Followed by: "Like" (Used as punctuation)

Multiple nominations were also offered for:

24/7
Absolutely
Address the issue
Awesome
Ballpark figure
Basically
Bear with me
Between a rock and a hard place
Bottom line
Glass half full (or half empty)
I hear what you're saying
In terms of
It's not rocket science
Literally
Ongoing
Prioritize
Pushing the envelope
Singing from the same hymn sheet
The fact of the matter is
Thinking outside the box
To be honest
Touch base

Looks like banning that list from judges' tape recorders would pretty much, like, leave them speechless.

And to be honest, THAT would be a good thing!

fore! for the floor

[From wgi.org]

Attention all directors, staff members, judges, WGI volunteers, parents, sponsors and friends of WGI!

The WGI Bob Wiles Annual Golf Tournament will be held Wednesday, April 14th at 11 am at the beautiful Riverwalk Golf Club in San Diego. Fees are $85.00 which includes $75.00 for green fees, cart, tournament services and a $10.00 donation to the Bob Wiles Scholarship fund. Riverwalk Golf club is located about 5 minutes from the WGI headquarters in Mission Valley.

If you are interested in participating, contact Daniel Wiles at 317-209-1934 for reservations.

I'm interested, I'm interested! It's just ... um ... well ... THIS is my only handicap!

In 8th Place ...

Today's number eight "Word Burst:" STINKIN'
Forget stinkin' rules, stinkin' dissent, stinkin' sleep, stinkin' special skills, stinkin' year ... for pageantry, at this time of year, it becomes:

"That stinkin' FILL IN YOUR PERSONAL FAVORITE END-OF-THE-SEASON PECADILLO."

Take the odds

After exhaustingly searching for what the oddsmakers had to say about San Diego, I decided to just go with the judging trends and with performance track records. If you're a betting person -- you know, like "Betcha By Golly, Wow" -- put your odds on these units.

In two weeks, these six units will become the Number One Seeds* in the "Floor of 66" guards to look for at championships!

#1
#1
#1
#1
#1
#1

* A Number One Seed in the "Floor of 66" means that these are the six units that look to have the best chance of making in onto and moving up Field&Floor's Top 32, Sweet 16, Elite 8, and Final 4 for 2004. Sort of like Kentucky and Stanford in the Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament; the top spot for these groups is expected; it's theirs to lose!

For the guard male in us all

Not to be outdone by the gentler gender, benders decided men want to shop, too! So, for the guard male -- metrosexual for the rest of the world -- in us all, the "worst idea for a magazine in human history."

In the immortal words of N'Sync: "By, Buy, Bye."

Race from the White House

What ... me worry? About Al Qaeda?

Mano a Mano

Now we're getting somewhere, as we compare favorably to one of our sister programs.

Women are from MARS ...

These ten women from Mars, PA took their sport of the arts straight to the media.

FROM THE ARTICLE: Winter guard competition is performed on a basketball court with participants holding a rifle, flag or saber. Routines last approximately five minutes and at least five team members must be putting equipment in motion for three minutes and 30 seconds.

So that leaves a minute/thirty for ... for ... during that time, they ... umm ... let's see, 90 seconds of ...
I give!

It's the rest of this equation that's from Jupiter ... not men!

WGI really IS a sporting event!

Just like on ESPN.com and its coverage of other-than-mainstream-televised-sports, the San Diego Sports Arena has WGI Championships color-coded as "Other Sporting Event." Probably had something to do with the lavendar, as well ;-)