“Stand Still Laddy!”

That’s a line from Pink Floyd’s song, The Wall. And it fits perfectly.

Judges: stop moving around the drill pad!

Why?

1. It’s distracting to the audience- which is not a main concern, but is part of the consideration.
2. There are macro and micro moves a Driller can perform and if you are constantly moving around, you will miss those subtleties.
3. Staying in one place also forces Drillers to consider what they do and when- not just how.
4. By moving around you are probably missing the visual dynamics of a routine.
5. Moving also can distract you from doing your job which is to keep your eyes on the performance the whole time.

Especially the Head Judge! Your moving around only leads to a possible timing penalty when you have to race around to return the salute for the report-out.

Think of the drill area as a stage (which it is). The drill area is a square or rectangle and where the head judge stands is what I call the “perform-to side.”

Argument: “But I need to see the Driller’s (or Drillers’) alignment.”

There is no need to move around; you cannot be everywhere at once. What you need to do is see what you can see from your stationary vantage point and judge from there. Moving around doesn’t change things nor give you a better view. Plus, if the judges are elevated (see below), moving around isn’t necessary.

There is also an issue of “fairness.” Drillers should expect a certain standardization and if you’re moving around wherever you want and not moving exactly to the same place at the same time for each performance, then you are not seeing each performance from the same vantage point which is not an acceptable standard.

In the WDA Manual the Overall Effect and Composition Analysis judges should be elevated (like bleachers in a gym) to be able to view the whole floor, 1/2 to 3/4 of the way up, and the Movement and Equipment judges should be right next to the drill area- they can be slightly elevated: one or two rows above. The T&P judge is the one who receives the salutes.All judges can actually sit and judge (!).