See these related articles: How Drops Affect Scoring & Learning to Drop. Salute! Imagine this: you are a judge at a JROTC competition assigned to judge one of the exhibition drill categories. During a performance, a cadet drops his rifle, comes to attention, salutes the rifle, picks it up and continues on with the performance. The “Face-Palm” action would be inappropriate in …
Post-High School Exhibition Drill
Until about 2005, there were not very many post-high school soloists, or at least high school graduates who loved to spin a rifle and could compete or perform in public. Nothing really existed for Drillers except for New Guard America (NGA) which began in the 1990s under the direction of my college friend, Constantine Wilson. That is until 2007/8. Michael, …
How to Restart a JROTC Drill Team
DrillMaster answers a cadet’s question on restarting her school’s JROTC drill team
Having a Complete Plan for a Performance
This information applies to any performance: presentation/posting of the colors, solo exhibition or drill team routine. The key is acting with nothing but professionalism the whole time. Before: Arrive at least an hour early. No two performances are the same and the more time you have to set up and rehearse, the better. Speak with your point of contact as soon …
POW/MIA Ceremony Placement in Itinerary
The Question DrillMaster, Like your site, need your help. I recently attended the AF ball and the POW/MIA ceremony was at the conclusion of the Toasts. Now as we plan for the Navy ball, we have the order reversed where the POW/MIA ceremony precedes the Toasts. Disclosure, it seems that the AF’s order was correct. Something about our draft Navy …
Honoring the POW/MIA Flag When Posting the Colors
How do you honor the POW/MIA flag when posting the colors? Great question! Here is the answer: The POW/MIA color is not specifically honored when the colors are posted/presented. For a ceremony, after the colors are presented or posted, that is when the POW/MIA color can be brought in and posted. How the flag is brought in is up to …
Ask the DrillMaster: Rendering Respect
It’s unfortunate that some zealous and yet so very uninformed veterans and even civilians feel they need to chastise someone for the way they are rendering honors during a veteran’s funeral. I received a question from a veteran regarding the procedures he follows- training he received while in the Army- at veteran funerals while he is there as a member …
How to Contact Each Service’s Honor Guard
How to contact each service’s honor guard: Each year the service drill teams tour the country and attend ceremonies overseas. Many times the drill teams will make a trip out to see your community if they have enough time and funding. Here is how to request the teams and other* ceremonial support. *If you live near or relatively near a …
Ask DrillMaster: State Flag on a Casket?
Question: I have been searching for an answer to a question and cannot find it. I hope you can help me. The question is what is the meaning of a state flag draped over a coffin? Answer: Hello James, thank you very much for the question.I’ve answered it here to help inform others who may have the same question. The …
How to Effectively Round Your Corners
And thus completely mess up alignment and spacing! Now, no one wants to do this, but some Drillers do this and don’t understand how to fix it. I’ll explain the problem, show the negative results and tell you how to fix it. Easy! Below is a properly executed flank movement. As you can see, when you march, you are actually …