Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been tagged as “marching”
Marching is often taught as a series of positions: attention, step off, halt, face, flank, and so on. That is necessary, of course, because drill manuals describe movement in counts and commands. But beneath every command is something more basic: the human gait cycle. The gait cycle is one complete stride. It begins when one heel contacts the the marching …
The Tomb Sentinel walk is one of the most precise and recognizable ceremonial movements in the United States military. Its smooth, controlled glide is essential to the dignity of the vigil.
The way that glide is produced, however, deserves examination.
This article is a continuation of Part 1, The Rhythm of Movement. Here, we go over what physically happens when taking that first step. The Gate Cycle When we talk about the gait cycle, we’re essentially describing a full rhythmic cycle of walking. Marching is a highly disciplined and stylized form of walking, so when marching, the gait cycle is …
I want to take this opportunity to talk about Movement Phasing Phasing for our needs means movement that does not happen at the same time. Probably the easiest way to describe phasing is to talk about heel strikes while marching. See how all three heels will strike the marching surface at three different times? That’s phasing. You are either: In …
In this article, I tell you how you can teach someone to march with a 30” step.
Marching in place, marking time. Many think they know how to do it. There are three different regulation drill techniques for the US military and two techniques for ceremonial drill.
OK, we know that Mark Time has you marching in place and Half Step has you marching forward at half the size as a normal step. But, there is confusion out there and I see it constantly. Mark Time Service Differences The Army tells us that the foot is brought straight up off the marching surface two inches. The Marine …
While wearing your shoes (low quarters/boots/civvy shoes), move your feet back and forth and side to side to try to pinpoint from where the squeak is coming. Once you find the area that is squeaking, sprinkle it with corn starch or baking powder, inside and out. This will help to absorb noisy moisture and reduce or even eliminate noise. See …
Your drill team and color guard and everyone in a military drill-related organization can benefit from practicing with a metronome.
Let’s begin with defining where a team commander has control. This is called the “Span of Control.” As yo can see from the diagram below, a commander’s “span of control” is 180-degrees all around the formation at 3 steps from the formation. However, in competition team commanders are to maintain a position to the left side of the formation. Having …