Nat'l Cadet Color Guard Competition vs Nat'l Cadet Competition

[Mitchell 1969]

^ Yeah.  "great".

Teams practicing drill and volleyball (sometimes with paid coaches) for 8-10+ hours a week,
while not progressing or doing anything else in CAP except siphoning off cadets from other activities
and developing an attitude.

Not to mention the custom tailored uniforms that were basically jumpsuits.

Teams blowing through more money then the average encampment budget a year.

"Great".

Greatness wears many hats. For many cadets from the 50's to the 70's, drill team was the big focus for one simple reason - there was little else, especially in the cities or the rural areas. I-rides weren't a formality yet. Cadet Special Activities were few and usually required the Mitchell Award. ES wasn't a tangible for many. That left drill team and Encampment. With drill competitions being just that, no volleyball, no timed runs, just drill. And uniforms were simple - 505s/1505s same as at the Squadron meetings.

Eclipse describes the result of leadership (at all levels) allowing drill teams to derail cadet programs.  NHQ could have stopped the custom-fit uniform teams early on, by just saying "no".  Local commanders could have stopped it by not paying for coaches. Leaders of cadets could have stopped the siphoning of cadets by managing their programs and keeping the focus on the entirety of the cadet program, and not just one aspect.

Done properly, drill team covered all aspects of cadet program curriculum.  Throw in some ES training and you had yourself a pretty successful unit.

As a squadron commander (mid-2000's), I didn't allow our team to go down the rabbit hole of custom-fit uniforms or private coaches.  Our teams wore the exact same uniforms to competition as they did to regular meetings.  They did PT, drill, rocketry, ES, etc. just like everyone else in the unit.  About 8 weeks prior to competition, those who really wanted to compete, were able to spend an extra 2 hours on Saturdays practicing.  Attitudes were kept in check by making sure it was known that anyone thinking they were somehow special/superior, not actively participating, or lagging behind and not promoting as they should, would not be selected to go to the competition.

Sometimes they won  , sometimes they lost  . 

What was more important than winning competition was going to competition.

Also, the cost of admission per cadet was lower.  Color guard competition has loaded costs at the front end... hundreds of dollars for flags, rifles, and equipment which is for the benefit of only 6 cadets.  But, since every cadet already had a basic uniform, and I didn't allow "special" competition uniforms, our drill team benefited 13-18 cadets for the cost of transportation. 

Your memories of coaches and custom fit memories are of a time long past my memories of the 60's and 70's. I like my memories. You seem to have some bitterness about yours. You're entitled to it.


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[Eclipse]

Your memories of coaches and custom fit memories are of a time long past my memories of the 60's and 70's.

"Time Long Past?" Hardly.

NCC was paused in 2013, the issues mentioned ran right up to that pause.

http://captalk.net/index.php?topic=17790.0

[Mitchell 1969]

Your memories of coaches and custom fit memories are of a time long past my memories of the 60's and 70's.

"Time Long Past?" Hardly.

NCC was paused in 2013, the issues mentioned ran right up to that pause.

http://captalk.net/index.php?topic=17790.0

What are you even talking about? As stated, memories were of the 1960's and 1970's. His were of the 2000's. By what accounting would that gap not be considered "long past?"


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[PHall]

Your memories of coaches and custom fit memories are of a time long past my memories of the 60's and 70's.

"Time Long Past?" Hardly.

NCC was paused in 2013, the issues mentioned ran right up to that pause.

http://captalk.net/index.php?topic=17790.0

What are you even talking about? As stated, memories were of the 1960's and 1970's. His were of the 2000's. By what accounting would that gap not be considered "long past?"


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There were teams who were still doing the custom tailored, only wear in competition uniforms right up to the break.
That's what he was talking about.
The Drill Team world of the 60's and 70's was not the Drill Team world of the 2000's. It had gotten much, much more expensive.

[Eclipse]

Yup. Think "Drill Team Moms", except more drama.

[Mitchell 1969]

Your memories of coaches and custom fit memories are of a time long past my memories of the 60's and 70's.

"Time Long Past?" Hardly.

NCC was paused in 2013, the issues mentioned ran right up to that pause.

http://captalk.net/index.php?topic=17790.0

What are you even talking about? As stated, memories were of the 1960's and 1970's. His were of the 2000's. By what accounting would that gap not be considered "long past?"


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

There were teams who were still doing the custom tailored, only wear in competition uniforms right up to the break.
That's what he was talking about.
The Drill Team world of the 60's and 70's was not the Drill Team world of the 2000's. It had gotten much, much more expensive.

Which was exactly my point. I have no memories whatsoever of "the Drill Team world of the 2000's. The last time I attended drill comp as a judge was 1975.


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[SarDragon]

Are we done with our measuring contest here?

Yup, thought so.

Fork; done.