ozarkbugler Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 Absolutely, the show should have been stopped while the injured member was attended to. While not DCI, there is a precedent (2005 Kilties -- DCA prelims). RIP Lothar. Yes, the demands in DCI shows vs DCA are different. Seriously, the only downside I see to stopping a show is that a corps which was having a bad run could theoretically feign an injury so as to get a fresh start. Not saying anyone would but they could. Hoping for a full recovery for that PC member. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KellyfromMich Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 As a former marching member (loooong ago!) and parent of a kid on the field now, I don't believe stopping the performance is the right thing. I think the risks outweigh the benefits. The keys lie in a couple of places. First of all, these days, kids fall down. Much more than BTID. Anybody that remembers the "domino effect" of Garfield 1984 in Whitewater knows its happened for quite a while, but the demand put on marching members today is crazy. Plans need to be in place for such things. Members need to be TOLD what do to if... Secondly, the staff has a crucial responsibility of watching the show for signs of trouble - maybe not teaching staff but perhaps volunteers. Knowing the level of difficulty increases the chances of weird things happening means a plan should be in place...its not like the difficulty level is going to get easier! Finally, the fact that that judge pretty much walked on by had me YELLING at my TV last night" If that was my son that lay on the field like that, I can assure you, I would have gone ballistic!! Again, a general plan must be in place for emergency situations like this. Bottom line, the 'grownups' need to think ahead so kids are protected as much as possible! Ok. Rant is done. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toby Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 And the drum corps staff know what State they are in and what the particular laws are for that State; come on, get real here! Executive staff should know what state they are in, a perpetual state of drum corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottgordon Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 Then either: a) Your drill was never structured with wild rotating velocity, sudden direction changes, and blind moves over 180 beats per min (even over 200); or b) you had very stupid staff. This is a different question, but... presuming that drills continue to evolve in the direction they have, would the activity eventually reach a point where the rules would have to be changed - because being competitive means designing shows that are too dangerous? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 But this is a completely different situation. A medical emergency in some random scenario, like on a roadside, is impossible to predict and prepare for. At a big drumcorps show there is an ambulance and medical folks on hand - there is a presumption that medical assistance might be needed. Having a situation at a drumcorps show where judges or non-medical staff end up moving an injured person could indicate that the event was inadequately prepared for something they should have been prepared for and could have easily dealt with properly. I'm not sure your average judge or jury is going to be entirely sympathetic with the claim that it is impossible to stop a marching band show because it would be too dangerous to do so (rightly or wrongly). Again, this could possibly be addressed with my "racing yellow flag" analogy. Trained medical professionals could possibly be placed in a few locations to monitor the DCI field; if a performer goes down, and stays down for say 10 seconds without getting up, a communication could go to the podium area to "throw a yellow flag" in which the members on the field could then slow down and ease to a stop. However, even then, those marching backwards, especially if over 180 beats per and carrying tubas or bass drums, would have a difficult time doing that in a safe manner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 Executive staff should know what state they are in, a perpetual state of drum corps. A perpetual state of something, that is for sure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toby Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 One of the things I was told that if i went down, and someone was backing up, was to at least communicate (ie: yell) to let the other people know I'm behind them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 (edited) This is a different question, but... presuming that drills continue to evolve in the direction they have, would the activity eventually reach a point where the rules would have to be changed - because being competitive means designing shows that are too dangerous? I would not be in favor of that type of rule change (unless the corps begin doing real football type tackles or actual boxing type right hooks). I mean this is an athletic activity; and in "any" athletic activity injuries can and will occur. Heck, you can even break your ankle stepping off a curb crossing the street. So no, I do not see the need for another rule on top of a rule just to make things even more convoluted than they already are. Edited July 27, 2012 by Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldbandguy Posted July 27, 2012 Author Share Posted July 27, 2012 The FACT that shows are stopped due to lightning shows that it CAN be done. Someone is responsible for making that call. I'm confident DCI could come up with a way for someone to be responsible for making that same call due to injury. I would also say there is a BIG difference between a member falling down (as is known to happen from time to time) and a member falling down and STAYING DOWN FOR 2 MINUTES...20% of the show. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockyGranite Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 As a former marching member (loooong ago!) and parent of a kid on the field now, I don't believe stopping the performance is the right thing. I think the risks outweigh the benefits. The keys lie in a couple of places. First of all, these days, kids fall down. Much more than BTID. Anybody that remembers the "domino effect" of Garfield 1984 in Whitewater knows its happened for quite a while, but the demand put on marching members today is crazy. Plans need to be in place for such things. Members need to be TOLD what do to if... Secondly, the staff has a crucial responsibility of watching the show for signs of trouble - maybe not teaching staff but perhaps volunteers. Knowing the level of difficulty increases the chances of weird things happening means a plan should be in place...its not like the difficulty level is going to get easier! Finally, the fact that that judge pretty much walked on by had me YELLING at my TV last night" If that was my son that lay on the field like that, I can assure you, I would have gone ballistic!! Again, a general plan must be in place for emergency situations like this. Bottom line, the 'grownups' need to think ahead so kids are protected as much as possible! Ok. Rant is done. ;) My son...a rookie this year...has told me that the BK staff has taught them ways to move to lessen the possibility of falls. I found this quite reassuring after seeing BK perform in the rain at DATR. But even with these efforts, BK had a few falls at DATR...none serious, thankfully. But, as has been said, "stuff happens" and I agree with you that there should be some procedures in place to react to a situation such as what happened last night. The fact that it took two minutes for those two guys to finally run onto the field makes me wonder: were they standing around wondering what to do for those two minutes? I don't even want to TALK about that judge. I'm disgusted with his actions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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