 The first-ever Legacy Drill Fall Competition has been announced, and contains some never-before seen elements! For the first-time a drill competition will have a focus on video editing, storytelling, and cinematography that compliments a competitor's routine to take it to the next level.
From the SOP: "The goal of this competition to help drillers recognize the value of video editing in furthering the sport. This competition will allow competitors to showcase their ability to make amazing video content. The score sheet will include sections for video editing and cinematography. Use this opportunity to truly explore the art in drill." While we've seen a couple instances of storytelling and cinematography work in routines before (Andres Ryan NYDC 2020), this will be the first competition to have dedicated categories related to these concepts. According to the competition director, these are the judges: Head Judge - Andres Ryan: 6x World Champion with 15+ years in drill, Leader of Street Elite, with Blue Sling certification. 2nd Judge - Jonny Ludwig: FLDC Champion with 10+ years in drill, Leader of River City Drill, Founder of American Drill Report, with Blue Sling certification. 3rd Judge - Oscar Arroyo: Drill historian expert with 11+ years in drill, Trick drill expert, and Leader of California Independents. To sign up or view more information click this link: https://www.legacydrillers.com/fall-competition Facing unprecedented times - the community came together to host its first ever fully online tour of competitions that boasted a record amount of competitors with the involvement/support of multiple incredible organizations, world champions and more. This years inaugural champion was.....NERIAH GUERIN!  Disclaimer: THIS IS NOT A SERIOUS ARTICLE.
Only a few months after dropping out of the World Drill Championships for the most minor "injury" possible, Jonathan Ludwig, the co-founder of River City Drill, and most likely the best member, is poised for a WDC run never seen before. It was a finger cut by the way. On the non-dominant hand. The cut was closed by comp time. We have not yet seen a sweep of WDC in its newer format, but given that its only been around a year, this is not surprising. And if you know anything about drill. the fact that Kentucky boy Ludwig is ready to achieve the feat in its second year shouldn't be surprising either. Sporting purple highlights and an NGA butter blade, he shall cover the competition in a thin spreading of "I Can't Believe it's Not Butter (Joshua Gill)". Using a mix of the last few year's highest placers, he will be unnecessarily muscular, throw tricks that he isn't even sure exist, and then place a blindfold on before becoming a ninja. Also, wear gold somewhere. Gold wins. The most difficult part of the sweep will easily be the haircut. Many of you know him by his luscious, out-regs hair, and this can a large detriment on the score sheet. But who knows, even Chris Scanlan made the medal round this year, so it shouldn't be too difficult. I hate Chris Scanlan. I'm sorry. In its first year, the D.C. drill classic, hosted by some of the best in the business, had a largely successful day of competition. Competitors and attendees had nothing but good things to say about the competition and the venue. Look for this competition to continue to grow and attract high-level competition. Results Videos Competitor Statements: Neriah Guerin (DC) - "I thought the competition was super fun. Cool people and a superbly well done setup. It was super clear that a lot of work went into making the competition look really good. Plus, even though the venue was on a military base, it was very easy for civilian guests to get through the gate. Everyone went out afterwards for a big group Korean barbecue visit. Absolute blast of a competition. I'll definitely be returning." Devin Jarrett (KY) - "It was easily one of the best events I’ve been to. It went very smoothly and I liked that we were able to get multiple angles of our routines from the GoPro and ODC footage. The judges were really good too. Justin Delaurier, Kevin Derochers, and there were representatives from the Coast Guard, Air Force, and Navy that helped judge too. It was definitely a 10/10 and I look forward to competing there again" Antonio Carreras (FL) - "The DC Drill Classic was an amazing weekend. Well worth the trip. Andres and Adam ran everything very smoothly and we had outstanding judges give great critiques and comments on all of our scoresheets. Overall it was an amazing event spending time with awesome people and I will definitely be back in DC whenever the next one comes around." A big congratulations to all the staff and judges who helped put on such a great event. Staff: Event Coordinators: • Andres Ryan • Adam Jeup Sponsors: • Independent Drill • Drill Warrior University • Elite Education & Training • New Guard America • The Street Elite Judges: 1. Head Judge - Captain Justin Delaurier (US Army | World Champion) 2. Midshipman Preston Webb (Naval Academy Silent Drill Team) 3. Senior Rifleman Kevin Desrochers (New Guard America) 4. Airman Koerber (Air Force Honor Guard Drill Team) 5. Seaman Tuel (Coast Guard Honor Guard) Videography: • Langston Nguyen • Adam Jeup Scoring Table: • Jessica Kim 
If you've been paying attention to the Facebook group, independent Drill, you may have noticed a few threads involving expanding the World Drill Championships with another category with groups of 3-6 competitors. This would not replace the current group category, but split and expand it. Tandems would go back to being its own category, and the groups would now allow up to 6.
The reasoning for such a category is simple on the outermost layer, rarely will a tandem beat a good group of 3 or 4 and this split removes that particular competitive advantage. The more detailed explanation and the one many people overlook, is that with the burgeoning number of independent "teams", along with college teams that already exist, there is finally enough interest in doing a team-like event at WDC. The question then becomes, could it be possible in the near future that WDC becomes a true team event, like the NHSDTC it is held alongside? For this to happen, we need to identify the main obstacles in the way. By far the largest obstacle, is the logistics and funding of expanding the event to that level. SNI already does an amazing job putting on NHSDTC and WDC as is, and it is no easy feat. Would making WDC a team event even be worth it to SNI? I don't have the answer to that, and if the answer ends up being a no, I couldn't blame them. Daytona weekend right now takes up all of 3 entire days, and adding more events might not necessarily make sense from their point of view. That alongside the fact that drill is a hobby to most, it's unknown whether competitors would be willing to put up the amount of money needed to compete in such an event. However, if all of that can be overcome, a WDC team event is the dream many don't even know they have. Think Texas A&M versus Sin City. Generation Drill versus Shock Platoon. NGA versus *insert service team here*. Everyone wants to say they're the best, this is the way to prove it. An overall team championship set up similar to NHSDTC with only exhibition events. Categories: Solo, Tandem, Group, Squad. Insane, right? Now think about this, in the last few years, the numbers for those competing in the World Drill Championships, especially in the solo category, have ballooned into the 30s, threatening to overload the category with too many people. If WDC became a team championship, you could limit solo entries to 2 or 3 per team, similar to NHSDTC. Yes, there would still be independents, but the number would most likely drop down into the 20s, a much more manageable number. If you talk to former cadets who were able to compete at NHSDTC with their school, the most fond memories are those of the team. The bonding experiences, the thrill of coming off the floor of team ex after a perfect run through, the months of practice with their team leading up to the first weekend of May. The chance to provide that once more to those who have graduated is coming. Will we be able to take that step? Excitement is in the air, as earlier today the World Drill Championships confirmed there is a pending entry from a foreign country. Which, in turn, would validate the competition's status as a WORLD level event. The only confusion is where the competitor is from.
The original post stated, "We have a pending entry from the ROK military in 2018...so strap it up.boys and girls, this is going to become a WORLD championship next year...." which seemed to infer the Republic of Korea, aka South Korea. This would not come as a surprise to many, as the American military has such a large presence in the country, and they have their own style of exhibition drill. The contradiction comes from another source high up in the hierarchy of leadership of the World Drill Championships. This source identified the competitor as a member of the Republic of China (Taiwan) military, but is later identified as a member of the Chinese military, so the true country of origin is unknown. A Chinese competitor would be a little bit more surprising, as the Chinese are not known for what we would call "exhibition drill", although many Eastern countries such as Taiwan, the Philippines, and South Korea are. Watching and competing against an international competitor from a country who's style of exhibition drill is widely unknown would be a fascinating experience, and lend credit to the name of the competition. Interestingly enough, there are also some reports of competitors from Taiwan showing interest in entering the competition, although this has yet to be confirmed by a Sports Network International or World Drill Championship official. Many have asked in the past how the sport could spread, and this provides a unique opportunity that WDC has been waiting for for 11 years. For the average driller though, the best thing to do is to provide exposure for the competition, share the videos, pick favorite drillers, represent them in a way you would any other professional team or player. Build a culture that other people want to be a part of. Every share, every comment matters. And arguably most important, SHOW UP. If you're in Daytona during WDC, and you aren't in the stands watching, barring any team events, you are only doing a disservice to the sport. When an outsider watches those videos, and sees a large engaged crowd, it's much more likely they will get involved too. Mob mentality goes a long way. Show up, cheer, get engaged. There's a possibility of this really becoming something special, don't miss out. It's becoming more and more apparent to the drill world what team will be competing for World titles in the very near future. With the conclusion of NHSDTC 2017, Generation Drill now has TWO demilitarized solo titles, and are the only independent team to have won any.
Following Chris Revetta's stunning medals round routine in 2016, Cooper Donlin (also the third place finisher in 2016) gave us more of what we've come to expect. An intense, gorgeous routine that walked away with the 1st place trophy. Armbars and BTBs aplenty, Donlin amazed with the power and precision in every one of his tricks. Putting the rifle down at the end of the routine with authority only served to claim the deck and the title as his. Watch out for Generation Drill this coming year, as two members are now seniors in High School. Can GD do what no one has ever done and win 3 back-to-back titles? At this point, you'd be crazy to rule it out. Another year, another title for the Fern Creek Lady Leathernecks. After a slip-up two years ago, which saw them losing the title for the first time in over a decade, Fern Creek has now rattled off back to back titles in the Alternate Arms division. Interestingly enough, this seemed to be a down year for the team, with less than stellar performances at local competitions. However, being able to push through adversity it what makes a good team great, and no one does it better than this team.
From a competition standpoint, there are very few teams in the mix right now that stand a chance at dethroning the Lady Leathernecks. Seneca Magnet Career Academy, Heights HS (formerly John H. Reagan HS), and John Jay's Marching Mustangs are the few that come to mind. And here's why no one will get the best of Fern Creek for more than a year. Seneca: The closest the Redhawks came to defeating FC was in 2016, with a 2nd place overall finish in the division. The problem for this unit has always been there exhibition. They have no trouble keeping in regulation, but their exhibition scores follow a very low trend. Unless someone within or outside the program steps up to make changes, it's fair to assume this will continue. Heights HS: Already defeating FC once in 2015, this unit would be the best bet to beat FC again in the near future. They know what it takes to win and how to achieve the goal. Using half weighted rifles may be a hindrance to their exhibition scores, but that can only be a guess. John Jay: First year in competition and the Marching Mustangs captured 2nd place in the division. There's still a lot of unknowns here though, as it was made up of both females and JV males. Will Jay continue this make-up or switch to an all female team in the coming years? Winning is in Jay's DNA, however, starting a brand new division may prove tougher than some think. We'll have a better gauge on what direction this team is headed after another year of Master's level competition. The 10th anniversary of The World Drill Championships is upon us! This year, the eleventh installment, boasts the largest number of soloists ever. Due to this, WDC has been split up into two equal pools to decide who moves on to a medal round. The top 4 finishers in each pool will be the ones who move on to compete again against each other in the final round. This is our predictions for who moves on to the medal round:
Floor E: Robert Zyko Samuel Gozo Joseph Suvero Antoni Plocica Also receiving votes: Neriah Guerin, Cody Doyle Floor F: Chris Scanlan Alejandro Paulino Noah De Los Rios Chris Haley Also receiving votes: Adam Jeup, Cameron Arroyo, Joshua Gill |
