ORIGINAL: Strat2003
I have a judging question, arising from some confusion at this weekend's contest. Here's the situation:
A contestant accidentally threw in a roll between the end of a center maneuver and the beginning of his turnaround. The judges were unsure how to score it. Should there have been a zero awarded somewhere, or downgrades to the previous and/or following maneuvers?
I thought this was addressed in the judging manual but can't find it anywhere.
Thanks,
Scott
As someone new to pattern with no direct experience on how this *might* be intepreted in practice, but having a spent a lot of my professional life determining what is meant by what is written, Ibelieve the existing rules do not adaquately address this issue. Here is why:
"A contestant accidentally threw in a roll between the end of a center maneuver and the beginning of his turnaround."
Here are the relevant rules Ifound:
<font size="2">
14.2:</p></font><font size="2"><font size="2" face="Times New Roman,Times New Roman">If a maneuver other than landing is done out of order it shall be scored zero (0). Judges may inform the contestant or helper that a maneuver has just been performed out of sequence. </font>
14.3:</p><font size="2" face="Times New Roman,Times New Roman">If an illegal pass (crossing a line perpendicular to and centered on the judges) is made, the maneuver which should have been executed shall be scored zero (0). </font>
14.4:</p><font size="2" face="Times New Roman,Times New Roman">After a contestant performs a wrong maneuver or makes an illegal pass, he/she shall then be judged on the remaining maneuvers in the schedule, provided they are executed in </font></font><font size="3" face="Times New Roman,Times New Roman">proper sequence, and in proper upwind/downwind orientation.</font>
<font size="2">
</font>From what the rules state, and ONLYfrom what the rules state:
14.2 applies ONLYIF a roll is defined as one of the maneuvers in the sequence and was in fact performed out of sequence.
14.3 DOESNOTAPPLYbecause there was no illegal pass.Amaneuver was performed (indeterminate if it was or was not part of the sequence)AFTERcompleting the define sequence centermaneuver and prior to the turn-around maneuver
14.4 is questionable and quite frankly uninterpretable. Why:it cites the term"wrong maneuver", and that term does not exist in either of 14.2 or 14.3. In fact, it exists NOWHEREELSEin the rules. Therefore, there is no correct interpreattion of what constitutes a "wrong maneuver"
Isuggest the rules committee issue an interim interpretation until the rules can be formally updated.
In doing so Iwould also suggest that the terms "out of sequence manuever" and "undefined manuever"be defined and used to express the required downgrade actions. An out of sequence maneiver is one that is part of the pattern being flown,but flown out of seqeuence. An undefined maneuver is one that is not part of the pattern being flown,but flown at any time during the time during which the flight is being judged (or something like that).