Ceroc Champs

[Paul F]

Well, its not far off now and im geeting the teeniest bit excited - and im not even competing.

Sounds like its gonna be good with the big screens and the beeb.

Got a group of us coming down from Manchester so would be great to find a Sat dance.

Just been looking over the judging list which has just been published (www.cerocchamps.com) and i have to say what a fantastic line up of judges.

Well done to ceroc , they have obviously put a lot of thought into who will be judging which category. Always a contentious issue

What does everyone else think?

.....and for those who are busy practicing ..... best of luck

[Gus]

Originally posted by Paul F
and i have to say what a fantastic line up of judges.

OK ... time to start the annual bun fight

'Fantastic' on what criteria? Good dancers, good teachers .... but I only recognise a few from the competition circuit. I’m not saying that they aren’t up to the job by any means but how do they compare to the judging panel at, say, Blackpool or Britroc?

Main (usual) gripe, how about some non-CTA judges?

{ODA mode off etc}

Originally posted by Paul F
Got a group of us coming down from Manchester

Good news ... hope you guys do well and bring back some trophies.

[Tiggerbabe]

Originally posted by Paul F
.
would be great to find a Sat dance.

My thinking exactly Paul - now all we need is to actually find one - Bradders ?????????

[DavidB]

Originally posted by Gus
Main (usual) gripe, how about some non-CTA judges?

Does Simon White count?

[Gus]

Originally posted by DavidB
Does Simon White count?

Has he been assimilated yet?

Good point. I would see Simon as bringing an extra dimension to the judging.

Its a shame that Sue Taylor isn't judging more categories as shes a pretty experienced judge. Would also have been good to see the likes of Saffron and Marc on the panel.

However, with the creme of Ceroc judging (especially Linda and Mick Wenger) who is going to represent CTA in the Open?

[TheTramp]

Originally posted by Gus
However, with the creme of Ceroc judging (especially Linda and Mick Wenger) who is going to represent CTA in the Open?

Did anyone from the CTA compete last year?? Can't remember.

Trampy

[bradders]

Lucky Dip
So why are you not competing Paul F? ...... there are still some places left in the mens lucky dip which you can join in...... call Christine on 079 500 432 65 and book in.

In fact any men who are coming down and have not entered the Lucky Dip call up and get a place while you still can!

Ladies is full and has a waiting list...don't disappoint them boys!!

Saturday Night
We tried to book Hammersmith for the Saturday but it was pre booked for a special event ages and ages ago.
Venues are just too expensive down here to take a punt. Last year we did Chiswick, did not have a good turn out and lost over 500 quid. Would have done Ashtons this year but they have knocked down the room we would normally use...shame.

Judges
This is a Ceroc event, we make no apologise for using Ceroc Teachers as judges. Having said that we have brought in some non CTA judges this year.

The judges this year include Nicky Haslam and Robert Winter plus a professional dancer who has done some high profile shows in the West End. Simon White is also judging, and Clayton and Janine were asked but they decided to compete.

Filming
We have been told by the BBC that they intend to come down and film the Champs this year for a couple of dance orientated programmmes to be shown later this year. This could be very exciting. The winning dancers could be asked to perform live on a mainstream Saturday night programme. This is a great profile for Ceroc and for Modern Jive as a whole.

Hope to see you all at the Champs.

Come and say hello, I will be the one running around looking stressed!!

[TheTramp]

Originally posted by bradders
Come and say hello, I will be the one running around looking stressed!!

Why??

Surely it's all been planned down to the last detail now, and everything will run smoothly and on time (as usual), and it'll be a stroll in the park for you....

Trampy

[jiveclone]

Originally posted by Gus
[Main (usual) gripe, how about some non-CTA judges?

Is Nicky Haslam CTA?

Is Robert Winter CTA?

[Sheepman]

Originally posted by Paul F
would be great to find a Sat dance.

This is what I was hoping for too, as I won't be there on the Sunday. The nearest dance I'v found so far is in Windsor (not Ceroc), a nice (fast) dance floor and probably space for about 150, but surely there must be others?

Greg

[TheTramp]

Actually, I do have one (minor) gripe.

Is it possible to get the results up quicker? There always seems to be a huge wait between the end of the round, and the results for the next heats going up.

Would mean less waiting around at the noticeboard, and also more time to prepare (if you're lucky (good) enough to get through). Or more time in the local pub to commiserate....!

Trampy

[Gus]

Originally posted by jiveclone
Is Nicky Haslam CTA?

Is Robert Winter CTA?

Good point ... not CTA but they are Ceroc instructors. I was thinking more about high calibre independents of the like of Nigel and Nina, Viktor, Lydia, Dave and Lilly etc.

Its not a major gripe ... more an observation.

[TheTramp]

Have to admit that I don't have a problem with the CTA judges.

I don't think I'd want to see all the competitions being judged by the same few people. Else, it'd just be styles that they like who would do well all the time.

Given that some of the CTA people are quite likely to appreciate the more "clubby" side of MJ (people like Natasha, Mick, Dan Slape etc.), I'd have thought that it would make you happier Gus...

Trampy

[RobC]

Originally posted by DavidB
Does Simon White count?

Technically, neither Simon or Dan Slape are CTA - none of us down in Ceroc Plus have been through any CTA training .... yet

It's a shame that a judge of Simon's calibre is only being asked to judge the Lucky Dip. Surely they should be drawing on his experience at having judged at every Blackpool competition to-date and not side-lining him to 'tapping people on the shoulder'.

Oh, and while I'm moaning - why is it that Ceroc feels the need to have so many judges ? Could it be that the (CTA) judges just aren't up to the job of judging a whole competition Surely having that many judges is only going to lead to more inconsistent judging and controversey after the event ?

Personally, I'm sticking to my stance and boycoting the Ceroc Champs until it is moved to another venue. Good luck to all entering, but you won't see me there !

[Lory]

How many judges are there and who are they?

[TheTramp]

Originally posted by Lory
How many judges are there and who are they?

It's on the ceroc champs website Lory.

Again, I may be defending Ceroc a lot today, but I don't see the problem with having different judges. It'll be the same judges for every round of the same category. It's just different judges for each category. I don't see how this will lead to inconsistencies (any more than people would perceive anyhow, the same as with any competition).

It just means that the people judging can have a chance to enjoy themselves during the day as well, and not have to be there, watching every single heat. Which, since I'm guessing that they aren't paid, is probably a good thing for them.

Trampy

[RobC]

Originally posted by Lory
How many judges are there and who are they?

http://www.cerocchamps.com/judges.php
(oops, just realised Simon is judging the showcase as well - I take back that comment about him being sidelined)

24 Judges !!!!!!!

Bill Cooper
Angela Shetty
Annalisa Martin
Annie Hayes
Becky Cooper
Bill Cooper
Dan Slape
Debbie Attwood
Franck Pauly
Jean Harris
Kelly Hudson
Kristen Corsie
Linda Barker
Mick Wenger
Natasha Alvarado
Nicky Haslam
Obi Aghanya
Paul Dodds
Robert Winter
Ruth Quigley
Simon Durbin
Simon White
Sue Packham - Taylor
Virginia Woolf

[RobC]

Originally posted by RobC
24 Judges !!!!!!!

OK, I'm having a bad day - counted Bill twice, so that's ONLY 23

[Gus]

Originally posted by TheTramp
Have to admit that I don't have a problem with the CTA judges.

Don’t think I said I did ... If its a Ceroc event, seems fair enough.... and particularly agree with your point about same people judging all the time.

Given that some of the CTA people are quite likely to appreciate the more "clubby" side of MJ (people like ..... Mick

Mick clubby????? Since WHEN?? Great dancer but would not have classified him as a Club style dancer.

I'd have thought that it would make you happier Gus...

Me ... I'm always happy .... and having 150 miles between me and the champs make me happier. Sorry, but my previous experiences of the event (as competitor and spectator) were far from happy. Will be quite happy hosting the Battle of the DJs

[TheTramp]

Originally posted by Gus
Don’t think I said I did ... If its a Ceroc event, seems fair enough.... and particularly agree with your point about same people judging all the time.

And I didn't say that you didn't. I was just saying that I don't If you can follow that. I apologise for not being clear....

Mick clubby????? Since WHEN?? Great dancer but would not have classified him as a Club style dancer.

Well, maybe not as much as others. But I'm sure that I've heard someone say that he was doing some hip hop type classes.... might even have been Mick himself.

Trampy