Switching Sides!

Hey guys I have something pretty cool to share - I'm going to start judging NPC shows. I test judged my first show last weekend. It was the Delaware State Championships, run by Todd Howe and Tracey Greenwood. It was a lot of fun and very interesting to see things from the other side of the table.

Here's some of my observations:

1. Color, skin clarity, and the correct amount of posing oil makes a big difference in your presentation.

2. How important a smile is - guys/gals that frown or look cocky are only hurting themselves.

3. (and this surprised me) How you can pretty much get a good idea of placings just based on the quarter turns. I found myself getting a rough idea of where people belonged based on the turns, then used the mandatory poses to sort out differences between people that were close. I'd look at conditioning (abs and glutes are good indicators), and I noticed legs and back were what set most people apart. LESSON = work on legs and back! Most bodybuilders seemed to have arms and a chest.

4. It's really not that easy to be a judge. It seems like someone (competitor or friend/family member) will always be unhappy with their placing and you could hear people in the auditorium making derogatory comments about the judging. These guys and gals really do the best they can to be fair so it kinda sucks to have people complaining. Also, I was surprised at how different people can look at the prejudging vs. night show - some looked better, some worse. This exacerbated some of the tension over placings, because most of the audience wasn't there at prejudging and didn't see what the judges saw.

I'm test judging the MD State this Saturday. It's going to be a larger show than the DE show so it will be more challenging, but I'm looking forward to it.

To get qualified as a judge, from what I gather you have to test judge at least 3 shows and score over 80% in comparison to the actual final placings. I don't know if this criteria is nation-wide or regional so don't ask. LOL.

Wish me luck!