Beginner judge...feeling overwhelmed!

[Kiwi]

I attended a WAG level 1 judging course today. I now feel overloaded, overwhelmed and totally inadequate. I really sucked at all the examples on the course. It all went too quickly and I missed half of the deductions. Everyone else seemed to know what they were doing. I'm feeling like I may have bitten off too much and I may not be up to the task. Has anyone else ever felt like this when they first started learning to judge? I think I have to judge my first competition in a few weeks' time and now I'm freaking out.

 

[gympanda]

I cried the entire drive to my first meet. Then when I judged my first routine (L4 bars) I didn't write a single thing down! I just sat there in a panic. IT GETS BETTER!!!

Judging is intimidating, especially when you get a group of judges in a training room in front of routine videos. I find scores in those rooms are always a little lower than they are in real life, so I wouldn't worry too much about it. A lot of people are just "faking it until they make it" as well...so don't feel like everyone else knows what they are doing, I guarantee you were not the only person in that room feeling like you were in a little over your head.

My best advise is to just do your very best. When in doubt error on the side of the gymnast (because there is nothing that feels worse than feeling like you just screwed a 10 year old out of a requirement or a major deduction.) I'm not sure how it is there, but in the US we judge with another judge your entire first year. If you have a partner judge, then just ask a lot of questions. Don't try to make huge adjustments during the meet...how you start judging is how you should finish. You don't want to skew the scores. Everyone feels nervous when they start, and a lot of people still feel nervous after 20+ years. Remember that judging should be fun, because if you are having fun then the girls will feel relaxed and enjoy their competition even more. Good luck!!! You are getting ready to embark on a fun, rewarding and potentially lucrative new endeavor.

 

[gymkat]

Ask if you can watch practices from the gym floor. The more gymnastics you see, the easier it is to see the difference between skills that are done well and skills that are done poorly. I'd also highly recommend practice judging from the floor at a meet before your first 'real' meet as a judge. I still ask to practice judge from time to time, and the more experienced judges are almost always willing to answer questions. (Everyone likes to feel helpful and important! ) You also have a great advantage with being able to practice judge with Youtube.

I had a relatively easy transition to judging because I was still competing and was coaching the same levels that I was judging. (Being accepted and taken seriously? Much harder!) However, it took me the entire first season to be able to write shorthand and deductions at the same time. At the beginning, I would write down all of the compulsory routines ahead of time and make a bunch of copies so I only had to write down deductions. It does get a lot easier!

 

[gymdog]

You're probably better at it than me

If that helps at all, anyway,

 

[Pineapple_Lump]

I agree with watching practice. Ask if the head judge for your club can sit with you for one of these sessions to explain/show what is the ideal model for some skills. Most experienced judges are kind to beginner judges, we want you to continue as we need more judges, it lightens the load for all of us.

 

[Kiwi]

I cried the entire drive to my first meet. Then when I judged my first routine (L4 bars) I didn't write a single thing down! I just sat there in a panic. IT GETS BETTER!!!

Judging is intimidating, especially when you get a group of judges in a training room in front of routine videos. I find scores in those rooms are always a little lower than they are in real life, so I wouldn't worry too much about it. A lot of people are just "faking it until they make it" as well...so don't feel like everyone else knows what they are doing, I guarantee you were not the only person in that room feeling like you were in a little over your head.

Thanks, Gympanda, you've made me feel a lot better!!! You're right about the harsh scoring. They were judging casts and most of them looked quite good to me but they were ripping into them as if they were dreadful. I thought of the casts I'd seen at practice and thought those poor kids will end up with a score of zero!

 

[Kiwi]

Ask if you can watch practices from the gym floor. The more gymnastics you see, the easier it is to see the difference between skills that are done well and skills that are done poorly. I'd also highly recommend practice judging from the floor at a meet before your first 'real' meet as a judge. I still ask to practice judge from time to time, and the more experienced judges are almost always willing to answer questions. (Everyone likes to feel helpful and important! ) You also have a great advantage with being able to practice judge with Youtube.

Thanks, gymkat! I'm hoping to be able to work on this at the gym with at one of our senior coaches and judges. I also thought of practising with YouTube! It is the speed of things that makes it so hard, especially with bar and vault, I actually didn't do so bad on the beam routines. Maybe I'll be able to get my speed up if I practice some more with some YouTube videos.

However, it took me the entire first season to be able to write shorthand and deductions at the same time. At the beginning, I would write down all of the compulsory routines ahead of time and make a bunch of copies so I only had to write down deductions. It does get a lot easier!

I thought of this too, and another girl on the course said she used this method (a few of the people at the course were existing judges who were just there to requalify under the new STEPs scheme). There is no way I'll be able to write both symbols and deductions, just being able keep up with spotting and writing deductions will be hard enough.

Yes, the trainee judges sit on a panel with more experienced judges, who can hopefully guide me in the right direction! It is only execution scoring, so at least I don't have to worry about the D score part of it.

Thanks so much, everyone, I do feel more encouraged!

 

[Deleted member D3987]

if you're a former gymnast just chill out and take a deep breath. if you're not? oh boy................good luck with that.

 

[takeadive]

I have just done the same course last weekend too, like you I just sat feeling overwhelmed. I was just trying to deduct as we watched the videos without having to worry about trying to write down the symbols as well. I was the only one on the course that hadn't judged before. Well, apart from the local schools festival, and really you can't be too hard on them, it's only fun. Have you got the Steps manual? I found it helps when you know what is coming in the routine. I got told that I should come into the gym and practice judge when the girls are having practice, sounds like a good idea to me.

You'll be fine with your first comp. Don't stress out without practice you can't possibly see everything all the time.

 

[Kiwi]

if you're a former gymnast just chill out and take a deep breath. if you're not? oh boy................good luck with that.

Dunno, I was only a rec gymnast (and these days an adult rec gymnast). However, level 1 judging is only steps 1 to 4 which have pretty basic skills. "Good luck with that" isn't very reassuring. Not all our judges are ex-gymnasts, there is at least one other parent who judges for our gym. The judge who took the course, who is also a senior coach at our gym, has decades of judging experience, she is a Brevet judge who has judged internationally, she is also not an ex-gymnast but a parent of a gymnast. I am not wanting to take it to that level, just level 1 would be enough for me.

 

[Kiwi]

I have just done the same course last weekend too, like you I just sat feeling overwhelmed. I was just trying to deduct as we watched the videos without having to worry about trying to write down the symbols as well. I was the only one on the course that hadn't judged before.

That's so cool that you've just done the same course! Let me know how you get on with the competitions.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

Dunno, I was only a rec gymnast (and these days an adult rec gymnast). However, level 1 judging is only steps 1 to 4 which have pretty basic skills. "Good luck with that" isn't very reassuring. Not all our judges are ex-gymnasts, there is at least one other parent who judges for our gym. The judge who took the course, who is also a senior coach at our gym, has decades of judging experience, she is a Brevet judge who has judged internationally, she is also not an ex-gymnast but a parent of a gymnast. I am not wanting to take it to that level, just level 1 would be enough for me.

you'll do fine. having been in gymnastics is better than not.

 

[flippersmom]

I found it hard to write everything at first. If they were fine with the skill, I might not have gotten the shorthand down. I found it more important to have where the errors where, so that if needed you can justify your score. I learned lots of other markings from different judges that help that weren't official shorthand. Other judges have always been very helpful and patient.

 

[Kiwi]

Thanks flippersmom, yes I am really hoping the experienced judges will be kind and give me guidance until I find my feet! This weekend I am going to spend some time on YouTube and practice judging some routines. I think the main issue I have is the speed factor, and that may get better with lots of practice. Vault and bar are the hardest because it is just so quick.

 

[katvernay]

i started judging (USAG) this year. and at first, it is really tricky and nervewracking. the same thing gymnasts do, judges do: PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE. i learned all the shorthand by back-judging at a meet and just scripted every routine for a couple flights on each event. ask the other judges how they script and take deductions - everyone has there own way of doing it and by asking around and trying out different techniques, you should be able to find one that works for you. I judge vault pretty often - go on instinct, and just be consistent; it goes too fast to see and process everything. But if the kid's head is out, there's going to be shoulder angle and some body position problems, and then probably some more on dynamics. Good Luck and it gets easier!!!!

 

[coachmolly]

I'm so glad you posted this! I've been thinking about becoming a judge for years and am just terrified I will be awful at it. Good to know I'm not the only one feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole process. I'm thinking about biting the bullet and buying all of the manuals and studying over the summer to see how I feel, maybe one of these days I'll get around to taking the test. I'm moving to an area somewhat void of gymnastics this summer and am thinking judging will be one way to stay actively involved.

 

[Kiwi]

Well, today was my first day judging and I survived! I only had to do step 1 floor and vault. I did pretty well on floor, but for the first group on vault I completely sucked, just kind of panicked and blanked. To make sure I didn't damage anyone's score, I just picked a score between the other two judges' scores. I had been practice judging with a senior judge over the past couple of weeks, but her way of judging vault was completely different to the judges I was with today. Luckily, while the next group did their practice vaults, one of the other judges showed me what she looked for, so I managed to do much better on the next group, which was a great relief.

Next competition is in two weeks, but I don't know what I'll be judging yet. It would be nice to know in advance so I can get prepared. I was with very nice judges today, but next time I don't know who I'll be with, I think some of them can be a bit scary. I'll try to get a bit more practice judging in at our gym, especially on vault and bar, which I find so much more difficult than beam and floor.

Coachmolly, I think you'd be fine at judging because you're a coach. The judge that helped me with vault was also a brand new judge, but she is a coach so she knew what to look for because they were all the things she looked for when coaching. One of my main problems is my knowledge of technique has some gaps in it. For example, I'm still trying to figure out what makes a good glide swing. But I'm learning all the time, that's the good part.

 

[JBS]

I attended a WAG level 1 judging course today. I now feel overloaded, overwhelmed and totally inadequate. I really sucked at all the examples on the course. It all went too quickly and I missed half of the deductions. Everyone else seemed to know what they were doing. I'm feeling like I may have bitten off too much and I may not be up to the task. Has anyone else ever felt like this when they first started learning to judge? I think I have to judge my first competition in a few weeks' time and now I'm freaking out.

Yes...keep at it...you'll love it.