Another day older and another Worlds safely out of the way.
Aside from the residual tiredness caused by Friday's tramping about the Green, today felt much more like a "traditional" championships. Almost all competing bands were kilted up and in attendance, apart from the occasional forlorn figure of a grade one non-qualifier who would drift, purposeless, around the field.
The day was dominated by the weather. In truth, it was reminiscent of the day one washout last year. Capes and other waterproofs were the order of the day, despite the sun peeping out once or twice. A couple of bands suffered through downpours whilst performing but I heard no one suggest that results would be compromised.
Grade One seemed to buzz past at quite a clip. With only 12 bands in the final, the contest was perhaps a little brief. Another couple of competitors would have done no harm but would likely have only filled the ranks of the also-rans. The brevity of the grade allowed the Grade 2 bands to take over the main arena for their final. Although this was quite the coup for those playing in the second tier, it seemed somehow wrong to have the premier event over before grade two got properly underway. It might be better to consider slipping the Grade 2 final in between the MSR and Medley performances of the big bands - if the Association wants to keep them in the Arena 1.
The crowds were much better everywhere - except in the stand around Grade 1. Maybe it was the weather, or maybe the pricing needs looked at - but the stand was certainly sparsely populated.
Grade 3 took an age to finish and frankly a lot of people clearly opted to head home for results on the internet. The finale was the usual shambles. The contest was always likely to run late but, given the increasing nip in the evening air, something should have been done to speed it up. Individual grade results were further delayed by the (now traditional) mugging for the camera which goes on with every prize recipient. Meanwhile, the paying public quietly freezes to death...
The results in Grade One seemed fair enough. I think that I'll steer clear of what will likely become controversial in coming days, but I will say that a careful scrutiny of the Medley results will provide ammunition for those who query the factors in the judges' minds. Sometimes the allocation of places can less about putting a band into the prizes than about keeping another band out of them...
The second year of the two day experiment was undoubtedly an improvement on the first but it illustrated quite clearly that the need for the second day is only in relation to Grade 1. The more radical solution (and the more logical one) would be to relegate the bottom 25% of Grade 1 into Grade 2 and then split the lower grade into an A and B. I have yet to hear a convincing counter argument. I can understand that the Association wants a sizeable premier grade, spread worldwide, but the gulf within Grade 1 is now so pronounced that this is no longer viable. I'll not hold my breath.
Anyhow, it's all over for another year. Return to your practice chanters and pads. Next year it could be you...
