VauxSquad Mark II

So, 2015 has ended which also meant the end of the first VauxSquad. What an amazing group of kids with so much motivation, enthusiasm, and team work, it has been amazing to see all of them progress throughout the passed year and I have enjoyed coaching them. Unfortunately with the end of the season we did have to let some of the team go BUT, this means it was open for new members to join!

Back in December, between all the comps and various bits and pieces going on with work, VauxWall hosted their VauxSqaud selection. It was a pretty good turnout, with many new faces as well as the old team turning up. The day before Yann and I set 23 problems throughout the whole of the centre ranging from V0-V7 with an additional circuit board challenge - 22 moves starting from F5-F7a, and traverse (F4-6b).

Unfortunately, Blokfest in Brighton booked their date on top of ours so some of the competitors didn't turn up, but to compensate for this we did also run the event on the following day, taking into account tiredness. Saturday kicked off with the judges (Robin, Tricky, Tom and Katya) discussing a plan for the day and beginning with the current squad warm up. With the competitors ready to go everyone planned out their "attack" and cracked on.

Wow. These kids can crush! There were some particularly hard problems in the set but everyone pulled hard and gave their absolute best. I'll admit there were a couple of blocks I thought a few wouldn't get but really proved me wrong. With the day pressing on and everyone getting tired, scorecards began coming in. With a few members a little disappointed with their scores, they all scored a lot better than I thought they would and was really impressed with everyone that competed. We racked up the scores and sent the kids on their way while the judges went to Nandos to discuss what we thought.

With tough decisions and a great meal (Thanks Tom), we came out with a good idea of who will be joining VauxSquad Mark II.

Day 2 ran fairly similar with a much smaller turnout but meant we could focus more on these competitors. With myself, Louis and Jack watching over, we discussed the previous day's antics, what we thought on the day and confirmed the team.

It's a shame to cut some people from the team, but I am excited to see the new members progress and how well they'll react to the training.