April 28 through May 2 the Central Catholic JROTC Drill Team, The Chaminade Guard, aka “The Machine”, heads to sunny Orlando, Florida to compete at the prestigious annual National High School Drill Team Competitions.

This dedicated and committed drill team has been putting countless hours of practice and preparation leading up to this challenging competition. Lots of hours in the quad, before school, after school, and on weekends are essential to how the team is able to memorize and perfect their drill routines. While at the national meet, the team will compete in a number of different skills categories, including for Army Nationals: Inspection, Regulation, Exhibition, Color Guard, Solo, and a Tandem on April 30, and then Inspection, Regulation, Exhibition, and Color Guard on May 1 in the US Multi Service Nationals.

The NHSDTC remains the oldest, largest and finest all-service drill & ceremony competition annually assembled in sunny Daytona Beach, Florida. Sponsored for decades by the U.S. Army Cadet Command, “the Grand Nationals”, as this legendary event has grown to be recognized, features school-aged drill & ceremony units of all ability levels and from all of the four service branches. The finest judges brought in specially for this event, along with the premiere, first-class beach front venue, hotels and surroundings, combined with the finest awards and competition mementoes, give the Nationals the type of overall ambiance that simply cannot be replicated anywhere in the world of school-based athletics. (paragraph from website thenationals.net)

The Grand Nationals remain an unparalleled weekend of military excellence. Over 180,000 cadets, instructors and parents have attended the NHSDTC competition for over 35 years. While a few smaller meets have tried to replicate what is presented to your youngsters at the Nationals (often to disappointment when the advanced promises don’t meet up with the low-budget reality), there is no experience within JROTC that can match the buzz and excitement that is maintained all weekend at the NHSDTC! (paragraph from website thenationals.net)

On Monday, cadets gathered in MSG Robles’s room to get the required haircuts before they head to Daytona. Cadet Josh Trevino, first to get the haircut, had this to say about the haircut experience: “During the haircut, I didn’t really know how I felt because it was a new experience for me, but the moment I was finished I realized how much the haircut actually meant. Sure to some people, it’s just some hair that will grow back, but to me this haircut signifies the fact we, as an entire team, made it to drill team nationals. That is a huge honor to say that  the Chaminade Guard are going against the best of the best in Daytona Beach in Florida.” Additionally, JROTC parents have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to decorate cadet lockers, help prepare for departure, and to provide cadets with a few goodies and provisions to send them off when they depart on Wednesday

.