When You Know the Books Were Wrong, or Fixed, or the Judges Were Blind

[kneegrow_native]

Has anyone ever been at a pow-wow and either contest danced, or drummed and placed and didn't think you deserved it?

I remembered being at a pow-wow and they called out my name and I thought "Hey cool someone with the same name as me placed, that's cool." Then I found out it was me. I was kinda surprised because I thought there were dancers a lot better than me that didn't place.

Seriously though, back in my in shape days I placed at a few pow-wows that I didn't think I should have. Anyone else get pleasantly surprised at a pow-wow?

[Nezbah]

hahha....I do know of this one time....

A person I know was called out as 1st place winner at a well known powwow. She registered but never danced, not even a grand entry or even her contests!! At the last minute she decided not to dance cuz she had to tend to her baby and didn't want to bother. Well when they called her name for the winners, she wasn't even there, her brother went up to the committee and told them she didn't even participate. Of course they didn't accept the winnings but the committee also never turned around and offer the winnings to another contest dancer, just kept it to themselves......

Now how shifty is that??? One of the reasons why I never go to that powwow.......

[WhoMe]

hahha....I do know of this one time....

A person I know was called out as 1st place winner at a well known powwow. She registered but never danced, ....

Something similar happened to a well know grass dancer at Denver March during a grass dance special.

[kiyaanii mom]

Something similar happened to a well know grass dancer at Denver March during a grass dance special.

I was there when that happen. There were like 100 dancers in the special. My husband and I were both wondering why he wasn't dancing. Just watching. Then the family kept calling a couple of numbers over and over. Finally this guy went down (as incomspicously as possible) and said he didn't dance in the special. Then the other number the family was calling was backward and was someone else's number.

That was a weird special.....

[kneegrow_native]

There was one pow-wow that I was almost certain picked their winners partially based upon how far away you lived. My suspicions were kinda confirmed one year because my mom put down her address as her child hood home which was far away, got hurt Friday night and couldn't dance the rest of the weekend, and was announced for first place.

[Nezbah]

There was one pow-wow that I was almost certain picked their winners partially based upon how far away you lived. My suspicions were kinda confirmed one year because my mom put down her address as her child hood home which was far away, got hurt Friday night and couldn't dance the rest of the weekend, and was announced for first place.

heyyyy shhhhhhht, what powwow is that?? I wanna register from the farthest known state....lol.

[native nation]

i once heard a story about a person who placed and should not have. lol...

-this person didn't register
-no contest number
-danced a few inter-tribal songs, just to dance
-they ate and left
-and some how a few weeks later, a check with a letter from the pow wow came to his local post office's general delivery mail.

of course it was a story.... true or not....idk

[chipster]

We were at a contest powwow in Louisiana, my uncle was in a tie-breaker with another dancer. My uncle dances in the Golden age southern division and the dancer he was tied with was in the Adult men's northern tradtional. Don't know how they tied, but they were both willing to dance off.

[Dakota Sandz]

k...I'm gonna flip the script on this one....

ever go to a powwow where YOU know your gonna win cuz its fixed?
I have...I admit. I was at a powwow back in the day and was jammin with this drum (mentioning no names so dont ask) and the president of the powwow came up to us and was chattin it up with us at our van and told us bluntly "you guys got this one in the bag" and it was FRIDAY NIGHT of the powwow!!!!
We just looked at ourselves like "huh?". To me, it gave me a guilty feeling and a shytty one as well knowing we got it and dont even have to try anymore for the weekend. None of the other guys said anything, and some of them just completely slacked off the whole weekend. Makin mistakes, some guys missing songs. It was terrible. I couldnt really do anything about it cause I was hitchin a ride with them, being the powwow bum, dead broke and only enuff money for a few bologna slices and some ripple chips for a chip n bologna sammich. and I wanted a ride back home after too..lol.
After that though, I never went back to that powwow. I heard about the guy who told us that and how crooked he is, but to say it to our face like that, bluntly, was strange.

[shawndaes]

I went to an annual pw in md this year as I usually go. There was a female fancy dancer that only danced contest and maybe 1 grandentry. No intertribals, no exhibitions. 1 contest sat, 1 contest sunday. Got 1st place. I thought the girl that got 2nd really got jipped. 2 years before that same thing happened w/ a jingle. Some pws say if you miss a GE you can not place 1st. I asked a committee member and they justified the decision with a confusing answer and wouldn't give a copy of the rules. Said something like if all the judges vote her 1st at 100 points per 1st place thats way more points than a 2nd 50 points and a 50 point GE for the day. If this is how you run your pw ok, but let me see the rules and see that it specifies this, if it is listed as a rule.

[buckskin pantyhose]

I went to a powwow where the committee members danced, took 1st, competed in the specials and took 1st and their children and spouses took 1st and if not 1st then definitely placed....why even have a powwow?! I was pretty shocked, but eh, what can ya do?

after things like that, nothing really surprises me anymore.

from a judges point of view: nothing pleases me more than to see a kid dancing their heart out and tearing it up regardless of what their outfit looks like or who their parents are.

I always felt embarrassed for the kid whose parents were yelling at the committee because their child took 3rd instead of 1st....who are we to say what place we should've taken? that's just flat out arrogance

ya win some, ya lose sum....only think you can do is keep dancing.

[dancing bear]

I went to a small college powwow a few weeks ago and there was only two of us in my catagory and I got first.. I was so surprised I went up to the drums tat sang and gave them each some money.. lol.. but then.. they did sing some good songs, so it felt good to do tat too...
db

[cclkick]

i saw a dance off once...2 fancy shawls, one was around 11 yrs old and one around 3 yrs old. the 3 yr old dropped her plumes while she was dancing, obviously not knowing/understanding..she kept going and came around the horn again and this time danced on top of the plumes,foot right on them. anyway....the 3 yr old won the dance off.

[Kaina1128]

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[Ol'Girl]

sounds like an all-around in cali that one year...one of the winners didn't even dance in it...lol...and they were honest and told the committee...BRAVO!