[sanddrag]

At San Diego, I had to tell one of the safety advisers that people were going to get permanent hearing damage if the volume of the pit speakers was not reduced. They were placed approximately 15 feet from pit areas, directly adjacent to a main aisleway, and at a volume so loud that I saw several people cover their ears and duck/dodge away any time something was announced over them. Holding any sort of conversation 20 feet away from these speakers was impossible while their was audio on them. I was also concerned for the safety of all the judges sitting directly in front of the cheering section. A hundred screaming kids can pack quite a punch on the eardrums.

I will note that the music, MC, and match announcer levels seemed fine.