All-Star New Venue For Worlds 2012

[ohkcheery]

2 reasons:

1. I think the problem can be solved with a universal score sheet with a "base score." I believe that all teams this year earned, yes earned, the right to attend Worlds under the current rules. I do understand people's frustrations with the bids process. Nearing the end of the season, it is possible for a 8th, 9th, 10th place team to earn a "handed down" bid. A base score would solve that problem.

2. One of the above posters offered the idea of limiting bid opportunities to Dallas, California and Atlanta. If an excellent team attends one of those 3 and happens to have an off weekend...no bid, no Worlds. (It happens. Even to the best teams.) The only way to secure a bid would be to add a competition. I live in the Midwest. To add a competition to California or Dallas would be a HUGE additional expense. We are talking a thousand dollars or more. What about Jamfest in Indy? IMO That competition is a valid event to earn a bid. I think by limiting bid opportunities to a few events is going to the opposite extreme of the current system.

LOL, I think you and I share the same brain.

 

[yojaehs]

2 reasons:

1. I think the problem can be solved with a universal score sheet with a "base score." I believe that all teams this year earned, yes earned, the right to attend Worlds under the current rules. I do understand people's frustrations with the bids process. Nearing the end of the season, it is possible for a 8th, 9th, 10th place team to earn a "handed down" bid. A base score would solve that problem.

2. One of the above posters offered the idea of limiting bid opportunities to Dallas, California and Atlanta. If an excellent team attends one of those 3 and happens to have an off weekend...no bid, no Worlds. (It happens. Even to the best teams.) The only way to secure a bid would be to add a competition. I live in the Midwest. To add a competition to California or Dallas would be a HUGE additional expense. We are talking a thousand dollars or more. What about Jamfest in Indy? IMO That competition is a valid event to earn a bid. I think by limiting bid opportunities to a few events is going to the opposite extreme of the current system.

I did not say ELIMINATE bids or ONLY have 3 bid events. I said LIMIT bids. USASF could LIMIT the number of bids that they would allow to be awarded. I agree that only 3, 4 events is extreme and would hurt some talented teams that are limited in travel BUT I do think that fewer events should be allowed to give bids.

ALSO: I agree 1000% that there should be a Universal Score Sheet and that Score Sheet should be the WORLDS score sheet (if it changes from this year whatever, but if it changes then that should be it). It is DUMB that teams qualify with one routine and in some cases have to change their routine to a separate score sheet.

 

[ohkcheery]

I did not say ELIMINATE bids or ONLY have 3 bid events. I said LIMIT bids. USASF could LIMIT the number of bids that they would allow to be awarded.

Limiting the total number of bids allowed to be awarded would be the same thing as eliminating them if you're thinking there should be less bids than there are today.

 

[simplymom]

limiting bids would not be a great idea, great talent might get missed out on.

I agree with you to a point.

My question would be....How many teams with handed down, at large bids finished in the top 10% of their divisions? I honestly don't know the answer. The answer, IMO, would either validate or invalidate your point.

 

[John Butler]

I agree completely with this thread. This Disney facility is simply not big enough to support the growing monster that is Worlds. Unfortunately, as someone has informed within this thread, Iguess they're contracted until 2014, so it appears that not much is going to change.

I do have an idea though that I think would make this venue work. Currently, they set up this huge judges booth in the front of the floor. There are stadium seats behind it, but it renders those seats useless because you can't see anything when sitting behind them. If they perhaps built a judgest booth that could go over those seats, then they could put a ton of folding chairs down on the floor in place of where the judges booth is. Just a thought, and I don't know if it would work, but you could probably add another 300 - 400 seats on the floor in front and the wasted space that is the seats behind the current judges booth would be used to house the platform for the judges.

Just a thought. Don't know if it would work, or if Disney would allow something to be built temporarily over those seats.

 

[John Butler]

And by the way, for those of you throwing the idea of limiting bids around, keep in mind that the Worlds competition is not put on by the owners because they want to find out who's best in the sport of cheer. It's put on because the company wants to MAKE MONEY. Period, that is why companies are in business. More teams means more money, all the way around.

So bottom line is, I would not expect less bids to ever be a solution that is presented. In fact, as the sport continues to grow, I only see more teams being given the opportunity in the future.

More cheerleaders = More parents = MORE PROFIT... and until cheer becomes a charity sport, that's not going to change, as unfortunate as it may be for cheer.

 

[cheeracheetahs2011]

I agree with you to a point.

My question would be....How many teams with handed down, at large bids finished in the top 10% of their divisions? I honestly don't know the answer. The answer, IMO, would either validate or invalidate your point.

i see your point. i think there actually are too many at large bids. Those should be limited. If you cannot get a full paid bid, how do you expect to place at worlds against that competition.

 

[yojaehs]

Limiting the total number of bids allowed to be awarded would be the same thing as eliminating them if you're thinking there should be less bids than there are today.

Correct, my mistake on the way I worded that. The point I was trying to make is that I don't think that only 3/4 comps should be allowed to award bids. But USASF could look at things and distribute bids differently. There should not be that many bids allowed to be handed out.

 

[Lisa]

This was my first time attending and the first thing I said was this venue is way to small for this type of event. There must be somewhere bigger in Disney.

 

[cheerleader-woo]

Yes the milkhouse and josten's center was crowded, however, if you get there in PLENTY of time before your favorite division/team goes on, then you won't have a problem! I had great seats all weekend and got to see every team/division I wanted to. Yes maybe limiting the bids is the solution to OUR problem, however, USASF is BANKING on these at-large bids, as a company they are genuis!

 

[cheerfan27]

Ok this is what I have been thinking that adresses a combination of problems we have been discussing on the boards:
-USASF regulates when to start season and when to end it. Let's say gyms can't have tryouts until (at the earliest) May 1st.
- First competition in December
-Last competition in March
-Worlds at end of march.

Why?
-This would limit the # of pointless competitions that no one goes to but maybe like 5 gyms. You know, those competitions where the majority of your teams at your gym are the only ones competing in their division.
-This would make the season a little shorter. Hopefully leading to less injuries.
-less competitions = less bids (hopefully)
-Worlds wouldn't be at the end of semesters for schools. Many people have important tests in high school and college. It's difficult to focus on both.
-Cheerleaders need to have an off-season. This would at least start a 2month off-season. lol. It would be their choice if they want to go to tumbling classes or whatever, as long as it isn't a team class or practice.
- Force the coaches to have their team ready by August since the season ends in March. I feel like it would also weed out bad teams that wouldn't be ready because of other reasons (didn't take summer seriously, coaches didn't prepare them well enough, etc.)

I think this kind of season schedule addresses lots of problems that we have been discussing. I feel like worlds is way too late in the season, too many teams attend it, and our season needs to change. Thoughts?

I completely agree, I can't believe I do. LOL! On a different note, I think they need to change the age requirements to stop so many youth girls from competing on JR and SR levels and that would leave girls to make true Y4 & Y5 teams.

 

[Fiercebas]

i think they should but contract wont expire for a while. bc i know trying to find seats in the milkhouse was like trying to find a needle in a haystackk.

 

[emmabug95]

I was thinking this exact same thing (especially during large senior). There was literally not one free seat anywhere in the Milkhouse, and there were still people sitting on the floor, pressed up against the balconies, watching from the screens or just plain in the Jostens center. There are simply too many people for that sized venue, no matter how you look at it or spread it out. Especially considering that nearly every person is going to crowd on into the Milkhouse during divisions such as large senior, so there's nothing that can really be done other than 1) get venue with more seats, not only more arenas or 2) limit the number of bids given out, because a good number of the people there are obviously competitors and families.

 

[Fiercebas]

i feel like its getting harder and harder every year. i knoww shortly before cea wcss f5 were going on you could barely even get in and out of the milkhouse and people were shoulder to shoulder trying to walk around.

 

[ohkcheery]

i feel like its getting harder and harder every year. i knoww shortly before cea wcss f5 were going on you could barely even get in and out of the milkhouse and people were shoulder to shoulder trying to walk around.

The crowds also come from the fact that Large Senior is usually one of the last if not the last division to go on. Everyone else that has gone earlier in the day is sitting around watching instead of warming up or eating lunch or what have you. If they put Large Senior earlier, the crowds *might* not be as big, but some people would be upset because they couldn't see them compete. They just need a bigger venue. OR don't oversell. Sheesh, put it outside like in Daytona and it'd even be better than what it is now.