Money First - Safety Second

[ontheblack]

You can run a State tournament, allow coolers and still have concessions that rock. Just ask Uno how it was done for 12U States in Hemet.

[GSB]

ASA does not have a policy about this issue. They do however allow their tournaments to be held in parks that do limit coolers and beverages. They do not have a policy that states that their tournaments will not be held at locations that enforce this rule. This was the same thing that AYSO allowed to happen that cost them so much money. (At least what I have been told).

ASA is not the only offender, other notable offenders in CA. were the Fresno Force Tournament and various Triple Crown events.

[Seven's Mom]

It is definitely a shame that the almighty dollar takes priority of player and fan safety. We were out at Tyler this weekend for 14U-A ASA State. There were no individual fees at the gate and we could bring in our own coolers. So, it would seem that the statement by several board members that it is not an ASA policy but a park/community policy would be correct.

[dgorsuch]

Whats up with parks/tournaments that do not allow coolers in the park when temps are exceeding 100+. I think this is a serious safety issue and not good for our sport. Played in 14U State this weekend in Denton. At first they said no coolers for anyone, then the team could bring a cooler but you have to buy drinks from the concession stand, then the team could bring a cooler with drinks and one with towels. "We need to take care of these girls and keep them hydrated". "Better not see one parent or sibling drinking from that team cooler or it will be removed". And trust me the Cooler Police" were all over it. Of course they were not all over taking care of fields but they were all over the cooler criminals. You have got to be kidding me. All of a sudden we are concerned for the girls but its ok for the siblings, parents and grandparents to suffer heat stroke!! I know from personal experience that you can make plenty of money from concessions and allow your teams and families to bring all of the food and drinks they want. You cater to them, provide quality products and they will support your site. I cant tell you how many negative comments I heard from teams and spectators about this subject last weekend. They also indicated they would not spend a penny at the park because of this petty, money hungry approach. Its bad enough they charge $5 to $7 to walk in the gate but they have to gouge you at the concessions for snacks and drinks. The net affect is that many people may buy one drink at the concession stand but they may not buy the 5 or 6 they should be drinking to stay hydrated. This has happended at 12U and 14U ASA State. Come on folks. Lets put saftey first and take care of our families!!!! I promise you they will spend lots of money at your tournament if they think you care about them and the girls and run a good tournament with well maintained fields.

I did not intend this to turn into a VTD vs ASA discussion. Its bad business and its not a safe policy. If ASA or VTD is running the tournament they need to show some leadership and make sure this does not happen. I had three litle kids come up to our dugout on Sat night begging for water and they were not even with our team. It made me sick. I'm sure these kids had been at the park all day and were not properly hydrated. And yes, I gave them water knowing I was putting my team at risk of being shot by the cooler police which was not part of the park but part of the association running the tournament. Come on folks. Take care of your families and they will take care of you. Govern with a sense of kindness and responsibility, not with an iron fist!

[ScoringPosition]

If you check I think you'll find that ASA doesn't address these issues for the tournaments. They select a site and host organization and leave it to the host to make arrangements for all operational issues. In that manner they are pushing the decisions to the managers who are closest to the issues. As far as the 14U tournament this past weekend in the Denton area, the games were played at Denton/Denia and at Corinth, two different cities. Each may have had their own rules and restrictions about outside concession items.

The ASA Dist 13 class C tournament held 3 weeks ago was at Denton/North Lakes and I would have expected their rules on coolers and concessions to be the same as Denia. However, the Dist 13 class C tournament was hosted by Dist 13 and the 14U State tournament was a Texas ASA state level tournament with Dist 13 helping host. Somewhat different arrangements and different hands in the tournament organization and management.

When I coached it was my experience that when we encountered the team cooler issue we would open the cooler, show that it only contained water and then pushed our way in with the simple statement we would not risk the players health. We were stopped one time by police and were told there was water in the dugouts. We learned in the first game there was no water and went and got our cooler- we weren't stopped then. You can take control of this situation but you have to make it clear it's about the girls, not about slipping in items to get around concessions.

[ScoringPosition]

One other note- Doug Gorsuch proves in everyone of his tournaments that you can have an open concession policy and seem to still make money. They do a class job in Lewisville providing quality products at a fair price and people tend to prefer to buy the concessions rather bring their own. That is the key- good quality at a fair price with no gouging. There are other tournament host organizations in the DFW area who do that too and it also works for them. Perhaps professional concession managers should take note.

[brewtusplease]

It is definitely a shame that the almighty dollar takes priority of player and fan safety. We were out at Tyler this weekend for 14U-A ASA State. There were no individual fees at the gate and we could bring in our own coolers. So, it would seem that the statement by several board members that it is not an ASA policy but a park/community policy would be correct.

Absolutely. Tyler was wide open. It completey depends on who runs the park.

However, if a park has a reputation of price gouging in big events, ANY oganization with good leadership would prevent it from happening by finding a new venue for the next event. Regardless of whether it is a city park or a private park, there are stupid 'business' decisions made all the time. Those stupid business decisions should not be rewarded, even if the location is fantastic.

For most of those I know, the big events are also vacations. I haven't been on sand with water for a very long time...just dirt and sprinklers. I'm just glad we don't play at the Hall of Fame every weekend...

[dgorsuch]

If you check I think you'll find that ASA doesn't address these issues for the tournaments. They select a site and host organization and leave it to the host to make arrangements for all operational issues. In that manner they are pushing the decisions to the managers who are closest to the issues. As far as the 14U tournament this past weekend in the Denton area, the games were played at Denton/Denia and at Corinth, two different cities. Each may have had their own rules and restrictions about outside concession items.

The ASA Dist 13 class C tournament held 3 weeks ago was at Denton/North Lakes and I would have expected their rules on coolers and concessions to be the same as Denia. However, the Dist 13 class C tournament was hosted by Dist 13 and the 14U State tournament was a Texas ASA state level tournament with Dist 13 helping host. Somewhat different arrangements and different hands in the tournament organization and management.

When I coached it was my experience that when we encountered the team cooler issue we would open the cooler, show that it only contained water and then pushed our way in with the simple statement we would not risk the players health. We were stopped one time by police and were told there was water in the dugouts. We learned in the first game there was no water and went and got our cooler- we weren't stopped then. You can take control of this situation but you have to make it clear it's about the girls, not about slipping in items to get around concessions.

Once again I ask about the families not just the players. The little brothers and sisters are going to run and play all day without proper hydration if the family cant afford to keep buying drinks from concessions. We had one parent that had to leave the park because she had two children under the age of two who were cooking in the 100+ heat and she did not have the money to keep buying them drinks from the concession stand. So the result is if you cant afford to buy concessions then your not welcome at the park or you can stay and put the kids at risk. Bad business for our sport. I really think this is a cause worth fighting for!
Is this going to be the policy at Field of Dreams for the World Series? Not a good start if the answer is yes. Move the tournament to Southlake or another family friendly park. Is this going to be the policy at Killeen for Southern Nationals? It could affect who goes from our team families because they have a really bad taste in their mouth after this weekend.

[badlyalan]

We played in Moss Bluff Louisiana this past weekend.
98 degrees+
Paid $5 at the gate each day.
Allowed one team cooler (Water only).
Crappy fields (one had about a 7 degree slope from the left to right)! Grass infields.
No water in the dugouts!
Never watered the fields.
And LA officiating is the worst.
But despite it all, we brought the Big trophy bake across the border!

This is the norm over there. Every tournament we have ever played over there was similar to this. It is ashame. (They did serve Crawfish, but no beer)

[IDigress]

Another point that I failed to make in my previous post:

.... At no time did I blame it on ASA or believe they were the instigators and enforcers of this policy. Do you know why you see this practice at most "big" events? Because of the large number of teams and their families participating in the tournament - genius!!! Concessions is how the city or P & R dept or some other local organization is going to make the bulk of their money for that week or weekend.

I would think ASA is indirectly to blame. They could require that all venues bidding on hosting an ASA event allow team coolers. If a city has certain restrictions on that activity, I'm sure the organizers could get a waiver if the city truly wants the revenue that a tournament with 100 or so teams with players, coaches and fans would bring. The P&R Dept should fall under the umbrella of the city and all work together to bring visitors to the city to spend money where they can make money from taxes and in turn keep their local business' fat and happy. Don't think concessions is the "bulk" of a city's money made from an event such as this. Besides, the only concessions you'd lose would be drink sales from the team members. The fans should have to pay for their concessions just like when they go to a movie, concert or any other entertainment event.