Folks,

I thought this e-mail thread might be of interest to y'all as well as you
make preparations to join us (or contemplate joining us) at this year's
State Tournament. Your participation is the key to making this event
bigger and even better!

Hope that we will see you in College Station on April 11th!!!

Thanks,

Bill Marriott
Tournament Director

Texas, Ultimate!

Original Message:
-----------------
From: wmarriott@... wmarriott@...
Date: Tue, 17 Feb 2009 19:51:23 -0500
To: HoustonUltimateHS@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [HoustonUltimateHS] More news on 4th Annual Lone Star High
School Ultimate Tourney ...

Diana,

Hello there ... hope this e-mail finds you doing well! I'm happy to answer
any questions that folks may have about the upcoming State Tournament.
Please see my responses below (following each question).

I hope that I've provided satisfactory answers to all your questions and
that this will spur many (if not all) Houston area high school teams to
join us for this year's State Tournament! Their participation will help
make this event bigger than it's ever been and will promote the continued
growth of Ultimate in Texas!!!

Thanks,

Bill Marriott
Tournament Director

Texas, Ultimate!

Original Message:
-----------------
From: Diana Turco dianayoung@...
Date: Tue, 17 Feb 2009 15:03:49 -0600
To: HoustonUltimateHS@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [HoustonUltimateHS] More news on 4th Annual Lone Star High
School Ultimate Tourney ...

Hey Bill,

I've had several questions from high schoolers in Houston about the state
tourney, and figured I should email you and find out! I'll put them in a
list, it'll be easier for me (don't worry, it's not long!):

1) They are wondering if it's just one day for sure.

Yes, the State Tournament will be a one day event (with all games played on
Saturday, April 11, 2009).

2) They're wondering if it's $125 up front plus an additional $10 per person
or if it's one cost or the other.

Yes, to cover costs for this tournament, we've divided the per player cost
between a Team Application Fee of $125 (which is due by March 6, 2009) and
an Individual Player Fee of $10 (which is due on the tournament date).
This is how we've covered costs each of the past 3 years and it has worked
pretty well (i.e., we just barely break even). Savings for the players can
be realized by having a larger roster (thereby distributing the Team
Application Fee amongst more persons). Note that we've had rosters with as
few as 11 players up to some with 28 players.

3) They also seem very concerned about this cost in addition to driving
there, and while several schools are very interested, some are kinda
skeptical. I was thinking you could maybe give me a quick list of some of
the things the price includes (ie fields, water, fruit) so they kinda get a
concrete idea of where the money is going. I'm hoping that will push them
over the edge to decide to go!

We've had fantastic participation from Houston area schools, particularly
last year when they comprised nearly half the field of teams (i.e., Clear
Lake HS, Deer Park HS, Klein HS, Lamar HS, and Langham Creek HS). So,
players from those teams may want to share their tournament experiences
from the past couple of years in this forum.

With regards to travel, College Station was selected as the venue as it is
(relatively speaking) equidistant between the Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth
and Austin metropolitan areas. Of course, truth be told, it is closer to
Houston than any other metropolitan area so teams coming from there will
have the least distance to travel. For comparison purposes, the Big Spring
HS team has come to the tournament each of the last 2 years (from out by
Midland). The one way mileage from Big Spring to College Station is nearly
400 miles ... so their round-trip is approximately 800 miles! Compare that
to areas in and around Houston:

- Clear Lake/Deer Park to College Station is approximately 120 miles each
way.

- Houston/Katy to College Station is approximately 95 miles each way.

Here is what they'll be getting for somewhere between $15 and $20 per
player (once you add their Individual Player Fee to their contribution to
the Team Application Fee):

1. An amazing venue in which to play their games (in my opinion, Veterans
Park has the best fields in Texas).

2. At least 5 games of Ultimate played against competition from all across
Texas. This is something the kids really enjoy because they really don't
have many other opportunities to compete against kids from other areas of
the state.

3. Lunch for all participants along with snack items (e.g., fruit, granola
bars, bagels)throughout the day and water stations (where they can refill
their water bottles). Note that, for the last 2 years, lunch has been
Subway sandwiches (and will likely be once again this year).

4. A tournament disc (made by Discraft) which includes the name and date of
the event along with the names of all participating schools.

5. A chance to relive some of the action through the lens of a professional
photographer (who will be taking action shots across all the fields
throughout the day). He will then have pictures from the event available
for purchase from his website.

4) There were also some questions about chaperones....do they need just one,
can they play with none?

As stated in the Team Bid Application link, each team must have 2 adult
chaperones. Travel guidelines, which are in adherence with UPA guidelines,
can be found on our website (www.ultimatespirit.org).

That's it for now, hope the planning is going well, and thanks a bunch for
the help!!!

Diana

On Sun, Feb 15, 2009 at 11:51 PM, Bill Marriott
<wmarriott@...>wrote:

> Folks,
>
> Although it may seem a long ways off, we are quickly approaching the date
> of this year's *4th Annual Lone Star High School Ultimate Tournament*!!!
>
> To that end, I'd ask that you visit our website (www.ultimatespirit.org)
> for the latest, most-up-to-date information. With this e-mail, I'd like
to
> make you aware of a few things:
>
> 1. As a location for our event, *Veterans Park in College Station Tx* is
> second-to-none due to the amazing fields we're able to use! The park has
a
> total of 9 fields. Note that, for the last two years, we've only had to
> make use of 6 fields (accommodating a field of 11 teams each year).
>
> 2. Based on feedback we've received to date for this year's event, there
> may be upwards of 20 teams participating in this year's tournament (which
> would be phenomenal)! Here are the teams that we currently have on the
> radar:
>
> - Anderson HS (Austin area)
> - Austin Area Homeschoolers (Austin area)
> - Belton HS (Austin area)
> - Big Spring HS (West Tx)
> - Clear Lake HS (Houston area)
> - Dripping Springs HS (Austin area)
> - Flower Mound Marcus HS (DFW area)
> - Hillcrest HS (DFW area)
> - Langham Creek HS (Houston area)
> - LASA HS (Austin area)
> - McCallum HS (Austin area)
> - Plano Jasper HS (DFW area)
> - Plano Shepton HS (DFW area)
> - Plano West HS (DFW area)
> - St. Mark's School (DFW area)
> - South Garland HS (DFW area)
> - Waldorf School (Austin area)
>
> 3. If your team is planning to submit a bid for this year's state
> tournament, please let me know (via e-mail) no later than *Saturday,
> February 28, 2009*. The reason for this request ... I need to know by
> that date so we can get your team's name on this year's tournament disc!
>
> 4. Team bid applications, including the team application fee of $125,
need
> to be complete and postmarked no later than *Friday, March 6, 2009*.
> (please note that this a revised date for completion of the application).
> The individual player fee of $10/player will still be collected on the day
> of the tournament (i.e., *Saturday, April 11, 2009*).
>
> 5. Bids will be processed on a first-come, first-serve basis. So, please
> do your best to get your bid in on time!
>
> We're looking forward to a great event this year (especially if we're able
> to grow the field of teams participating to 16, 18, 20, etc.)!!!
>
> Should you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to
contact
> me. And, once again, please let me know if your team is planning to
submit
> a bid no later than *Saturday, February 28, 2009*.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Bill Marriott
> Tournament Director
>
> Texas, Ultimate!

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