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Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 10:50 pm
by Cheynem
Hey, throw your hat into the ring here if you:

-have a full-fledged academic or trash event that you would like to write/collaborate on for August
-have a side event that could be run in August

There were a LOT of side events being thrown around in the CO threads, so maybe some of those things could be moved here.

You should also indicate what dates/potential locations you have in mind. I'll start because I'm selfish--I'd like to attach my film tournament (13 packets of tossups, so a reasonably solid event) to either other side events or some sort of full tournament. I hear Michigan was going to mirror VCUO proper, so maybe they could do this. The only date I can actually attend anything is August 4-5, so I'd like an August event to remain on that date, but if there's popular demand for another date, I can live with it.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:00 pm
by Bartleby
If people would be interested in collaborating on a full-fledged trash tournament (ie: 10-15 rounds of 20/20), I would be interested in that.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:03 pm
by kdroge
I was working on a general academic tournament without science that I was going to try and finish to run as a Sunday event for VCUO for at least the Michigan site. I think we could certainly run a series of events (including my event) on August 4th, maybe extending into Sunday, in Michigan. My tournament would be 10 packets of tossups plus bonuses, with difficulty notably above regular, though not anywhere near nats. The idea is kind of similar to what VCU was aiming for, with a mix of harder and easier tossup answers with challenging lead-in clues for both, and bonuses that aren't impossible but should be fairly challenging. If there would be interest in this, I could definitely have it finished by early August, and I would post a general announcement explaining the distributions and difficulty more in detail. The set is currently about 15% done, with considerably more answer selection done.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:05 pm
by Cheynem
DO IT (on August 4)

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:07 pm
by Muriel Axon
In the event that Connor and I can't host the music tournament at CO for some reason, we could do it here. 5 packets, 20/20. If it's on August 4-5 and has a site at U of M, I'll probably be able to play Sunday events.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:10 pm
by The Toad to Wigan Pier
I plan on having my technology tournament done by this date.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:11 pm
by JamesIV
Whether it's a single general academic thing (a la VCUO) or series of side events (as seems to be becoming the consensus) do people know who could potentially run mirrors? - speaking as someone with somewhat limited access to Michigan.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:21 pm
by Demonic Leftovers
Bartleby wrote:If people would be interested in collaborating on a full-fledged trash tournament (ie: 10-15 rounds of 20/20), I would be interested in that.
I don't know if I'd be able to write much by early August, but I have long been thinking about writing a trash tournament and would be interested in collaborating with some people on one for sometime next year.
Edit: And yeah, if Kurtis can have his thing done that should be the centerpiece of the weekend.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:29 pm
by AKKOLADE
Depending on how several things go, if this does just turn into an amalgamation of side events, I'd like to actually write a pop music event.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:31 pm
by Rococo A Go Go
I'm currently working on a current events tournament that should be done by August.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 11:33 pm
by Mike Bentley
Kurtis' tournament seems the most interesting to me. I'd support that tournament being a main event and then throwing some side events at it.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:20 am
by Excelsior (smack)
kdroge wrote:I was working on a general academic tournament without science that I was going to try and finish to run as a Sunday event for VCUO for at least the Michigan site. I think we could certainly run a series of events (including my event) on August 4th, maybe extending into Sunday, in Michigan. My tournament would be 10 packets of tossups plus bonuses, with difficulty notably above regular, though not anywhere near nats. The idea is kind of similar to what VCU was aiming for, with a mix of harder and easier tossup answers with challenging lead-in clues for both, and bonuses that aren't impossible but should be fairly challenging. If there would be interest in this, I could definitely have it finished by early August, and I would post a general announcement explaining the distributions and difficulty more in detail. The set is currently about 15% done, with considerably more answer selection done.
Is the lack of science in this tournament because you personally don't want to write science, or is it for some other reason? If the former, would you be willing to collaborate with one or more science people to fill out a science distribution for this tournament?

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:37 am
by kdroge
[quote="Excelsior (smack)]Is the lack of science in this tournament because you personally don't want to write science, or is it for some other reason? If the former, would you be willing to collaborate with one or more science people to fill out a science distribution for this tournament?[/quote]

Mainly because I wouldn't feel comfortable writing 40/40 science at this level. If someone would want to step up and write that amount of science, I'd be more than willing to collaborate.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:46 am
by Excelsior (smack)
kdroge wrote:Mainly because I wouldn't feel comfortable writing 40/40 science at this level. If someone would want to step up and write that amount of science, I'd be more than willing to collaborate.
If nobody more qualified than me volunteers, I'd be glad to collaborate with you on this.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 1:06 am
by Auks Ran Ova
Excelsior (smack) wrote:
kdroge wrote:Mainly because I wouldn't feel comfortable writing 40/40 science at this level. If someone would want to step up and write that amount of science, I'd be more than willing to collaborate.
If nobody more qualified than me volunteers, I'd be glad to collaborate with you on this.
NO DONT

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 9:08 am
by Cheynem
I agree that Kurtis' tournament as the main event plus a bevy of side events makes the most sense. If somehow a full fledged trash tournament is generated, we could do that on Sunday, probably.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 11:44 am
by Skepticism and Animal Feed
Ann Arbor is not a particularly accessible place. Any hope that we can get this mirrored somewhere like New York or DC? Or even Boston or Philly.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 11:51 am
by Cheynem
I've heard that Virginia Tech and Pitt could be potential options.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:04 pm
by fett0001
Yeah, we've got the space. Flights should probably go into Roanoke, but there's not public transport from ROA to campus on Sunday. However, I'm hopeful something could be figured out.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:26 pm
by Sam
There's not any chance UVA wants to/can host this, is there? I'm not impartial, but I believe it's fairly accessible by train or bus.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:29 pm
by theMoMA
Pittsburgh is a not-inaccessible location that's within striking distance of both the lower Midwest and the east coast, and I enjoyed being on that campus at Nationals two years ago. That would be my vote of the sites so far.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:37 pm
by Blackboard Monitor Vimes
Sam wrote:There's not any chance UVA wants to/can host this, is there? I'm not impartial, but I believe it's fairly accessible by train or bus.
As far as I can tell, it doesn't look like we can get rooms over the summer.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:44 pm
by Cheynem
My only concern with Pitt is that a Pitt/Ann Arbor field might overlap, although I'm sure something could be worked out (not that Ann Arbor obviously has a lock on hosting, but if Kurtis' tourney is the main event, it does make sense).

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:46 pm
by theMoMA
Cheynem wrote:My only concern with Pitt is that a Pitt/Ann Arbor field might overlap, although I'm sure something could be worked out (not that Ann Arbor obviously has a lock on hosting, but if Kurtis' tourney is the main event, it does make sense).
Yeah, I was thinking that Pitt could serve as a central Midwest/east coast site, with Kurtis reaping the profits but not necessarily hosting in his own backyard. This is just a thought; obviously, those who are actually writing and organizing the tournament are free to do whatever they want. But it would be fun to spend some time in Pittsburgh and hopefully have a field that combines the strengths of the two biggest circuits.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 12:56 pm
by Cheynem
Clearly, the tournament should *literally* be hosted in Kurtis' backyard.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 1:04 pm
by Adventure Temple Trail
Yeah, I'm not sure anyone who's actually on the east coast has claimed that Pittsburgh is convenient for themselves, though if it came down to there or nowhere it'd obviously function okay. I'll try talking around with people in DC, College Park, Philly, and NY, which are all easier to get to along the coast itself.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 1:14 pm
by Skepticism and Animal Feed
I consider Pittsburgh to be far more accessible than either UVA or VT. You can take a plane to Pittsburgh and then take public transit everywhere else you need to go.

If the tournament is in UVA or VT, and you don't have a car and can't find somebody to drive you, you are SOL.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 2:06 pm
by The Goffman Prophecies
Skepticism and Animal Feed wrote:If the tournament is...[at] VT, and you don't have a car and can't find somebody to drive you, you are SOL.
Pretty much. We'd love to host, but we're probably one of the least convenient schools to get to.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 2:32 pm
by itsthatoneguy
Skepticism and Animal Feed wrote:Ann Arbor is not a particularly accessible place. Any hope that we can get this mirrored somewhere like New York or DC? Or even Boston or Philly.
Ann Arbor has become much more accessible since the establishment of daily shuttle to and from Metro Detroit Airport. The shuttle leaves several times per day and one of the stops is by a mall where there are 4 or 5 hotels. From that stop, you can navigate the Ann Arbor bus system to the tournament site.

Website for AirRide: http://www.myairride.com/

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 2:59 pm
by eliza.grames
We can definitely finish up Never Say Never: Anything Goes as a side event for this instead of running it at MO (or better yet, write two versions of it because it's super fun to write and I'm taking a class on pop culture). That would provide some bad trash for the tournament, if people want a trash side event?

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 3:00 pm
by TulaneKQB
Cheynem wrote:Hey, throw your hat into the ring here if you:

-have a full-fledged academic or trash event that you would like to write/collaborate on for August
We've been planning on making Bayou-a-Drank a completely house-written set, but that was mainly because we didn't expect there to be much interest in producing any trash by anyone else. We'd be happy to collaborate with anybody/school in getting some kind of tag-teamed, 10-15 round Bayou-a-Drank set completed by August. If you're interested you can PM me or contact me at jrynmac at gmail dot com.

Also, for reference, here's the post I made about Bayou-a-Drank a few months ago, including the distribution we were planning on using: viewtopic.php?f=19&t=12690

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 11:39 pm
by Broad-tailed Grassbird
itsthatoneguy wrote:
Skepticism and Animal Feed wrote:Ann Arbor is not a particularly accessible place. Any hope that we can get this mirrored somewhere like New York or DC? Or even Boston or Philly.
Ann Arbor has become much more accessible since the establishment of daily shuttle to and from Metro Detroit Airport. The shuttle leaves several times per day and one of the stops is by a mall where there are 4 or 5 hotels. From that stop, you can navigate the Ann Arbor bus system to the tournament site.

Website for AirRide: http://www.myairride.com/
Bryan, correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't the shuttle stop at the main bus station now, which is 4 blocks from Angell Hall? That bus is $22 roundtrip, and while it says 45 minutes, there is no way it takes 45 minutes unless there's bad rush hour traffic.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 12:23 am
by itsthatoneguy
Broad-tailed Grassbird wrote:
itsthatoneguy wrote:
Skepticism and Animal Feed wrote:Ann Arbor is not a particularly accessible place. Any hope that we can get this mirrored somewhere like New York or DC? Or even Boston or Philly.
Ann Arbor has become much more accessible since the establishment of daily shuttle to and from Metro Detroit Airport. The shuttle leaves several times per day and one of the stops is by a mall where there are 4 or 5 hotels. From that stop, you can navigate the Ann Arbor bus system to the tournament site.

Website for AirRide: http://www.myairride.com/
Bryan, correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't the shuttle stop at the main bus station now, which is 4 blocks from Angell Hall? That bus is $22 roundtrip, and while it says 45 minutes, there is no way it takes 45 minutes unless there's bad rush hour traffic.
The shuttle does end at the Blake Transit Center downtown just after stopping by the mall / hotels. However, this day-of-events will be held at Saul's synagogue, which is somewhere not near campus or downtown.

I just rode it the past weekend, and the ride from the North Terminal to the Blake Transit Center does take about an hour, and from the McNamera Terminal it takes 45 minutes. I agree it shouldn't take that long, but I guess the buses are only going 65-70 mph.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 6:20 am
by Ike
Even though they seem to be in the vogue these days, I am working on a mythology tournament of sorts. Whatever I have done, I want to read at VCU Open, if there is interest and time. There would be no cost since it is written primarily for my edification.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 7:27 am
by Habitat_Against_Humanity
I've got 60 some odd music questions out of that mini-side event I was writing. I don't know if I'll time to finish it over the summer, but I could definitely write a few more. I'd be more than willing to combine them into a larger tournament.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 1:32 pm
by TulaneKQB
Habitat_Against_Humanity wrote:I've got 60 some odd music questions out of that mini-side event I was writing. I don't know if I'll time to finish it over the summer, but I could definitely write a few more. I'd be more than willing to combine them into a larger tournament.
If you aren't able to find anything better to do with them we'd be thrilled to work something out with you and use some or all of them for Bayou-a-Drank.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 2:14 pm
by setht
Ike wrote:Even though they seem to be in the vogue these days, I am working on a mythology tournament of sorts.
Note to everyone: this is one of the few times where unquestioningly following quizbowl writing trends is a great idea.
Ike wrote:Whatever I have done, I want to read at VCU Open, if there is interest and time. There would be no cost since it is written primarily for my edification.
I am suddenly interested in VCU Open/Kurtis's Backyard Open/whatever this thing winds up being called. I'm supposed to be in Delaware for two weeks in August, but which two weeks has not yet been determined and is only partially up to me. I will be very pleased if this blob of events lands on a weekend when I'm not in Delaware and takes place at a site easily accessible from Madison, or if it lands on a weekend while I'm in Delaware at a site easily accessible from Delaware.

Don't let me down, Mike Cheyne.

-Seth

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2012 12:51 am
by Magister Ludi
It looks like I'm going to be in Virginia for August and September interning at a magazine, so I would also support hosting a mirror (or the main site) of Kurtis' tournament somewhere in the DC area. It makes more sense to me to host a mirror in the DC area where many people could play without traveling rather than somewhere like Pittsburgh or New York where almost all the participants would have lengthy travel times.

Also, is there any chance Saajid would think about running his lit tournament on this weekend?

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2012 2:50 am
by Demonic Leftovers
I'd be willing to write up (and run if I am present) a somewhat experimental event based on Name That Tune/The Leonard Maltin Game from Doug Loves Movies/The similar game from Stump The Schwab for this weekend.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2012 4:51 am
by Black-throated Antshrike
setht wrote:I am suddenly interested in VCU Open/Kurtis's Backyard Open/whatever this thing winds up being called. I'm supposed to be in Delaware for two weeks in August, but which two weeks has not yet been determined and is only partially up to me. I will be very pleased if this blob of events lands on a weekend when I'm not in Delaware and takes place at a site easily accessible from Madison, or if it lands on a weekend while I'm in Delaware at a site easily accessible from Delaware
Delaware might be able to host the mirror itself, if people think that it is easy enough to travel to. Also, Delaware will be hosting summer practices, and you are more than welcome to stop in if you wish

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2012 11:11 am
by Cheynem
Is Michigan able to get rooms on days other than Saturday? I'd like to play Bayou a Drank or other things, but that might be too much for one day.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2012 7:08 pm
by Ike
Is Michigan able to get rooms on days other than Saturday? I'd like to play Bayou a Drank or other things, but that might be too much for one day.
If not, I'm sure that Illinois would be able to get rooms for this event. This will have to be confirmed by Billy Busse. We would want to play and not staff though.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2012 7:13 pm
by kdroge
I believe Saul will be calling about rooms this Monday, so we should know fairly soon for sure. Ashvin and I are going to be collaborating on a tournament for this event that will have science, the announcement for which will be posted soon. From what people have said, it seems like having a Midwest site (Ann Arbor or Illinois) and then an eastern site is probably the best option rather than having a central location because two locations minimizes travel costs, which would be my vote as well.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2012 6:12 pm
by The King's Flight to the Scots
You're sure you'll have time to write both this and the other Michigan tournament?

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2012 10:34 pm
by No Rules Westbrook
Pittsburgh is an excellent city. Let's go there.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Mon Jun 04, 2012 1:11 am
by adosreme
Ann Arbor and Pittsburgh are both places that I have never gone to for a quiz bowl tournament and sounds like something that I would love to do. (with the former being preferable since it's closer)

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Mon Jun 04, 2012 4:44 pm
by DumbJaques
Maryland would be available to host this and any other backyard brawls; I would probably drive to Pittsburgh, but it seems somewhat less convenient for the field as a whole than the DC area. A bunch of stuff has been held in the DC area recently though, so I wouldn't object if people felt the need to mix it up. One thing to consider, though, is the large number of people with floor/couch space in this area vs. Pittsburgh, which when combined with the respective ratios of people who actually need to travel out of town means that the field is spending far less money on accommodations in DC than in Pittsburgh.

Holding this tournament at Virginia Tech is, as Dan notes, a pretty bad idea.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Mon Jun 04, 2012 4:49 pm
by Cheynem
The last couple years, I think good results have been had having a Mid-Atlantic and a Midwest site, so that would be my first preference. I'd obviously go to a tournament in Pitt but it seems like that would require everyone to travel, which I'm not 100% sure is ideal coming so soon after CO.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Mon Jun 04, 2012 8:21 pm
by No Rules Westbrook
I'd probably travel to any site mentioned. My preference is for whichever site results in the best field. My support for Pittsburgh is that it's theoretically accessible by almost all of the good players around.

Re: Taking VCU Open's Spot in August

Posted: Mon Jun 04, 2012 9:58 pm
by the third garrideb
Waterloo is interested in hosting a Canadian mirror of this.