2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Dormant threads from the high school sections are preserved here.
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

International Quiz Bowl Tournaments (IQBT) is pleased to announce the 2019 National All-Star Academic Tournament (NASAT). This will be the tenth NASAT.

NASAT will be hosted on Saturday, June 22 and Sunday, June 23 at the University of Kentucky. The tournament will convene at 8:00 AM on Saturday, June 22 and run until about 6 PM, then conclude from 8:30 AM to about 3:00 PM on Sunday. The tournament will be held in the Don & Cathy Jacobs Science Building.

This tournament will once again be open to all-star teams representing all states, the District of Columbia, all US territories, and all Canadian provinces and equivalents (as well as state or province-equivalent divisions of any other countries). Each state or equivalent may enter multiple teams, with up to six players on its roster, up to four of whom may be playing at any one time. Any player who was enrolled in the 12th grade or below in a school physically located in that state during the 2018-2019 academic year is eligible to play on his or her state's team. Generally speaking, home school students are also eligible; any questions about eligibility will be answered by IQBT as needed. This tournament is intended for states seeking an all-star event. We encourage single-school teams looking for national championships to investigate two such championships run by groups that are unaffiliated with IQBT: the National Scholastics Championship run by the Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence and the High School National Championship Tournament run by National Academic Quiz Tournaments.

Teams travelling by air are advised that the closest airport is Lexington's Blue Grass Airport. Airports in Louisville (Louisville International Airport) and Cincinnati (Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport) are within an hour and a half drive from Lexington and may offer better rates.

We will continue to keep cost under control; in line with that, the tournament will not be held at a resort, but rather on a college campus, much like many other high school quizbowl events held throughout the year. Furthermore, we will use a normal format comparable to regular-season events: games will consist of twenty tossups, with a thirty-point bonus being played after each correct tossup answer. Teams will play head-to-head, two at a time. "Performance-based," multimedia, calculation, and pop culture questions will not be used. Teams will play twelve to sixteen games, in line with other national championship events, over the two days of the tournament. Because this event will be played by highly skilled all-star teams, the question difficulty will be higher than that used at existing national championships such as the NSC and HSNCT. The style and subject distribution of the questions will be quite similar to existing “modified ACF” sets, such as the sets HSAPQ wrote in its past.

Jakob Myers will be the NASAT set’s head editor.

The entry fee is $650 per team with a $20 discount for bringing up to one buzzer system per team and a further $20 discount if we receive your payment by May 31, 2019 at our mailing address, which is available by request via email at [email protected]. Each state is welcome and encouraged to register additional (B and on) teams for NASAT. Each additional team will cost $500 per team, minus any discounts the state wishes to claim (mainly the buzzer discount). It is vastly preferred if you pay ahead of time if at all possible.

All teams must submit an application to IQBT for entry into the tournament. In the vast majority of these cases, applications will be accepted outright. However, if more than one contingent from a state seeks to enter this tournament, IQBT will evaluate applications from each potential team and determine who may represent their state at the National All-Star Academic Tournament. The only criterion that will be used in this decision is our assessment, based on a review of the players' achievements in the 2017-18 competition year, of which team is likely to perform the best at the tournament. Therefore, GPA, test scores, and non-academic extracurricular activities should not be included on any application; other academic extracurricular activities (e.g. Science Bowl) should only be included if there were limited opportunities for teams in the state to compete at quizbowl. IQBT plans to continue consulting with a regional network of advisors who will consult with IQBT on these decisions.

IQBT will once again use a rolling application procedure: teams who submit applications to IQBT on or before March 26 will be notified of IQBT's decision no later than March 31. We may also approve an application submitted from this point onward as soon as "immediately" if we find it unlikely that a stronger team from the state could be assembled. Teams who submit applications to IQBT between March 26 and June 1, inclusive, will be notified no later than one week after the application is received. In other words, March 26 is not a hard deadline, and you may still enter the tournament afterwards, though you are encouraged to start forming and fundraising as soon as possible so that a logistical problem does not cause an interested team to miss the tournament. Once a team from a state or state-equivalent has been approved by IQBT, IQBT will no longer accept alternate applications from that state, but will accept roster changes made by the official team contact (in most cases, the individual that submitted the application). Team applications and recruitment will be handled by Fred Morlan; you can email me at [email protected].

The tournament will be directed by Fred Morlan.

I’m very excited for this tournament and am looking forward to another wonderful competition.
Last edited by AKKOLADE on Sat Jun 15, 2019 2:48 pm, edited 4 times in total.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
Carlos Be
Wakka
Posts: 216
Joined: Sun Jun 25, 2017 11:34 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Carlos Be »

AKKOLADE wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 5:04 pm We will continue to keep cost under control
AKKOLADE wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 5:04 pm Teams travelling by air are advised that the closest airport is Lexington's Blue Grass Airport.
AKKOLADE wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 5:04 pm The entry fee is $650 per team
2018 NASAT wrote: The entry fee is $600 per team
2017 NASAT wrote: The entry fee is $560 per team
:thinking:
Justine French
she/her
User avatar
CPiGuy
Auron
Posts: 1070
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2016 8:19 pm
Location: Ames, Iowa

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by CPiGuy »

While Justin's post is obviously somewhat tongue-in-cheek, he makes a good point. When it was unknown where this tournament would be held, pretty much literally everyone who expressed any opinion on it said their preferred site would be "not Lexington". Lexington's considerable distance from a non-regional airport (yes, Blue Water Airport exists, but is plagued by limited connections and extremely inconvenient flight times), paired with a lack of reasonable public transit options, makes it a uniquely bad place to hold a national tournament. In the face of this overwhelmingly anti-Lexington feedback, IQBT's decision to host NASAT in Lexington, a decision which will present considerable personal inconvenience and financial expense to a lot of high schoolers, seems ill-conceived. I would be particularly interested to learn the details of the rejected bids, and why IQBT considered them to be inferior to hosting the tournament in Lexington. If IQBT is going to continue apparently prioritizing the convenience and desires of its two co-owners over that of the entire national quizbowl community, it is reasonable to question whether IQBT, as an organization, is in a good position to run a national tournament.
Conor Thompson (he/it)
Bangor High School '16
University of Michigan '20
Iowa State University '25
Tournament Format Database
User avatar
vinteuil
Auron
Posts: 1454
Joined: Sun Oct 23, 2011 12:31 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by vinteuil »

Is Justin's post really tongue-in-cheek? Considering that there's relatively little chance of getting any kind of school funding, fees rising by approximately $50 per year sounds precisely like costs running out of control, exactly the opposite of what's been advertised. Not to mention the additional financial/logistical burden of getting to Lexington.

(This is exactly what Justin posted, but I just want to make sure everybody's on the same page that this is in fact, Serious.)
Jacob R., ex-Chicago
User avatar
Auroni
Auron
Posts: 3145
Joined: Thu Nov 15, 2007 6:23 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Auroni »

Not long ago, I was speaking with several other people active in what I'll call the "national tournament staffing circuit," and we agreed that we're not philosophically opposed to staffing the tournament, provided that it was situated somewhere that would minimize the expense that we would incur for travel. Several of us, including myself, have even staffed NASAT before (I have even driven to Lexington) and enjoy the experience of reading to good high school teams playing challenging questions. Ultimately, we decided that none of our concerns mattered nearly as much as those of the high schoolers attending the tournament.

Therefore, it is appalling to see that IQBT has decided to retain the tournament of Lexington despite receiving bids from more centralized sites, as this dismisses the very public concerns that have been raised by former tournament attendees. I hope that IQBT will reconsider their choice of site.
Auroni Gupta (she/her)
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

Some information of the bidding process:

IQBT is a small company that has existed for less than a year and has run one event. It's being run entirely out of the pockets of myself & Nicole. We are in a situation where we need to be financially conservative, especially early on at this point in the process of hosting NASAT. The following issues were important points for us to consider, to a greater extent than comparable organizations like PACE or NAQT:

1) Cost of rooms and fees at the tournament site
2) Number of capable local staffers that are available

This is in addition to other concerns that are always important to consider, such as the accessibility of the site and travel costs for teams

In addition to the University of Kentucky, I received two bids for hosting NASAT. One bid was rejected because of a variety of reasons, including issues with scheduling rooms.

The other bid was from Champaign, Illinois. It was a good bid, but it included less local staff and equivalent travel costs for teams. I also spoke with a few people from Illinois, who told me it would be easier to travel to Lexington than Champaign.

The rooms at the University of Kentucky are free. I was able to work with custodial services last year and keep costs very low. There is a good number of talented, local staffers available to help with the tournament.

I did some research on Priceline last week regarding flight costs. I've attached a screen capture of the spreadsheet I made to compare the costs of flying to Lexington compared with Champaign.

On the subject of the the increase in the entry fee: it is to help pay for an increase in writing and editing fees. This will allow for a 150%-300% increase in editing fees and a 30%-33% increase in writing fees.

I hope this helps clarify the selection of Lexington as the site for the 2019 NASAT.
Attachments
flight costs.PNG
(8.3 KiB) Not downloaded yet
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
vinteuil
Auron
Posts: 1454
Joined: Sun Oct 23, 2011 12:31 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by vinteuil »

AKKOLADE wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:08 pm The other bid was from Champaign, Illinois. It was a good bid, but it included less local staff and equivalent travel costs for teams. I also spoke with a few people from Illinois, who told me it would be easier to travel to Lexington than Champaign.
I literally cannot believe these sentences. My only assumption can be that you did not make any effort whatsoever to talk to an even remotely representative sample of Illinois players, and that you decided to entirely discount e.g. the large pool of Chicago-based staffers, who would be much more likely to travel 2 hours to Champaign than 6 to Lexington.
Jacob R., ex-Chicago
User avatar
estrom
Lulu
Posts: 11
Joined: Sun Apr 16, 2017 7:22 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by estrom »

I’m not sure who from Illinois considers Lexington easier to travel to than Champaign, but I do know that Team Illinois from last year’s competition met in Champaign in order to begin the 6 hour trip down to Lexington. For the furthest members of the team, that was a 3 hour drive to Champaign, all of whom were driving down from Northern IL. There is no possible way that Lexington would be a more convenient location than Champaign or St. Louis for these team members.
Ethan Strombeck
Auburn High School '19
Stanford University '24
User avatar
CPiGuy
Auron
Posts: 1070
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2016 8:19 pm
Location: Ames, Iowa

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by CPiGuy »

vinteuil wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:12 pm
AKKOLADE wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:08 pm The other bid was from Champaign, Illinois. It was a good bid, but it included less local staff and equivalent travel costs for teams. I also spoke with a few people from Illinois, who told me it would be easier to travel to Lexington than Champaign.
I literally cannot believe these sentences. My only assumption can be that you did not make any effort whatsoever to talk to an even remotely representative sample of Illinois players, and that you decided to entirely discount e.g. the large pool of Chicago-based staffers, who would be much more likely to travel 2 hours to Champaign than 6 to Lexington.
I read this sentence as "people from Illinois told Fred it would be easier [for those from the West Coast or the Northeast, for example] to travel to Lexington than Champaign", which seems extremely plausible seeing as Champaign's airport had flights to literally one destination last I checked. I sincerely doubt that Illinois people find it difficult for them to travel to Champaign, and either way staffers are not really the issue -- we have already established that Lexington has a qualified staffer pool; the problem is the inconvenience it presents to attendees.
Conor Thompson (he/it)
Bangor High School '16
University of Michigan '20
Iowa State University '25
Tournament Format Database
User avatar
vinteuil
Auron
Posts: 1454
Joined: Sun Oct 23, 2011 12:31 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by vinteuil »

CPiGuy wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:18 pm
vinteuil wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:12 pm
AKKOLADE wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:08 pm The other bid was from Champaign, Illinois. It was a good bid, but it included less local staff and equivalent travel costs for teams. I also spoke with a few people from Illinois, who told me it would be easier to travel to Lexington than Champaign.
I literally cannot believe these sentences. My only assumption can be that you did not make any effort whatsoever to talk to an even remotely representative sample of Illinois players, and that you decided to entirely discount e.g. the large pool of Chicago-based staffers, who would be much more likely to travel 2 hours to Champaign than 6 to Lexington.
I read this sentence as "people from Illinois told Fred it would be easier [for those from the West Coast or the Northeast, for example] to travel to Lexington than Champaign", which seems extremely plausible seeing as Champaign's airport had flights to literally one destination last I checked. I sincerely doubt that Illinois people find it difficult for them to travel to Champaign, and either way staffers are not really the issue -- we have already established that Lexington has a qualified staffer pool; the problem is the inconvenience it presents to attendees.
Thanks for the clarification, that makes sense. (I still don't think that we've actually "established that Lexington has a qualified staffer pool," merely that some number of people are willing to staff.)
Jacob R., ex-Chicago
User avatar
heterodyne
Rikku
Posts: 427
Joined: Tue Jun 26, 2012 9:47 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by heterodyne »

The other bid was from Champaign, Illinois. It was a good bid, but it included less local staff and equivalent travel costs for teams. I also spoke with a few people from Illinois, who told me it would be easier to travel to Lexington than Champaign.
Jacob has already commented on the insanity of claiming Lexington is more accessible to local staff. What are your local staff numbers in Lexington? Do they compare to the quality and quantity of the large Chicago-based staffer pool, let alone the pool from the rest of the state?

The travel costs you have quoted are misleading. Champaign is accessible from Chicago via both train and bus, and flying into ORD is both easy and relatively cheap.

I'd also like to push back on Conor's assumption that Lexington has a sufficiently qualified staffer pool. Our only evidence for this consists of Fred's highly non-specific assurances. As I heard some complaints about the staffers last year, including about Fred's staffing in particular, I'm not inclined to assess his mysterious Lexington staffing pool as being on par with the staffer pool one could assemble at UIUC, which I know to contain some of the best moderators in the country.
Alston [Montgomery] Boyd
Bloomington High School '15
UChicago '19
UChicago Divinity '21
they
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

CPiGuy wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:18 pm
vinteuil wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:12 pm
AKKOLADE wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:08 pm The other bid was from Champaign, Illinois. It was a good bid, but it included less local staff and equivalent travel costs for teams. I also spoke with a few people from Illinois, who told me it would be easier to travel to Lexington than Champaign.
I literally cannot believe these sentences. My only assumption can be that you did not make any effort whatsoever to talk to an even remotely representative sample of Illinois players, and that you decided to entirely discount e.g. the large pool of Chicago-based staffers, who would be much more likely to travel 2 hours to Champaign than 6 to Lexington.
I read this sentence as "people from Illinois told Fred it would be easier [for those from the West Coast or the Northeast, for example] to travel to Lexington than Champaign", which seems extremely plausible seeing as Champaign's airport had flights to literally one destination last I checked.
This is the meaning I intended in my post.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
Tippy Martinez
Wakka
Posts: 221
Joined: Tue Mar 21, 2017 12:48 pm
Location: college park

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Tippy Martinez »

As someone who will almost certainly be attending NASAT as a player, I can’t say I’m pleased with the decision of IQBT to choose Lexington over Champaign.

First off, it’s just veritably false that UIUC would have a smaller local staffing pool than Lexington. The population of quizbowlers around Champaign during the summer is so much higher than Lexington that I just don’t understand how the conclusion that UIUC would have less local staff could be made.

Second, I can’t say I was very impressed with the moderation staff of last years NASAT. Other than a few very seasoned readers (Ophir, Matt Weiner, Jason Thompson), the tournament lacked people who were providing the efficiency and clarity needed of a staffer of a national championship. I understand that last years NASAT was more rushed than usual, and that NASAT being the last national of the year means it’s harder to garner staff, but I don’t think either of those facts is an excuse for subpar moderation. Champaign on the other and, is only about two hours from a city containing some of the best moderators in the country.

Lexington is very much a less than ideal place to hold a national tournament with the historical reputation of NASAT. While I commend IQBT for keeping NASAT alive, I hope they can realize that they have a duty to the wider quizbowl community to try and do the right thing here. In almost every way other than the fact that IQBT is based in Kentucky, Champaign is a better location to host NASAT and I hope IQBT will reconsider the bid placed by UIUC.
connor mayers
maryland
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

connor.mayers wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:43 pm First off, it’s just veritably false that UIUC would have a smaller local staffing pool than Lexington. The population of quizbowlers around Champaign during the summer is so much higher than Lexington that I just don’t understand how the conclusion that UIUC would have less local staff could be made.
This was based off information submitted in the bid.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
heterodyne
Rikku
Posts: 427
Joined: Tue Jun 26, 2012 9:47 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by heterodyne »

AKKOLADE wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:50 pm
connor.mayers wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:43 pm First off, it’s just veritably false that UIUC would have a smaller local staffing pool than Lexington. The population of quizbowlers around Champaign during the summer is so much higher than Lexington that I just don’t understand how the conclusion that UIUC would have less local staff could be made.
This was based off information submitted in the bid.
In the face of the incredulity this claim inspires in everyone even mildly familiar with the two circuits, would you mind being more specific as to how the numbers compared and specifically what information was asked for in the bid?
Alston [Montgomery] Boyd
Bloomington High School '15
UChicago '19
UChicago Divinity '21
they
User avatar
Father of the Ragdoll
Rikku
Posts: 270
Joined: Mon Apr 03, 2017 11:11 pm
Location: Austin, Texas

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Father of the Ragdoll »

I will say that I almost certainly was too conservative in my estimation for how many Chicago area people would come down to staff as I did not want to promise staffers that I could not actually produce. I believe I said roughly 16 could be counted on with high certainty based on number of uiuc people likely to be in town over summer and number of people I got for Acf fall from Chicago/Madison.
Brad Maclaine, McLain
(they/them)
The University of Texas at Austin - Ph.D. Human Development and Family Sciences, 202X; M.S. Social Work, 2021
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - B.S. Psychology, 2019
Rockford Auburn High School - 2015
Rococo A Go Go
Auron
Posts: 2248
Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2009 1:08 am
Location: Kentucky

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Rococo A Go Go »

connor.mayers wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:43 pm Second, I can’t say I was very impressed with the moderation staff of last years NASAT. Other than a few very seasoned readers (Ophir, Matt Weiner, Jason Thompson), the tournament lacked people who were providing the efficiency and clarity needed of a staffer of a national championship. I understand that last years NASAT was more rushed than usual, and that NASAT being the last national of the year means it’s harder to garner staff, but I don’t think either of those facts is an excuse for subpar moderation. Champaign on the other and, is only about two hours from a city containing some of the best moderators in the country.
As one of the horrible staffers excluded from your list, I don't think this is very fair or true.

I don't think either Champaign or Lexington is a good city to host a national tournament in because the primary consideration is accessibility, but objectively Champaign is FAR WORSE on that metric. Lexington is sort of remote but it's a city of 300,000 people and within an hour of the Cincinnati airport. Champaign is...not those things.

I pushed for people in Louisville to submit a bid, because we would presumably have the same staffing pool and a city that's much easier to get to. This bid did not materialize and I'm frustrated about that.
Nicholas C
KQBA member
User avatar
sephirothrr
Quizbowl Detective Extraordinaire
Posts: 210
Joined: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:00 pm
Location: Louisville, KY

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by sephirothrr »

RIP, I'm a bad moderator now
Ramapriya
Kentucky Quizbowl Alliance
University of Louisville
duPont Manual High School
Birdofredum Sawin wrote: Fri Apr 04, 2014 1:52 pmIf you don't want to be regarded as a "raving lunatic," it might be advisable to rave less, or at least to do so in a less loony manner.
A Dim-Witted Saboteur
Yuna
Posts: 973
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2016 12:31 pm
Location: Indiana

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by A Dim-Witted Saboteur »

What if,,, Connor was just listing examples rather than giving an exhaustive list of good staffers and taking this personally is kinda silly

Note: this is not a judgment on the validity of Connor's arguments
Jakob M. (they/them)
Michigan State '21, Indiana '2?
"No one has ever organized a greater effort to get people interested in pretending to play quiz bowl"
-Ankit Aggarwal
User avatar
Cody
2008-09 Male Athlete of the Year
Posts: 2891
Joined: Sun Nov 15, 2009 12:57 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Cody »

Then it should've been phrased differently to avoid indicating an exhaustive list.

The responses seem, to me, to refute the core of Conner's argument rather than be taking personal offense.
Cody Voight, VCU ’14.
User avatar
Tippy Martinez
Wakka
Posts: 221
Joined: Tue Mar 21, 2017 12:48 pm
Location: college park

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Tippy Martinez »

Cody wrote: Sat Dec 15, 2018 4:12 pm Then it should've been phrased differently to avoid indicating an exhaustive list.
I would like to apologize for the wording of my original post. I was not intending to make an exhaustive list of the “good” staffers at NASAT, but rather just listed moderators who I was able to recognize and did a good job. I can’t comment on the abilities of every single staffer at last year’s NASAT being that I’m sure I didn’t have all of them. My post was to highlight the fact that other than a select few, I was not impressed with the quality of the NASAT staff overall. I hope everyone can understand that I in no way directed my comment at anyone in specific and has no malignant intent in my original post.
connor mayers
maryland
User avatar
jonpin
Auron
Posts: 2266
Joined: Wed Feb 04, 2004 6:45 pm
Location: BCA NJ / WUSTL MO / Hackensack NJ

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by jonpin »

I also think there may be a bit of a gap between "the quality of moderator I expect at a national championship my team is paying $100+ a person for" and "this person should never be allowed to read quiz bowl questions again".
Jon Pinyan
Coach, Bergen County Academies (NJ); former player for BCA (2000-03) and WUSTL (2003-07)
HSQB forum mod, PACE member
Stat director for: NSC '13-'15, '17; ACF '14, '17, '19; NHBB '13-'15; NASAT '11

"A [...] wizard who controls the weather" - Jerry Vinokurov
User avatar
Stained Diviner
Auron
Posts: 5085
Joined: Sun Jun 13, 2004 6:08 am
Location: Chicagoland
Contact:

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Stained Diviner »

I know that we on the board like to argue about a lot of things, but the inaccessibility of Champaign should be something we can all agree on.
David Reinstein
Head Writer and Editor for Scobol Solo, Masonics, and IESA; TD for Scobol Solo and Reinstein Varsity; IHSSBCA Board Member; IHSSBCA Chair (2004-2014); PACE President (2016-2018)
User avatar
i never see pigeons in wheeling
Rikku
Posts: 440
Joined: Mon May 31, 2010 3:57 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by i never see pigeons in wheeling »

Deviant Insider wrote: Sun Dec 16, 2018 8:26 am I know that we on the board like to argue about a lot of things, but the inaccessibility of Champaign should be something we can all agree on.
This might be true, but the fact that there's public transportation to there (the bus and train Alston mentioned) and the fact that the connection is through O'Hare makes the relative inaccessibility not too bad, at least in comparison to Lexington.
Ankit
Cal '16
Bellarmine College Preparatory '12
A Dim-Witted Saboteur
Yuna
Posts: 973
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2016 12:31 pm
Location: Indiana

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by A Dim-Witted Saboteur »

Hi everyone! To shift the discussion to the set itself, I'm very honored to be editing this year's iteration of NASAT. I am aware that last year's set had issues (many of which were the result of a rushed production schedule and no fault of the editors), so I've tried to approach this job with a concrete plan on how to avoid them. That plan will include adhering to stricter production schedules, hewing closer to a difficulty philosophy that takes into account the primarily high school audience of this set , and ensuring closer editorial supervision than was practicable last year. The target difficulty of this set could be described as "ACF Regionals but with more fall-level answerlines". I am well aware of my limitations as a first-time editor of a national tournament, so while this set likely won't attempt anything wildly experimental distribution- or content-wise, it should present interesting questions for its audience. This tournament's editing staff will include James Lasker, Clark Smith, Jon Suh, Justin French, Conor Thompson, Eric Mukherjee, Jon Suh, and Brad McLain.
Last edited by A Dim-Witted Saboteur on Mon Dec 31, 2018 10:43 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Jakob M. (they/them)
Michigan State '21, Indiana '2?
"No one has ever organized a greater effort to get people interested in pretending to play quiz bowl"
-Ankit Aggarwal
User avatar
db0wman
Wakka
Posts: 142
Joined: Fri Jul 21, 2017 3:37 pm
Location: Champaign, IL

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by db0wman »

In case this changes anything: Willard Airport in Champaign has added a connection to Charlotte, North Carolina.

http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/ ... te-nc.html
Dylan Bowman
Uni '20; Illinois '23
User avatar
Cheynem
Sin
Posts: 7219
Joined: Tue May 11, 2004 11:19 am
Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Cheynem »

I kind of want to push back on the idea that a 50 dollar increase to 650 dollars is out of line. HSNCT charges $675 per team. NSC charges $695 per team. I realize that NASAT teams are more likely to be paying out of pocket, but that's not a given and that doesn't change the bottom line costs.
Mike Cheyne
Formerly U of Minnesota

"You killed HSAPQ"--Matt Bollinger
User avatar
vinteuil
Auron
Posts: 1454
Joined: Sun Oct 23, 2011 12:31 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by vinteuil »

Cheynem wrote: Sun Dec 23, 2018 12:21 pm I kind of want to push back on the idea that a 50 dollar increase to 650 dollars is out of line. HSNCT charges $675 per team. NSC charges $695 per team. I realize that NASAT teams are more likely to be paying out of pocket, but that's not a given and that doesn't change the bottom line costs.
Historically, NASAT has been run on college campuses (not hotels) to reduce costs for both teams (which get no school funding) and the organization. We’ve in fact gotten confirmation that (again in contrast with the Hyatt used by HSNCT) “IQBT” has elected to use this location precisely because it does not pay anything for rooms.
Jacob R., ex-Chicago
User avatar
Cheynem
Sin
Posts: 7219
Joined: Tue May 11, 2004 11:19 am
Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Cheynem »

On the other hand, IQBT (and to a lesser extent, HSAPQ before that) has a lot less cash on hand than NAQT. You're still paying for things like some staffer travel, lodging, trophies, food, and above all, paying a good wage to attract top talent to work on a tournament that as some have pointed out, is historically produced at a difficult, crunch-filled time for quizbowl tournaments.
Mike Cheyne
Formerly U of Minnesota

"You killed HSAPQ"--Matt Bollinger
User avatar
Dominator
Tidus
Posts: 636
Joined: Sun Mar 14, 2010 9:16 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Dominator »

Cheynem wrote: Sun Dec 23, 2018 12:21 pm I kind of want to push back on the idea that a 50 dollar increase to 650 dollars is out of line. HSNCT charges $675 per team. NSC charges $695 per team. I realize that NASAT teams are more likely to be paying out of pocket, but that's not a given and that doesn't change the bottom line costs.
To add to this point, comparing the 2019 price to the price in 2017 seems unfair if not dishonest somehow. In 2017, this event was run by a company that went out of business. One could wonder if underpricing its products had something to do with all that.

I'm not saying that $650 is the "right price", but I do think that "how does this compare to 2 years ago" is the wrong question. Mike's comparisons to HSNCT and NSC seem like better starting points.
Dr. Noah Prince

Normal Community High School (2002)
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2004, 2007, 2008)

Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy - Scholastic Bowl coach (2009-2014), assistant coach (2014-2015), well wisher (2015-2016)
guy in San Diego (2016-present)
President of Qblitz (2018-present)

Image
User avatar
Cheynem
Sin
Posts: 7219
Joined: Tue May 11, 2004 11:19 am
Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Cheynem »

To be clear, as the final head of HSAPQ, I don't think the pricing was the reason HSAPQ went out of business, but (and you'll have to ask more of the finance people about this), the tournament was rarely much of a moneymaker.
Mike Cheyne
Formerly U of Minnesota

"You killed HSAPQ"--Matt Bollinger
User avatar
Whiter Hydra
Auron
Posts: 1418
Joined: Tue Dec 04, 2007 8:46 pm
Location: Fairfax, VA
Contact:

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Whiter Hydra »

There are people who know a lot more about this than me, but there is going to be some amount of fixed cost associated with running a national tournament, such as TDs, statsperson(s), printing, and various other logistics which tends to stay relatively constant despite the number of teams attending. For a smaller tournament such as NASAT, that's going to be a fairly sizable chunk of the total costs, especially when its parent company presumably doesn't have the capital necessary to absorb a loss if attendance is lower than projected. This is what I assume is why NASAT a few years ago needed confirmation that at least a dozen teams would commit to it for it to be financially worthwhile to host.

Again, this is just my theory, so if someone with more knowledge about the situation were to correct me, I would defer to them.
Harry White
TJHSST '09, Virginia Tech '13

Owner of Tournament Database Search and Quizbowl Schedule Generator
Will run stats for food
User avatar
Cheynem
Sin
Posts: 7219
Joined: Tue May 11, 2004 11:19 am
Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Cheynem »

You are correct, sir!
Mike Cheyne
Formerly U of Minnesota

"You killed HSAPQ"--Matt Bollinger
A Dim-Witted Saboteur
Yuna
Posts: 973
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2016 12:31 pm
Location: Indiana

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by A Dim-Witted Saboteur »

Oops; I was under the impression that a call to writers had already been posted in this thread. If you're interested in writing, email me at [email protected] or Fred at [email protected].
Last edited by A Dim-Witted Saboteur on Thu Feb 21, 2019 10:56 am, edited 2 times in total.
Jakob M. (they/them)
Michigan State '21, Indiana '2?
"No one has ever organized a greater effort to get people interested in pretending to play quiz bowl"
-Ankit Aggarwal
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

I'll be tracking the field in this post. Last updated: 6/14

The following teams have registered (current field: 23 teams):

California
Connecticut
Illinois A
Illinois B
Iowa
Kentucky
Maryland Black
Maryland Gold
Maryland Red
Maryland White
Michigan
Missouri A
Missouri B
Missouri C
New Jersey
Ohio A
Ohio B
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania Blue
Pennsylvania Gold
Texas
Virginia A
Virginia B

Waitlist:
(empty)
Last edited by AKKOLADE on Sat Jun 15, 2019 8:46 pm, edited 28 times in total.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
eseifte1
Wakka
Posts: 170
Joined: Sat Sep 10, 2011 3:18 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by eseifte1 »

The Maryland contingent will field 4 teams this year. Our roster will include the following players:
Anson Berns (Montgomery Blair)
Blaise Brosnan (Walter Johnson)
Olivia Chen (Richard Montgomery)
Derek Chu (Richard Montgomery)
Abhinav Karthikeyan (Richard Montgomery)
Katherine Lei (Montgomery Blair)
Thomas Luo (Centennial)
Arnav Patra (Wootton)
Justin Posner (Richard Montgomery)
Ian Rackow (Montgomery Blair)
Matthew Shu (Montgomery Blair)
Manu Sundaresan (Winston Churchill)
Christopher Tong (Montgomery Blair)
Sophia Weng (Montgomery Blair)
Daniel Yang (Richard Montgomery)
Shawn Zhao (Montgomery Blair)
Our teams will be designated by the colors of the Maryland Flag: Black, White, Gold, Red
Eric and Sara Seifter
John Heslin
Coaches NASAT Maryland
Eric Seifter Coach, Centennial High School It's Academic
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

In addition to the above, Missouri will be registering three teams. I'm looking forward to being able to announce more teams in the coming weeks!
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

Two teams from Ohio have registered. Please go ahead and get your registrations in as soon as you can!
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
CometsCoach
Lulu
Posts: 65
Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2013 11:37 pm
Location: Clive, IA

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by CometsCoach »

We don't care where the tournament is, nor do we care who is moderating. What we care about is that Team Iowa is showing up for this little party in June.

The Hawkeye State will be represented by the following personnel:

Alec Albrecht, Urbandale
Ne Dassanayake, Ames
Max Halbach, Ankeny Centennial
Justin Kenny, Ames
Kieran McCormick , Ankeny
Jonathan Zuercher, Sergeant Bluff-Luton

Co-Coaches: Nathan Coombes (Ankeny) and yours truly (Waukee).

We would like to thank Buena Vista University (Storm Lake, IA) for sponsoring our team this year.

I am honored to be returning to NASAT for the first time in five years. It's been a dream of mine to make this a reality ever since I came to Iowa five years ago, and here we are. Safe travels to all of you and we'll see you in June.
Jay Winter
Iowa Quiz Bowl League Founder & CEO
VP for Outreach, PACE
Mathematics Teacher & Quiz Bowl Head Coach, Waukee Northwest High School (IA)
Co-Owner of Quiz Bowl Systems/Slammer Systems
bmccauley
Wakka
Posts: 115
Joined: Fri Dec 13, 2013 3:11 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by bmccauley »

Pennsylvania will have multiple teams in attendance.
Bernard McCauley
Coach, Great Valley High School (PA)
User avatar
The Favourite
Wakka
Posts: 118
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2014 8:01 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by The Favourite »

Oklahoma is almost definitely sending a team this year. Just awaiting definite confirmation from Caleb to be able to travel.

The roster will be:

Casey Stafford- Bridge Creek (12)
Yannick Davidson- Norman North (12)
Zac Bennett- Norman North (12)
Will Penney- Coalgate (9)
Tracey Hickman
Rock Creek 12
Redlands 14
Central Oklahoma 16
Coach, Murray State College (OK)
Former Coach, Coalgate Schools (OK)
Curriculum Director, Oklahoma Quizbowl Camps
User avatar
etchdulac
Rikku
Posts: 350
Joined: Thu May 29, 2003 6:02 am
Location: Texas, for better or worse

2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by etchdulac »

Texas will send a single team to Lexington.

William Golden (Katy Taylor)
Raúl Passement (San Antonio Reagan)
Sean Doyle (Houston Strake Jesuit)
Evan Hochstein (LASA)
Stephen Fontenot
Texas Quiz Bowl Alliance Deputy Director
Communications, UT Dallas
Strake Jesuit '96 -+-+- Southwestern '00
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

The field is up to 13. I have some people who have spoken with me about registering but haven't heard from them in a little bit. If you're ready to register, please email me.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

I'm pleased to announce that I've acquired group tickets for the Lexington Legends game the night of June 22. The Legends will be hosting the Greenville Drive. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m. There will be post-game fireworks as well.

These are available at cost at $9 per ticket. They're at the field level as seen in red on pages 10 & 11 of this tickets guide. Note that that's a PDF file.

Note that the priority of the tournament is to finish on time, not to get you to the Legends game on time. If I have to choose between the two, the choice is getting in the necessary number of games. That said, last year we finished gameplay on Saturday near 6 p.m.

If you are interested in purchasing tickets, please contact me at [email protected] with the number of tickets you are interested in buying.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

I was asked to post an updated version of the distribution. It's essentially the same it's been since 2017.

Overall distribution (20/20):

Literature: 4/4
History: 4/4
Science: 4/4
Arts: 3/3
RMP: 3/3
Current Events & Geography: 1/1
Social Science 1/1


Subdistributions

Literature:
American: 33%
British other than Shakespeare: 29%
Shakespeare: 3%
European: 25%
World: 10%

History:
American (pre-1865): 13%
American (1865-1945): 13%
American (1945-present): 13%
European to 1400: 13%
European 1400-1914: 13%
European 1914-present: 13%
World: 21%

Science:
Biology: 23%
Physics: 23%
Chemistry: 23%
Math: 20%
Earth Science: 3%
Astronomy: 3%
Computer Science: 3%
Science History: 3%

Arts:
Painting: 34%
Music: 34%
Film: 8%
Opera: 9%
Architecture: 3%
Jazz: 3%
Ballet/Dance: 3%
Sculpture: 3%
Photography: 2%
Misc Arts: 2%

RMP:
Greek/Roman Myth: 17%
Other Myth: 17%
Bible/Christianity: 17%
Other Religion: 17%
Philosophy/Thought: 33%

Geography:
US: 27%
Europe: 18%
World: 55%

Social Science:
Psychology: 25%
Economics: 25%
Anthropology: 12.5%
Sociology: 12.5%
Social Criticism: 12.5%
Linguistics & Languages: 12.5%

Current Events:
US: 50%
Foreign: 50%
Last edited by AKKOLADE on Tue Jun 18, 2019 8:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
A Dim-Witted Saboteur
Yuna
Posts: 973
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2016 12:31 pm
Location: Indiana

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by A Dim-Witted Saboteur »

Hi Folks!

The tournament date is about one month out, so an update on set production is probably due. The NASAT set is currently at 81% completion, with literature, art, and a few minor categories completely finished. A list of writers who've contributed one question or more, in order of total contribution, is as follows:
Clark Smith, Justin French, Jakob Myers, Joseph Krol, Mike Bentley, Shan Kothari, Tim Morrison, Marko Jankov, Tora Husar, Vishwa Shanmugam, Nour Hijazi, Daoud Jackson, Tejas Santanam, Rahul Rao-Pothuraju, Bradley McLain, Mike Etzkorn, Sam Rombro, Mitch McCullar, John Marvin, Julia Tong, Jonathan Suh, Penelope Ashe, Jaskaran Singh, Matt Mitchell, Rahul Keyal, Jaden Lucas, Charles Dees, Ewan MacAulay, Sharath Narayan, Iain Carpenter.

I plan to begin playtesting online soon, but given that I'm in Jordan studying abroad scheduling may be difficult for that. DM or email me if interested.
Jakob M. (they/them)
Michigan State '21, Indiana '2?
"No one has ever organized a greater effort to get people interested in pretending to play quiz bowl"
-Ankit Aggarwal
Scottietodd
Wakka
Posts: 122
Joined: Sun Nov 13, 2011 1:55 pm

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Scottietodd »

Kentucky will be fielding two teams this year. Rosters include the following:

DJ Banks (12) - Henderson County
Shashank Bhatt (12) - Paul Laurence Dunbar
Andrew Kelley (11) - Middlesboro
Harrison Jenkins (12) - Henderson County
Keaton Martin (10) - Woodford County
Angus Maske (12) - Paul Laurence Dunbar
Jake Powell (12) - Dupont Manual
Mason Reid (12) - Glasgow
Trevor Wells (10) - Woodford County

Coaches:
Bryan Enders - Russell Independent
Todd Garrison - Glasgow
April York - Woodford County
Todd Garrison
Glasgow High School
Coach - 2012 to present
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

It looks like we're going to end up with 26-30 teams this year. Registration is still open.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
User avatar
Robbie Ram
Wakka
Posts: 144
Joined: Sun May 07, 2006 5:16 pm
Location: Fairfax, VA

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by Robbie Ram »

Fred, your NASAT announcement above states “Any player who was enrolled in the 12th grade or below in a school physically located in that state during the 2017-2018 academic year is eligible to play on his or her state's team.” Did you mean 2018-19, or are students who were seniors in 2018-19 ineligible? Thanks.
Michael P. Campana
Coach/sponsor, Quiz Bowl Club
Mark Twain Middle School
Alexandria, VA
User avatar
AKKOLADE
Sin
Posts: 15773
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2003 8:08 am

Re: 2019 IQBT NASAT - 6/22 and 6/23, Lexington, KY

Post by AKKOLADE »

It was just an oversight from updating last year’s announcement. I’ve updated it to refer to the correct school year.
Fred Morlan
University of Kentucky CoP, 2017
International Quiz Bowl Tournaments, CEO, co-owner
former PACE member, president, etc.
former hsqbrank manager, former NAQT writer & subject editor, former hsqb Administrator/Chief Administrator
Locked