Successful Class C Format

[GK]

With all the discussion about Class C tournaments, dwindling skiers, keeping it fun and inexpensive, etc... In Ohio we hold 5 "Fun Format" events every year with the final stop being at the State Championships. 30 skiers is a poor tournament, it's typically closer to 40 and sometimes as high as 60. Costs are $50 for slalom ($40 for having ANY kind of officials rating) and you're guaranteed 2 rounds with the chance to compete for a 3rd and sometimes more depending on the format. We're adding a new "Team Competition" to every event for 2016 which only increases your chances of competing and winning. We're currently sitting on 14 sponsors for the year all of whom have donated goods to be awarded to the winners of each event (lots of swag!) with the overall season winner taking home a brand new d3 Arc this year (d3 is the best!). Awards are given out at every event. If you're within a stones throw of Ohio, then please come and participate, we welcome anyone from any state. Even BallOfSpray used to be a sponsor, we gave out BOS hats to all of the winners each week. Here is the email that just went out on the upcoming season...

 

The Buckeye Buoy Tour is back for its 8th Season in 2016! There are a few changes for 2016 so be sure to read this entire email.

 

TEAM COMPETITION

 

The biggest change for 2016 will be the addition of a Team Competition at each Tour Stop. All teams must be submitted to info@skiowsa.com no later than June 23rd, so you have 2 weeks to assemble your teams (the sooner the better). Teams can consist of 4 to 7 skiers and you need a minimum of 4 at any given event to compete as a team. So if you have 7 skiers on your team, only 4 of those 7 need to be at an event. However there is an advantage to bringing a full team of 7. Scoring will be done based on the team that combined ski the best against their average. Since it’s all based on averages, teams can have a different number of skiers and the more you bring, the more scores will be dropped as follows:

 

• 4 Skier Team: All 4 scores will count towards team.

• 5 Skier Team: Bottom score will be dropped and Top 4 will be averaged.

• 6 Skier Team: Bottom score will be dropped and Top 5 will be averaged.

• 7 Skier Team: Bottom 2 scores will be dropped and Top 5 will be averaged.

 

So just to clarify, you can have a team of 4, 5, 6, or 7 skiers but you only need a minimum of 4 to show up at any given event in order for your team to compete (no subs allowed). Please create your teams ASAP and email the team name as well as the list of skiers on the team to info@skiowsa.com.

 

AWARDS

 

Lisa Nelson has done a fabulous job getting new sponsors for the 2016 season. Check out the website at http://skiowsa.com/buckeye-buoy-tour for a complete list of sponsors and please give them first consideration when buying new gear! Most of these sponsors have donated products that will be given out as prizes for each stop, so look for our top finishers at each event to receive more swag than ever! If your business would like to sponsor the BBT please email Lisa ASAP at anelson9@cinci.rr.com. Lisa is also creating new t-shirts to be sold this season.

 

Awards will be presented to individual winners & team winners at each event. Season awards will be awarded at the State Championship Banquet to both individual and teams. Trick, Jump, & Overall tour champions will be awarded on your Top 2 scores out of 3 events, Slalom will be awarded based on your Top 3 scores out of 5 events.

 

REGISTRATION

 

With the rising costs of everything, we’ve had to make a slight tweak to registration fees for the first time in 8 years, however you can still ski at the same great price if you plan accordingly. If you register 2 weeks in advance, you can still ski for the same great rate of $50 for 1 event, $70 for 2 events, and $80 for 3 events. If you register after that 2 week period then you will pay an additional $10. Registration will close at midnight on Wednesday before the event. Don’t forget, if you are an official and willing to work the tournament you will save 20% (check the invited officials box at registration) and Juniors receive a 30% discount. For collegiate discounts you must contact the Tournament Director directly and discounts may be awarded in exchange for help with the site preparations/cleanup/event work.

 

2016 Buckeye Buoy Tour

 

[lpskier]

Note a rule change applicable to juniors in a class c tournament: the skier can elect to shorten the rope before reaching max speed.

[Ilivetoski]

@LeonL not sure how you would feel about this, but maybe worth a shot to try it out this way Labor Day...?

[Bill22]

@GK last week I signed up for the last BBT stop. I'll be passing through on vacation. How many tournaments do I need to ski for this season to qualify for an average? I'm in it for fun but it would be cool to make the 3rd round.

[Bill22]

I got it. I just read the official rules on the BBT site and they cover this.

[LeonL]

@Ilivetoski , do you mean offering free entry for first time tournaments skiers? Yes, that was always the plan.

[GK]

@Bill22, you probably figured it out, but basically we pull averages from the top 3 tournaments over the past 12 months. If you haven't skied any tournaments, then we assign you one based on practice scores for your first event. We've had at least one tour stop out of about 40 where we had a first time tournament skier win the entire event. Needless to say it wasn't the last time we saw the young lady. ;-) It's great to hear you're coming to our last event (I assume the Friday event prior to the State Championships). I look forward to meeting you!

[Ilivetoski]

@LeonL no, something like this format. First 2 rounds ski against your average and third round is head to head based on that average... Clearly the format we run isn't running well in KY. @GK do I have it correct on how BBT works?

[Bill22]

@GK yes, Friday before OH State Championship.

 

@A_B you are an Ohio guy right? Will you be skiing BBT 7/22/16?

[A_B]

@Bill22 I haven't skied competitively in years. You will like the stop in Haskins. It is a nice north/south lake and skis well. The owner skied at our site for years until he built his own. If I built a lake it would be just like his.

[Bill22]

@A_B this one is in Van Wert. If I ever get to northern Ohio I'll give you a shout.

[GK]

@Ilivetoski you've got it right, 2 rounds of qualifying and then the finals from there. A head-to-head finals is definitely one option. Up to 6 rounds can be scored towards the rankings list so long as 50% of the field is eliminated through competition after round 3 (it does require approval by the EVP).

 

@A_B skied in one Buckeye Buoy Tour stop about 4 years ago and ran 32 off at 32 mph! It was epic! It's a format that is coming back for the 2nd time ever this season only a stones throw from @A_B. Skiers are divided into team at the beginning of the tournament based on their averages (so each team will have deep shortline skiers through beginners). There are 2 rounds of straight up slalom which will determine the seeding for each team in the finals. We call the finals "Run the Gamut" and the winning team is the team who can run 28 mph, 30 mph, 32 mph, 34 mph, 36 mph, 22 off, 28 off, and 32 off, in order, in the shortest amount of time. Each team must make 3 skier swaps (4 skiers). The clock starts when the first skier hits the entry gates at 28 mph and ends when the last skier hits the exit gates at 32 off. Some important strategies come into play like spinning on the ends and running the shortline passes at the highest speed possible to save time but if you miss a pass, your team is in trouble because it eats a lot of time picking up the skier and starting that pass over. It is the most talked about format we have ever done, people had a blast! We had a W1 skier that had to run the 36 mph for her team and smoked it! Also had a M4 skier who had to run the 36 mph pass for his team and did it with no issue. You can run the speed passes at any line length you choose and the shortline passes at any speed you want.

 

@A_B and I were on the same team. Our first skier was @ScarletArrow who went off at 28 mph and then missed his 30 mph pass coming back (rookie mistake)! So he drops at the end and our next skier who was supposed to run 32 and 34 goes out and runs 30 and 32, which left me holding the bag for at least 3 passes. I ran 34 22off for pass #1, spun at the end and increased to 36 mph for pass #2, spun at the end and ran it again for pass #3, then dropped quickly and ran 28 off. I was worn out after spinning on 2 ends in a row. @A_B wrapped it up for us with his 32 off pass which he ran at 32 mph just to be safe! We had fun.

 

@A_B lives like an hour from Van Wert. Keep working on him! :smiley:

[A_B]

The BBT format is a blend of regular round skiing and fun at the end. I didn't really know the format and was just skiing at a friend's event so was already packed and ready to leave when I found out we had a team event and would be skiing a third round. That was a great chance to meet new skiers of all ages and divisions where we were cheering each other on. Having the tired old fat guy run a cold green loop off the dock (first time I had skied a third round in years) got my competitive mojo working and I wasn't going to let my team down no matter what. It was a small moment of victory and satisfaction I hadn't felt In a while from skiing.

[Bill22]

Hey @A_B if you ski BBT in Van Wert @GK said he would buy you dinner!

[GK]

We always hit the Mexican restaurant at the end of the day in Van Wert! My son just told me the other day that going to the Mexican restaurant with all his ski friends was one of his favorite things about waterskiing. Ha!