I know this is a very long Newsletter but please take the time to read all of it, there is lots of important information!
TOURNAMENT DAY PROCEDURES 2011
THE TOURNAMENT IS COMING UP SATURDAY, MARCH 5TH!! YOU'RE PROBABLY FEELING THE LAST MINUTE CRUNCH LIKE MOST TEAMS.
DATE: MARCH 5, 2011
LOCATION: Buchser Middle School
ADDRESS: 1111 Bellomy Street, Santa Clara
SCHEDULE: 8:00a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Award Ceremony at 4:30
There is a Regional Tournament page on the web site which has up-to-date information on the tournament, including the tournament schedule a downloadable map of the campus to locate your problem room. Please visit that web page often to keep current. Also, the Newsletters section of the odysseyofthemind.com web site has general info on long term and spontaneous problem procedures. This is extremely useful, especially for first-time coaches. Please download and read it. Here are the links for easy reference:
Spontaneous Problem Procedures
Read More
Long-Term Problem Procedures
• General Long-Term Problem Procedures
• Problem 1: Extreme Mousemobiles
• Problem 2: As Good as Gold...berg
• Problem 3: Le Tour Guide
• Problem 4: Unhinged Structure
• Problem 5: Full Circle
COACHES - CHECK IN AS SOON AS YOU ARRIVE!
Just a reminder to check-in and pick up your team packet when you arrive. Coach packets will only be given to the head coach named on the team registration. The packet contains critical tickets your team will need for claiming raw and final scores and for entering the spontaneous area. Your packet will also contain Odyssey pins for the team members.
(Coaches Check-In will be located between the Main gym and the E Wing building near the Amphitheater
WHEN TO ARRIVE?
We recommend your team arrive at least an hour to 1 1/2 hours before their first performance. This will give them a chance to scout out the location of their long term performance and the Spontaneous area. The team should be ready at the staging door for their long term problem 25 minutes before they perform, complete with all paperwork, props and costumes. Give the paperwork to the children to hand to the staging judge. Remind parents that they should not be doing hair or makeup or helping to setup the props. They can help carry props to the staging area but that is all. Problem 4 teams - see below.
PAPERWORK
Each team should bring:
4 copies of the Style form,
4 copies of the required list for problems 1, 2, 3, 5 and Primary (there is no required list for Problem 4),
1 copy of the Cost form completely filled out and totaled,
1 signed copy of the Outside Assistance form,
any clarifications that are specific to your team's solution
All of the above forms may be found on the national website (www.odysseyofthemind.com/) by logging into the membership area.
You can also find copies of the required list forms on our website at the end of the Coaching Resources section. Teams may create their own list or fill out the list form, either one is acceptable.
The Style form, Outside Assistance form and Cost form can also be found in the appendix of the Program Guide.
Bring copies of receipts for items on your Cost form for the staging judge to review if requested. Please pay particular attention to the Style form and fill it out completely before you arrive. Some of the style categories are "free choice of team". This means the team must select a particular style item for the judges to judge. They can not select anything that is already being scored in the long term problem requirements. Also be sure they fill out the bottom of the form with a synopsis of the performance. New teams seem to forget this part. Finally, bring the outside assistance form completely filled out. If the team had no outside assistance, the word "NONE" should appear in the center of the page. Each child should sign the form themselves, certifying that they had no outside assistance. Include all students who contributed to the problem solution regardless of whether they are in attendance at the tournament.
PROBLEM 4 - COLUMN STRUCTURE TEAMS - WEIGH-IN
Problem 4 teams must weigh-in their structure about an hour before their performance time. Check the schedule for your assigned weigh-in time. Teams are allowed to weigh-in before their assigned time if the judges are not busy, or if you just want to have your structure checked for weight. Teams are allowed to make adjustments to overweight structures, if there is sufficient time before your performance time. Teams will weigh-in in the weigh-in room shown on the map. Only two team members are allowed into the weigh-in room (no coaches).
SPONTANEOUS
All teams will perform their spontaneous problem in the A wing rooms shown on the map. Teams should present their spontaneous admission ticket at the spontaneous area check-in table about 15 minutes before their assigned time. You will be called when the judges are ready for you so stay close to the check-in table. Only the children enter the restricted spontaneous area. Once the team is finished, they will exit from the restricted area. Parents and coaches should wait there. Please keep noise to a minimum near the A wing in order to minimize distractions for the teams who are solving their spontaneous problem. For Divisions I, II, and III five team members will participate in the spontaneous problem. Additional team members can choose to stay in the room with their team-mates or leave and wait in the holding room. Primary teams may have all team members participate.
SNACKS, DRINKS, SOUVENIRS FOR SALE
We will be selling breakfast snacks (muffins, bagels, coffee, tea, hot chocolate) and soft drinks and souvenirs in the Amphitheater area.
T-SHIRT SCREEN PRINTING ON SITE - EACH CHILD'S NAME WILL BE ON THE BACK OF THE SHIRT!!
There will be a selection of T-shirt and sweatshirt styles to commemorate this year’s tournament for sale. Prices vary. Yes, all of the participant's names will be on the back of the shirt. Highlighters will be available for the kids to highlight their team and add personal touches to their shirt. Its lots of fun to watch your t-shirt being printed!
LUNCH – NEW FOOD SERVICE THIS YEAR!
At approximately 11 a.m. we will have 2 catering truck vendors parked near the Amphitheater area on Bellomy St. Curry Up Now will be selling Indian food and MoGo BBQ will be selling Korean barbeque and other food such as burritos and hotdogs. We will soon have sample menus and pricing on the website. In the afternoon we will have another catering truck, TreatBot, selling all kinds of interesting ice-cream flavors and cookies. They also have a Karaoke station for all who want another shot at fun & fame! All of these vendors have graciously agreed to donate some of their proceeds to Silicon Valley of the Mind to help us continue bringing this great program to the children of Silicon Valley. We thank them for helping us with our event and supporting our program! We hope you enjoy the convenience of having food choices available on campus this year and support these businesses that are helping to support us. Teams
can also bring a picnic lunch or go out to lunch at one of the local restaurants. There aren’t very many choices close by, so if you are planning to go out give yourselves enough time. You may want to check an on-line mapping site to locate restaurants of interest ahead of time. There are a limited number of outdoor tables at the school or you can bring picnic blankets for the grassy area in the Amphitheater.
AWARDS CEREMONY
All teams and their coaches line up by teams and school around 4:15 p.m. in Amphitheater area (or the Auxiliary gym if it is raining) for a parade into Main gym for the awards ceremony. Feel free to bring school banners to use in the parade if you would like. All family members and other spectators take a seat in the bleachers in the gym by 4:30. Coaches, stay with your team. At the end of the award ceremony use the colored ticket in your packet to pick-up all of the scores for your problem and division.
CRITERIA FOR TEAMS ADVANCING TO THE STATE TOURNAMENT
The top two teams in each problem and division will advance to the state tournament. If there are 10 or more teams in a problem and division the top three teams advance to the state tournament. Tie scores and team Ranatra Fusca awards can also increase the number of teams going to the state tournament. The State Tournament will be held at Heritage High School in Brentwood on March 26th!! All teams are invited to come and watch the State tournament, where you will get to see performances by the best teams from thoughout the state.
MEETING FOR COACHES WHOSE TEAMS WILL GO ON TO THE STATE TOURNAMENT
Coaches for teams who are advancing to the state tournament will attend a mandatory informational meeting immediately following the award ceremony (at about 5:30), in room D-1 (The same room as Unhinged Structure Problem). It is critical that you be there. We will discuss the procedure for registering for the state tournament and answer any questions you may have. For teams going on to state we will also need your judge to judge at the state tournament.
VOLUNTEER SCHEDULES
Volunteer schedules will be posted on the web site on or before Tuesday, March, 1. The schedule will also be sent directly to your volunteer if an email address was provided. Volunteers need to check-in before their assigned time at the check-in table where they will receive instructions on where to go.
SPECTATORS
You are encouraged to invite spectators to come and view the performances. Applause and cheering is certainly welcomed, these kids have worked hard all year, now it’s their time to show off what they have accomplished. Please be sure to hand out the schedule and campus map (with the location of your performance marked) to spectators that you invite. Make sure your spectators know the name of your membership, and the problem and division in which you are competing (e.g. CAROLYN CLARK, Prob. 5, Full Circle, Div. I). If someone shows up at the check-in/information table and asks “do you know when and where my niece Suzie is performing?” we will be unable to help them! (You would not believe how many of those there are every year).
RAIN POSSIBLE COMPETITION WEEKEND
As of today the weather forecast for Saturday is mostly cloudy and cool, showers are possible. Be prepared!! There will be no indoor storage area for props, etc. prior to your performances, so plan to protect your stuff any way you can. Dress in layers you will be outdoors often throughout the day, there is no indoor eating area.
Most of the venues have pre-staging space for one team at a time that is at least under an overhang if not inside. Teams in queue outside of the venues may be "in the elements".
PARKING
We ask that teams park in the team parking lot by the Main Gym. There is no team parking or traffic on Bellomy Street. Bellomy St is not a thru street; it is blocked by a gate on the Jackson St. side so there is no vehicle access to the campus from that side. We will be keeping traffic to a minimum on Bellomy St. for the safety of the children crossing there to get to Spontaneous. There is also limited parking in a small parking lot off of Market street but you will have to walk around the A wing buildings to access the campus. The A wing is a quiet zone and a restricted area reserved for the Spontaneous competition, so please be quiet when walking past the A wing. The access through A Wing will be blocked off. Be aware that many of the streets around the school are one-way. There are also some parking spaces on Rip Miller Way off of Monroe Street on the West side of campus beyond the football and baseball fields. Those
too are a bit of a walk to the main part of campus. The main parking lot is not very large so please carpool teams and spectators if possible. Please ask your spectators to park in the surrounding area and leave the closer parking for teams who need to carry their props from their vehicles. If you have to park in the surrounding neighborhood please be respectful of the neighbors driveways and obey posted parking signs. We may be posting more parking and traffic control recommendations once I get more suggestions from the school principal.
For a satellite view of the area with detailed site information, click here
TEAM DROP-OFF ZONES
There will be 2 drop-off zones for teams to drop-off/pick-up their props. These are 10-minute loading zones only. One zone is on Bellomy St. just in front of the gate to enter campus. The other is on the campus side of the main parking lot. Do not leave vehicles unattended in these loading zones.
GOOD LUCK TO YOUR TEAMS AND WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING THEM PERFORM NEXT SATURDAY!
Barbara & Barbara
Co-Regional Directors
SV Odyssey of the Mind
