The Quizbowl Resource Center

On behalf of Carleton University, I am pleased to announced that we will be hosting the Canadian NAQT Sectional on February 7th, 2015. Logistical details such as room locations and scheduling will be revealed closer to the day of. We will conduct this tournament in a manner similar to past tournaments held at CU, as well as past Sectional tournaments. As always, feel free to e-mail [email protected] with any questions or comments.

To register for this tournament, use the NAQT online registration system at this link: http://www.naqt.com/registration/regist ... nt_id=6218

Pricing:

$125 for the first team, $100 for each subsequent team
-$10 per working buzzer
-$5 per working timer
-$30 for an approved staffer
-$20 New to NAQT discount (a team that did not participate in 2013 or 2014 SCT/ICT)
-$10 distance discount (teams travelling 250+ km) (one discount per school, not per team)
-$10 international discount (schools not located for discount) (one discount per school, not per team)
Minimum fee: $50 per team

All teams must pay by the day of the tournament. We will take cash or cheque only. None of this PayPal or Credit Card silliness. All payment is due in Canadian Dollars. If your school needs a receipt or an invoice to be able to provide payment, let me know and I can send it out.

Hope to see you all there!

TheRhymeMinister wrote: To register for this tournament, use the NAQT online registration system at this link: (this is where we will put the link when we have it. Stay patient for now. That means you Dennis.)

Here.

I may get "claimed" by Ottawa in an attempt by them to reach the minimum fee, but I come with reading services, a buzzer set, and lots of clocks.

In what is starting to become a regular occurrence for Carleton tournaments, the O-Train will not be running on SCT weekend. Plan alternate routes accordingly.

A general update on the tournament:

As you can see here the field is filling up fast. Any teams who have yet to register should do so in the imminent future.

We still don't have rooms confirmed for the tournament; most likely we'll know what building we're in by midweek. At that time I'll post an additional update with information about parking, directions, etc. As Ben already mentioned, the O-Train will be out of service that weekend, with its route being served by the 107 bus.

If teams are still looking for lodging in O-Town, I know that some Quizbowlers will be staying in the fascinating yet spooky Ottawa Jail Hostel. Other affordable places to stay include the Econo Lodge and the always popular Days Inn Ottawa Airport.

Finally, if teams are looking for some activites to do while in town, allow me to offer Nick's Picks:

1. Winterlude will be in full swing that weekend. Activities include ice and snow sculpting, concerts, and eating beaver tails while skating along the UNESCO World Heritage Site Rideau Canal.

2. The Capital Hoops Classic, the only Canadian university basketball game worth watching, is on Friday night. The rivalry game between Carleton and UO, the two teams go into the game ranked #1 and #2 in the nation. At the Canadian Tire Centre, the women's game tips off at 6pm and the men's around 8pm, with tickets starting at $10.00.

3. The Cracking Up the Capital Comedy Festival is also that weekend. While some stuff is sold out, there are a number of great comedians worth seeing that weekend, including a free improv show featuring students from Carleton and UO.


Looking forward to seeing all of you!

When logistical details are posted, could you please include info on closest place to park (and cost), and info on food options (there is an amazing buffet place somewhere at Carleton, but it's like finding the lost tomb at the beginning of Raiders of the Lost Ark...)? Also, just for the U.S. team(s), what is the policy on exchange rate?

Nick's giving us 1-to-1 if we end up going (it's an almost identical-length drive as the NYC for us and I assume parking is cheaper in Ottawa than NYC).

The parking rate will almost certainly be $3 for the day flat rate (including unlimited entrance and exit privileges). Just putting that out there for any teams whose decision hinges on parking costs.

And yes, we'll be sure to include an excursion to the Carleton buffet as part of the lunch options (and hopefully give you enough time to enjoy it too!)

TheRhymeMinister wrote:And yes, we'll be sure to include an excursion to the Carleton buffet as part of the lunch options

Wait, what? This presence of such an option is a potential game changer. Yet only time will tell whether it holds up to the unlimited bacon at Ottawa

Please do not delay the tournament by eating lunch at a buffet.

bmcke wrote:Please do not delay the tournament by eating lunch at a buffet.

Organizer's prerogative to set the schedule. "Delaying" implies we don't meet the posted schedule, which may be able to include the magical Buffet. I plan on eating at the Buffet, and will appeal to Sean Hannity to defend my constitutional buffet rights.

minusfive wrote:

bmcke wrote:Please do not delay the tournament by eating lunch at a buffet.

Organizer's prerogative to set the schedule. "Delaying" implies we don't meet the posted schedule, which may be able to include the magical Buffet. I plan on eating at the Buffet, and will appeal to Sean Hannity to defend my constitutional buffet rights.

An interdict against this buffet would be a cruel and unusual punishment, which Faith Baker will have you know is impermissible under the Eighth Amendment.

no more buffet posts please

In Canada, idiocy comes in buffets, lelelelelel so le edgy

User was banned for 24 hours for being an idiot / disregarding instructions to post in a way that makes sense. --the mgmt

General Pre-Tournament Update:

We have rooms! SCT will be played on Saturday in Paterson Hall. This is the same building that Carleton hosted ICCS and COTTAGE Bowl in. We will meet in Room 101, which is located on the first floor past/under the eastern stairwell (same meeting room as ICCS).

For teams that need parking, your best bet is to park in P1, located behind MacOdrum Library, which is $3 all day. If you don't want your vehicle exposed to the elements, consider P16, the underground lot below River Building, also $3 all day. However, parking in P16 means you will have to take the tunnels to get to Paterson, so it's only recomended for teams with an above average knowledge of Carleton Geography (we don't want anyone to run into the Carleton Minotaur!) Both of these parking lots, and how to get to them from the Bronson entrance, can be seen on this map. Also on that map, Paterson Hall is marked with a gold star, the Food Court and the good Tim Hortons is located with a maroon lightning bolt, and the buffet is marked with a blood orange heart. For a more detailed map of Carleton's parking lots, look here. For a broader map of the campus, it's here. Please remember that the O-Train is not operating this weekend, so the OC Transpo bus routes to campus are the 4, the 7, the 107, and the 111.

Speaking of food, this is a reminder that Carleton will NOT be offering our traditional coordinated lunchtime pizza order. Instead, teams are encouraged to head to the food court (which has a Subway, a Pizza Pizza, and possibly other stuff will be open) or the Carleton Buffet (all you can eat for $10.35). Delegations of Carleton students will be heading to each of these locations for you to follow. We hope to give teams enough time to get a good lunch but this is conditional on everyone showing up on time and the tournament running smoothly (more on that in a minute).

The field for the tournament seems to be set (aside from house teams, which may yet fluctuate). However, if there are any late entries in this horse race please let me know ASAP and I will see if it's possible if it's possible to accommodate them.

Invoices for the tournament were sent to all schools earlier today. If you did not get one, or if the one you did get contains an error, let me know so I can fix it. Please be sure to bring the requisite funds to pay for the tournament with you on Saturday.

As Jordan Palmer alluded to, the weather may be an issue for this tournament. Currently the weather forecast for the weekend indicates Ottawa will be clear (but cold). However, in Canada there is always a risk of a snowstorm. With that being said, I can only envision 3 likely scenarios in which this tournament would be postponed:
1) If there is a significant amount of snowfall predicted by Friday morning for Friday evening or Saturday.
2) If Carleton University administration announces that the school is closed/cancels our room booking due to weather.
3) If there is any sort of shutdown to OC Transpo, the city's major routes, or the highways that go to the city.
In any of these cases, we will work to communicate clearly with NAQT and all teams attending. If you don't hear anything from us, you can assume the tournament is still on. Please drive safe and leave extra time depending on the conditions.
Update (Feb 6, 10:20am): While there is some snow in Ottawa today, and a chance of flurries tomorrow, it is not substantial enough to postpone. The tournament is ON!


Finally, a reminder that this tournament is set to start at 9 AM SHARP! We will read our first question then, so teams should strive to be at Carleton by 8:30 am. I will have very little lenience for teams that fail to arrive on time. Please be sure to show up punctually so that we can get our day off to a good start and run without any issues.

Looking forward to seeing everyone on Saturday!

We had a fantastic tournament today! In D1, McGill won an advantaged final on the first game over Ottawa. In D2, McGill ran the field including playoffs to win, with Carleton finishing second. Thanks to all our fantastic staffers, and to all teams for coming out and helping make the day a success!

Stats can be found here. If there are any errors or typos, please let me know.

Thanks for the tournament Nick et al.!

TheRhymeMinister wrote:We had a fantastic tournament today! In D1, McGill won an advantaged final on the first game over Ottawa. In D2, McGill ran the field including playoffs to win, with Carleton finishing second. Thanks to all our fantastic staffers, and to all teams for coming out and helping make the day a success!

Stats can be found here. If there are any errors or typos, please let me know.

Thanks Nick, Huma, and Rico (DI readers)! Great to see everybody, and a very enjoyable time