2009 NAQT ICT Call for Hosts

[rhentzel]

As of August 20, 2008, NAQT has not received any viable bids from colleges or universities to host the 2009 Intercollegiate Championship Tournament. As a result, we are still interested in receiving bids from schools. Information about bidding and the host requirements may be found here:

http://www.naqt.com/ict/2009/host-call.html

If you have questions about hosting, please don't hesitate to contact us at [email protected].

[rhentzel]

On a related note, NAQT has received a viable bid from a Chicago hotel to host the 2009 Intercollegiate Championship Tournament.

Broadly speaking, the positive aspects of the bid are:

1. It is in Chicago
2. It near O'Hare airport
3. It has a free airport shuttle (no rental cars)
4. It has good access to food
5. It has good game rooms
6. It has good room rates ($99/night, quadruple occupancy)
7. No travel between the hotel and the game site, reducing opportunities for misfortune and allowing more time spent sleeping.

The negative aspects are:

1. The cost of the ICT would probably increase to approximately $300/team

Rough calculations on our part suggest that the lower room rates (compared to past sites) and lower airline tickets would probably result in a lower aggregate cost for the attending teams, even with the increased registration fee.

We're interested in gathering feedback from players and advisers on their interest in pursuing this bid; are there common concerns that we could answer (or make sure are addressed as we move forward)?

All things being equal, NAQT would probably prefer to keep the ICT at a college or university with an active quiz bowl program, but the lack of bids so far combined with the enthusiasm shown for a Chicago site in past years (particularly 2007), led us to think that the community might be very receptive to a Chicago tournament, even if it weren't at an educational institution.

Feel free to post your comments and questions here or to contact us at [email protected].

[Susan]

I'm not in communication with the Northwestern team and, obviously, I wouldn't want to prod them into doing anything, but man, it would be wonderful if the ICT were at Northwestern.

[rhentzel]

I'm not in communication with the Northwestern team and, obviously, I wouldn't want to prod them into doing anything, but man, it would be wonderful if the ICT were at Northwestern.

NAQT had extensive negotiations with Northwestern in 2007 (and much shorter talks in 2008) about the possibility of them hosting the ICT. Unfortunately, it just wasn't possible for them to get rooms in the building(s) they wanted. It was also very hard for them to reserve them far in advance; we would have been going into February (if I recall correctly) without an actual, formal room reservation, and that was a chance that we weren't able to take (even if the rooms had been available).

That said, if those problems can be overcome, NAQT would still have a very high a priori opinion of a Northwestern ICT.

[grapesmoker]

The cost of the ICT would probably increase to approximately $300/team

How does this compare with how much ICT has been in previous years? I can't remember what we paid last time, but I thought it was much less than $300.

I can't speak for anyone else, but the hotel option is not terribly appealing to me. When I staff the ICT, I feel like a rodent in a maze, and I wouldn't really enjoy that feeling as a player.

Also, while I realize that NAQT is still accepting bids, it seems to me that the number of schools that would be able to launch competitive bids is quite small. Location by itself is hugely restrictive, since I imagine there won't be much enthusiasm for a coastal (either East or West) ICT, given the non-centrality of those places. If I'm wrong about that, I certainly would like to know, but I don't think I am. Combine that criterion with the "need to provide 10 staff" criterion and you're down to a very small number of clubs.

[Matt Weiner]

How does this compare with how much ICT has been in previous years? I can't remember what we paid last time, but I thought it was much less than $300.

It was $240 base last year. Assuming similar discounts are in place, the notion that the extra $60 is a worthy tradeoff for savings in other areas seems fairly reasonable to me, and I'd much rather have the tournament at a hotel in Chicago than in California or something.

[rhentzel]

The cost of the ICT would probably increase to approximately $300/team

How does this compare with how much ICT has been in previous years? I can't remember what we paid last time, but I thought it was much less than $300.

I can't speak for anyone else, but the hotel option is not terribly appealing to me. When I staff the ICT, I feel like a rodent in a maze, and I wouldn't really enjoy that feeling as a player.

This is the sort of feedback that we are looking for; there's not much that we can do about the overall ambiance of a hotel . . . it's never going to feel like a college building.

I can note that with so many fewer rooms required (32, not 62), our average room is better and there won't be people lining the hallways (because there are no byes). This is also a site where we can have the entire event in one building, which is nice.

If lots of players have a negative, visceral reaction to it that isn't overcome by (hopefully) saving money and an easier travel schedule, we're certainly not committed to pursuing the option. But it seemed like it was worth getting community feedback.

Also, while I realize that NAQT is still accepting bids, it seems to me that the number of schools that would be able to launch competitive bids is quite small. Location by itself is hugely restrictive, since I imagine there won't be much enthusiasm for a coastal (either East or West) ICT, given the non-centrality of those places. If I'm wrong about that, I certainly would like to know, but I don't think I am. Combine that criterion with the "need to provide 10 staff" criterion and you're down to a very small number of clubs.

Well, if anybody out there is reading this and thinks they've got a perfect building at their school . . . but can't drum up ten staff, let us know. Maybe we can work something out. Certainly a hotel isn't going to be providing any staff, so we're open to the possibility of finding everybody ourself.

[DumbJaques]

I think it's likely Northwestern would like to host if they can. If the university gives them similar problems, we're looking into the possibilities of a Maryland site, and confirming that any commemorative walks across the mall in the rain will be purely optional.

[Jeremy Gibbs Lemma]

I like the idea of having everything at one centralized location but would still much rather have the atmosphere of Evanston for the weekend. I know that isn't the most helpful feedback but I am definitely not opposed to the convenience offered by the hotel option.

[millionwaves]

Speaking as someone whose team would have to travel less than a combined 8 hours to go to both Nationals, having an ICT in or around Chicago at a hotel or otherwise is a tremendously appealing prospect.

[Maxwell Sniffingwell]

Hotel in Chicago would be great. On the very slight off chance that I'd be going to ICT, a hotel in Chicago or NU hosting would be the only way that I could afford both nationals for my team.

[theMoMA]

Out of self-interest, a site we could drive to would be ideal. That includes Chicago area, so I'm all for it.

[EncyclopediaCDRom]

If UIC were to host those nationals on April 3-4, would we receive an automatic entry for one team to play? As the host nation, China was guaranteed an entry in all 302 events, but they chose not to enter every event, concentrating more on gold-medal hopefuls. UIC is next to three Blue Line stops; moreover, the Blue Line el goes all the way to O'Hare. UIC's east campus hosted CBI regionals in 1993; west, 1999. We also hosted College Bowl Nationals in 1991 or 1992. You may contact Antony Partee, Coordinator of Campus Programs, at [email protected] about logistical concerns.

Congratulations to the record number (87) of medalling nations,
Rom Masrour
CPS/UIC
[email protected]

[Jeremy Gibbs Paradox]

If UIC were to host those nationals on April 3-4, would we receive an automatic entry for one team to play? As the host nation, China was guaranteed an entry in all 302 events, but they chose not to enter every event, concentrating more on gold-medal hopefuls. UIC is next to three Blue Line stops; moreover, the Blue Line el goes all the way to O'Hare. UIC's east campus hosted CBI regionals in 1993; west, 1999. We also hosted College Bowl Nationals in 1991 or 1992. You may contact Antony Partee, Coordinator of Campus Programs, at [email protected] about logistical concerns.

LOL. Thanks Rom I needed that.

I think the idea of doing it at a hotel is something that should be explored. It's become increasingly apparent that very few schools are submitting viable bids for ICT and even with the increase to the base fee for everyone, this would be ameliorated by decreased travel costs for the majority of the participants and staff. And if it works, it gives NAQT an option for future ICT's when it isn't getting ANY bids for ICT from colleges.

[EverlastingWrane]

Well, it's nice to hear that there's so much interest in us hosting, though as far as I know, the university still hates our team. Once again, we're looking into finding the space- we would really love to host the ICT, but I'm not sure if that's going to work any time soon.