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Online now: 4 members: Cutty29, Oneal, Rookies 40, softball4b; 14 anonymousDiscussion: Senior Softtball World Series
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| Aug. 27 einstein Men's 50 3112 posts | Sad and satisfying at the same time. The Old A's Miken 60 and over major plus team won the championship in Mankato, Minnesota. We played Scrap Iron from Colorado best 3 out of 5 in a two team race for the gold. I'm proud of all our guys as we rose to the occasion and did what we had to, to win. But, 2 teams? Something's wrong here and it's becoming a pattern. Too few teams any more and Associations not having a clue about what it takes lure enough teams to a tournament. Just like with Global warming we may even be too late to save senior softball for the next generations. Hmmmmmmmm. |
| Aug. 27 the wood Men's 65 1123 posts | Joe: As you know, we were there as well. We we fortunate enough to have 4 teams and felt that it was a very well run event. The Maas Family did, in fact, implement the many changes that had been suggested since 2006. Among these changes are... 1) softballs - we used the Dudley Thunder ZN (44/400)... it was/is a good ball. 2) seeding - only play the teams in your division... this was good. 3) they reduced it to 3 days... at a loss of revenue for them. 4) find a good complex wuith enough quality fields to properly stage the event... Caswell Park is such a place. We are glad that we went for all of these reasons and also because of the little things that they (the Maas') do to make our trip a worthwhile experience. To address your query about 'why so few teams' I can only speculate. I honestly believe it is due to the ASA equipment issue. Some teams refuse to participate and this causes other teams to avoid it for fear of having too few teams. It seems to feed off itself. We will play in any event, with any equipment and in almost any location. We prefer to avoid the North Pole and Death Valley... but we will not attend one with less than four teams. So we have no personal bias toward ASA or NSA. We actually prefer to play without the high end bats for defensive reasons... every once in a while (we = GSF). But our (all senior teams) situation is what it is. It has been frequently proven that seniors will spend a lot of money (Ultras cost $200 each and most of us have more than one... or any other senior bat). We do this because we anticipate using them in actual competition. SSWC, SPA, LVSSA and ISA have found a way to maintain their liability insurance and allow us to use the bats that we prefer to use (we = most senior players). This is primarily why they have the greatest turn outs. ISA has had timing issues as their dates have conflicted with others. I do not expect any ASSN to voluntarily bow out so we, the senior players, have to be the deciding factor. We can do nothing and be part of the problem or we can 'take the bull by the horns'. It is time for us to quit talking about it and time to move toward a solution. I personally have grown weary of hearing about it. Lead, follow or get out of the way, folks. Bob Woodroof |
| Aug. 27 einstein Men's 50 3112 posts | Great response, Woody. We're all lucky that Senior ball has guys the caliber of you, Lupinsky and Gary Tryhorn playing major roles. I have this feeling that there's not enough players coming behind us to see things continue and I'm not sure we can or should do anything about it. Maybe that should inspire and motivate us now even more to do as well and as much as we can before the ax falls. |
| Aug. 27 audieh Men's 60 249 posts | Bob, I have been playing for 5 years in the 50 major plus and now the 55 major plus. What then are your solutions to the problems that you addressed in the post. I have many things that I can spend my time and money on. Right now I am chosing softball as my hobby. Our team could have easily played in the ASA in Burlington this weekend but in both divisions there were only 2 teams and for us that takes the fun out. We were trying to play 11 national tournaments this year between the 50 and 55 teams but there are so few teams participating in some tournaments it does not seem worth while from a cost standpoint. We have decided to attend tournaments that are well supported and so we will play in Vegas (Sept/Oct - both teams), Phoenix (55) and Ft Meyers (Winter National) Both teams to finish out the year. Hopefully both teams will also be in the ToC next year as the 50s has already qualified. Should we as seniors get on boards such as this and disclose where we are playing and encourage others to play? Personally, I want to play the best teams and the most teams. Then I will know where we truely stand. Right now you can pick and choose tournaments and avoid better teams if you want. Winnning a 2 team tournament does not carry much weight with me. However, I have friends who are more than happy to take that! What are your suggestions to solve this problem? Could some of the associations for their nationals join together to co-host? Could the Summit establish some guidelines? Should the major plus and major teams disclose at the beginning of the year their intended schedule and encourage others to come and compete? You have the floor! |
| Aug. 28 the wood Men's 65 1123 posts | Audie: Thanks for your confidence. I do believe that you really addressed the solution yourself. In our division, there are but 6-8 teams nationwide (55 major +). We do need to be efficient in the way that we allocate our money. I take it that you and your brother are the sponsors of Hollis. The same dog that bit you passed me a' growlin'. :-) I asked Sal, the CT Sportsplex manager, for his email address/phone number for the very reason that you pointed out. I already know how to reach Larry Campbell (MTC), Tom Hanratty (Grimes) and I know how to reach Keith Parker of Mission Texas. I wish to reiterate that GSF will be willing to play ASA rules other than this seems to be a minority position. We will make every effort to follow the competition next season. As it relates to this year, w e will also be in NV and AZ. We have tried do to this over the past few years and have been lucky enough to play with at least 4 teams each time. The lone exception was USSSA in Salem, OR, last year... we were the only 55 major + team. As far as assns co-hosting events... I really cannot speak to this other than to say that there are generally enough differences from one assn to another that co-hosting seems like a longshot... organizational structure (non-profit/for profit), backing (ASA, NSA, etc.), location, rules, etc. Plus, I truly feel that we must be the driving force behind this. This is, in part, why the NSPC (National Slow Pitch Conf) was created 29 years ago. Joe: Thanks for the kudos. Bob Woodroof |
