Posted by ambroseopp on 3/22/2008, 6:47 pm
Board Administrator

I would like to take this time to thank all of the people who volunteered in some way shape or form at the 2008 Midget State Championships. I would like to especially thank a few clubs who helped out, Orland Park, Lincoln-Way, Danville Broncos, Westville, Mattoon, Tinley Park, Harvey…..without these clubs and others Midget State would be impossible. Things to work on ……..the finals march music was not loud enough…….I tested it the day before and it was fine…….I apologize for that, I don’t know what happened. …….I tried to get indoor fireworks and smoke/fog machine for the finals but the State Fire Marshal wouldn’t sign off on it…….I’ll have to think of something else to spice it up……I am open for suggestions. The Good I think that the “flow” of the tournament was nearly perfect. No bullpen or waiting in the tunnel with the warm-up area. The schedule was great with only time that I needed to change was to take a 10-15 minute break before the medal matches and then I was able to set-up the awards area which kept me on schedule. The only thing that I would do differently was not to shut down those 2 mats on Saturday afternoon after the young man was carried off by ambulance. I should have left them open….. The Bad Awards area…….I think that it has improved dramatically but I still continue to get resistance from a few parents who do not want to adhere to the directions and respect the barricades………this only slows things down and hold up others while these persons get that picture. If you think that we are tough about this what until you get to Rockford….. A few isolated incidents of parents and/or coaches going at it but that’s what happens when you but a bunch of people together for a wrestling competition…… The Venue A lot of talk this week of the event out growing Danville…….Danville is home of the Midget period. Rockford is home of the Novice/Senior and Champaign is home to the H.S. State. We are not leaving Danville….its centrally located and the only time that it is crowded is on Saturday until some are eliminated. Sunday is perfect for the crowd and the finals…….if anything the event is limited to the first 800 next year. Awards Again no change……large medals for all placers and trophies and bracket boards to the champs Seeding I think that this was the best year for seeding compared to many others. Do you remember when we had the points system? Crazy….. The Schroeder Bash was started to honor the memory of Mike Schroeder who was with us since the beginning of the Midget State and Midget Duals. To honor his memory and commitment we established the tournament in his name and in an effort to make this unique in some way we made the winner of the Midget division a #1 seed for Midget State. It was posted all year……if someone or a certain team didn’t participate for whatever reason so be it. Hopefully they will make the trip next year. The Schroeder stays with its criteria. As for others not getting seeded who should have been (I am not naming anyone) a few names on the board sited last week for your information those people claimed no criteria to be seeded. It appeared to me that they did not what to be seeded as was their choice. Seeding (for the most part) separates the best kids so they don’t wrestle until later in the tournament preferably the quarters or the semis or the finals. Guess what……when you get to the next level there is no seeding and some of the better kids sometimes meet in the 1st round as happened in Rockford this year. Conclusion We will continue to make minor adjustments to the tournament and inform everyone on the BIG BASH board but overall after several years of doing this I feel that we have made this a premium event for the Midgets which was my goal from the beginning. Again thanks to everyone who volunteered and supported this and all of the events in Danville Sincerely, Jim Didi & John Ambrose