|
As we begin a new season of
Highland Games, the Mid-Atlantic Scottish Athletics Organization now has
completed a fully automated, electronic, games registration form on our
web site and within our data base. This organization is staffed by
volunteer athletes dedicated to the sport. Our web site is the rather fine
work of Mr. Adam Melendez who hosts our server in Falls Church Virginia.
Please take a moment to tour the site and see all that we offer for
athletes competing in this region:
http://www.highlandgames.net/masa/
The Athletes now have the
ability to create biographical pages on themselves and update them at any
time during the season. They share a common message board where they can
exchange ideas on technique, training, and just talk to each other. The
message board is maintained and monitored by Mr. Dave McClelland in
Charlotte, NC, another long time, highly dedicated, volunteer athlete.
Our Training Director, Mr. Bryan McClain, helps others get started in the
sport and hooks the athletes up with each other by geographical areas for
the purpose of training.
Along with Ms. Alex Murray, our "Administrative" Judge, I have the high
honor and pleasure of overseeing this operation and finding places for
these wonderful young men and women to gather and practice their vary
unique sport during the season. We have a field staff of Judges ready to
go to venues within our territory and run an athletic competition for your
event. The web site has complete information on rules, sanctioning, etc.
If you do not already have sanctioned/recognized athletics at your event,
upon request, we will put together a proposal for your event.
>From an operational standpoint, for your interest, about four weeks
(adjustable) prior to your game taking place, MASA, at my direction, will
open registration for your specific game. If you desire, we can
automatically notify you directly as the athletes register. Once you & I
have approved the final list, it will be made public on the internet as to
who is competing at your game.
Why only four weeks advance? Because in our highly flexible society, with
family and employment demands changing almost daily in athletes lives, we
want a solid list of athletes that will be able to show up and compete.
There are internal rules about cancellations by athletes, no shows, and
other things which I won't bother you with. All designed to make sure that
your games runs smoothly from an athletic standpoint.
Almost immediately, upon opening up the new registration page two days
ago, we received 20 bios and 12 registrations on the internet for Kentucky
Scottish Weekend and that game will not take place until mid May 2005. It
was our first test case and I am very pleased. Last year, when I opened
the 2004 registration for the National Championships in Richmond it filled
up in about 2 ½ hours! So four weeks out is plenty of time to fill a
roster.
Some of the information we immediately captured from the registrations was
relayed to me by Adam and follows herein:
>>> Adam Guasch-Melendez <> 2/1/05 8:40:41 AM >>>
"The registration system is now up and running, and ready to take
registrations for Kentucky. Just a reminder, the correct address is
......
http://www.highlandgames.net/masa/registration.php
"One side benefit of having the athlete info in a database is the ability
to play with the information. For example, there are now 21 people in the
system (12 of them are signed up for Kentucky). The average age is 38,
average height is 5' 11", average weight is 240.75 pounds (for the 20 men
in the system - women throw off the height/weight numbers and are not
included yet!).
END MESSAGE...
We are looking forward to coming to your venue this year and having a good
competition. If you have any questions or ideas that you would like to see
incorporated in your particular registration area, please contact me
directly and we can discuss that.
If your games is one of the many venues that supplies competition shirts
to the athletes, either for identification or advertising, we have
individual sizes, in the data base, for the competitors signed up for your
games. Additionally we can supply a copy of our new logo and the
competitors individual numbers to be affixed to the shirts.
Looking forward to a great 2005. Thank You so much for your support of
MASA and its athletes.
Aye, Dave McKenzie |
