All-Star Get Our Sport Back: Flocheer And Varsity Video Policy

[Cheerfun2]

Been to the past 4 Summits. Last year was a bona fide sh-tshow. The new arena was godawful. Soooooo crowded, each stage was so small & dinky. You could hear music from all the other stages, and I ended up jammed up so close I could see up my CP’s nostrils. And OMG...almost saw 2 separate fights over seating. Hope they get their act together before this year,

 

[ScottyB]

Varsity highers personally requested all of my data... I sent it to them to analyze further.

you ever hear back from them?

uca high school is getting crazier and crazier, i hope it doesn't fall off

 

[Power1979]

you ever hear back from them?

uca high school is getting crazier and crazier, i hope it doesn't fall off

I received a thank you from one of VPs and that my analysis was interesting to see. But nothing of substance in his response.

 

[Lisa Seye]

I received a thank you from one of VPs and that my analysis was interesting to see. But nothing of substance in his response.

Would love to see your report. Wow

 

[Power1979]

Pretty sure it was a huge topic in the gym owners forums. That's what got the attention of Varsity who contacted me for all my Excel sheets. Of course I gathered all of the bids awarded data from the bid reveals so it did not account for the number of gyms who declined or didn't show up to summit and d2. My analysis focused on types of bids over last three seasons and divisions and levels awarded.

 

[alpaca]

Summit was designed to be the competition of the elitist. Only the best of the best... I crunched the numbers over the last few seasons and the overwelming percentage are going to lower levels.. the scoring matrix is where the "fix" needs to occur. Summit was imo nothing special. Small stages... Kids and parents funneled in and out like livestock. It was not what I expected and not what my little girl had dreamed about for years. :( Varsity highers personally requested all of my data... I sent it to them to analyze further.

If this was relevant to me I would absolutely have a ball crunching the numbers. Its the kind of thing I love. But our gym has decided to not to pursue Summit bids until they 'work the bugs out' per gym owner. Yes they will eventually go for those bids, but not when our gym has heard such awful stories.

 

[BlueCat]

What was so bad about it? I think I remember hearing/reading about overcrowding etc.

Normally, I would address issues with the event producer directly. On that note, I have expressed the desire to discuss my concerns in private with Varsity on multiple occasions. Once I was told they were getting a group of various gym owners and flying them to Memphis to discuss. (In fairness, that may have happened, but I wasn't a part of that.) During the event itself, I asked a higher-up when would be the best time to express my numerous concerns and was told that I should "bring it up at Varsity U". I'm sorry, but out of principle, I'm not paying to attend a Varsity infomercial just to express my concerns about Summit.

This is mostly from memory, but my issues with Summit fall into 2 main categories. The main one, by far, is the various negative effects the event has/has had on the health/future of our industry. That is a full-length manifesto by itself (perhaps for another day). The other is the actual event itself. Here is a brief list of the areas I thought fell short this year:

Venue Design.

We were sold the idea of the new building as the end-all-be-all building for cheer. It clearly was set up with the idea that you could run 4 simultaneous floors at once. There are multiple (foreseeable) reasons that just isn't happening. The architect needs to be sued.

1. Audio design is poor. The bleed from each floor was huge. It looks like minimal, if any, effort was put into containing sound from one floor to another. This meant music had to be kept at MUCH lower volume than any other event we attended. Athletes were missing cues because of this.
2. Crowd/bleachers was awkwardly close to floors.
3. Judges area at an unusual angle to view routines and unusually close.
4. Whoever pushes play unable to get in front of team.
5. Incredibly crowded backstage area - unsafe and nowhere to have a quiet moment with team (prayers, etc) prior to performances
6. Temperature control in warmup room way off.
7. Internal signage was confusing (which floor was which?)
8. Pedestrian traffic flow was dangerously mismanaged. Arena entrance/exit traffic funneled through 1 woefully undersized area shared with the park entrance. I don't see an easy way to fix this massive design flaw.
9. The fire department (understandably) shut the event down while athletes stood in the heat for a LONG time unable to move. No one was willing to leave for fear they couldn't get back in, but no one could get in until people left. There was little to no communication about the resulting time delays, etc.

How they didn't foresee these issues is beyond me. Disney is normally fantastic at moving herds of people around. Surely they have software to model those things when building multi-million dollar arenas? They were running 3 floors and having major traffic issues - 4 seemed like an impossibility. If you couldn't run 4, why design the arena the way you did?

Event Logistics

1. Scoresheet distribution was inconsistent
2. Scoring not available online in timely manner
3. New schedule not updated in timely manner
4. No hospitality for coaches
5. Staff didn't know answers to basic questions
6. Event ended far too late in evening
7. Multiple errors in results/announcements
8. Legality and USASF booth undermanned, too far away from event
9. Some divisions too large to be judged effectively
10. Ran out of individual awards/prizes LONG before event was even close to being over

The marketing on Summit has been brilliant. They have convinced parents that Summit is incredibly exclusive, while simultaneously having the largest number of teams of any event in cheer. They need to spend some of that talent/energy on the event itself.

NCA and other events are truly fantastic experiences nearly every single year. Varsity can run some amazing, world-class events. 2018 D1 Summit was not one of them.

 

[crazzyeyesassypants]

Normally, I would address concerns with the event producer directly. I expressed the desire to discuss my concerns in private with Varsity on multiple occasions. Once I was told they were getting a group of various gym owners and flying them to Memphis to discuss. (In fairness, that may have happened, but I wasn't a part of that.) During the event, I asked a higher-up when would be the best time to express my concerns and I was told that I should "bring it up at Varsity U". I'm sorry, but out of principle, I'm not paying to attend a Varsity infomercial in order to express my concerns about Summit.

This is mostly from memory, but my issues with Summit fall into 2 main categories. The main one, by far, is the various negative effects the event has/has had on the health/future of our industry. That is a full-length manifesto by itself (perhaps for another day). The other is the actual event itself. Here is a brief list of the areas I thought fell short this year:

Venue Design. We were sold the idea of the new building as the end-all-be-all building for cheer. It clearly was set up with the idea that you could run 4 simultaneous floors at once. There are multiple (foreseeable) reasons that just isn't happening. The architect needs to be sued.

1. Audio design is terrible. The bleed from each floor was huge. It looks like minimal, if any, effort was put into containing sound from one floor to another. This meant music was kept at MUCH lower volume than any other event we went to. Athletes were missing cues because of this.
2. Crowd/bleachers was awkwardly close to floors.
3. Judges area at an unusual angle to view routines and unusually close.
4. Whoever pushes play unable to get in front of team.
5. Incredibly crowded backstage area - unsafe and nowhere to have a quiet moment with team (prayers, etc) prior to performances
6. Temperature control in warmup room way off.
7. Pedestrian traffic flow was dangerously overcrowded. All entrance/exit traffic funneled through 1 woefully undersized area. The fire department (understandably) shut the event down while athletes stood in the heat for a LONG time unable to move. How they didn't foresee this is beyond me. No one was willing to leave for fear they couldn't get back in. Communication during this was non-existent.

Event Logistics

1. Scoresheet distribution was terrible and inconsistent
2. Scoring not available online in timely manner
3. New schedule not updated in timely manner
4. No hospitality for coaches
5. Staff didn't know answers to basic questions
6. Event ended far too late in evening
7. Multiple errors in results/announcements
8. Legality and USASF booth undermanned, too far away from event
9. Some divisions too large to be judged fairly
10. Ran out of awards LONG before event was even close to being over.

The marketing on Summit has been brilliant. They need to spend some of that talent/energy on the event itself. Varsity can and does run some amazing, world-class events. Summit is not one of them.

Will you be bringing teams to Summit again this year? I feel like Varsity is not going to change anything if gyms continue to bring teams to this competition.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BlueCat]

Will you be bringing teams to Summit again this year? I feel like Varsity is not going to change anything if gyms continue to bring teams to this competition.

Varsity is moving (slowly) to address many of the concerns. Many gyms are moving (slowly) to adjust customer expectations/plans regarding Summit in the future. I completely understand the idea of "just quit going", but that is harder and more complicated than you would think. The goal is to come up with a plan where the event producers, gyms, coaches, and athletes all balance and benefit in the long run. That just takes time to argue, plan, and coordinate.

 

[ScottyB]

I received a thank you from one of VPs and that my analysis was interesting to see. But nothing of substance in his response.

interesting for sure. but not surprising.

Venue Design.

We were sold the idea of the new building as the end-all-be-all building for cheer. It clearly was set up with the idea that you could run 4 simultaneous floors at once. There are multiple (foreseeable) reasons that just isn't happening. The architect needs to be sued.

1. Audio design is poor. The bleed from each floor was huge. It looks like minimal, if any, effort was put into containing sound from one floor to another. This meant music had to be kept at MUCH lower volume than any other event we attended. Athletes were missing cues because of this.
2. Crowd/bleachers was awkwardly close to floors.
3. Judges area at an unusual angle to view routines and unusually close.
4. Whoever pushes play unable to get in front of team.
5. Incredibly crowded backstage area - unsafe and nowhere to have a quiet moment with team (prayers, etc) prior to performances
6. Temperature control in warmup room way off.
7. Internal signage was confusing (which floor was which?)
8. Pedestrian traffic flow was dangerously mismanaged. Arena entrance/exit traffic funneled through 1 woefully undersized area shared with the park entrance. The fire department (understandably) shut the event down while athletes stood in the heat for a LONG time unable to move. No one was willing to leave for fear they couldn't get back in. Communication during this was seemingly non-existent.

How they didn't foresee these issues is beyond me. Surely they have software to model those things when building multi-million dollar arenas? They were running 3 floors and having major traffic issues - 4 seemed like an impossibility. If you couldn't run 4, why design the arena the way you did?

Yup

 

[Cheers4frenchtoast]

Am I the only one who never used Flocheer?

me either and I'm glad I haven't!

 

[Serena Brandt]

Normally, I would address issues with the event producer directly. On that note, I have expressed the desire to discuss my concerns in private with Varsity on multiple occasions. Once I was told they were getting a group of various gym owners and flying them to Memphis to discuss. (In fairness, that may have happened, but I wasn't a part of that.) During the event itself, I asked a higher-up when would be the best time to express my numerous concerns and was told that I should "bring it up at Varsity U". I'm sorry, but out of principle, I'm not paying to attend a Varsity infomercial just to express my concerns about Summit.

This is mostly from memory, but my issues with Summit fall into 2 main categories. The main one, by far, is the various negative effects the event has/has had on the health/future of our industry. That is a full-length manifesto by itself (perhaps for another day). The other is the actual event itself. Here is a brief list of the areas I thought fell short this year:

Venue Design.

We were sold the idea of the new building as the end-all-be-all building for cheer. It clearly was set up with the idea that you could run 4 simultaneous floors at once. There are multiple (foreseeable) reasons that just isn't happening. The architect needs to be sued.

1. Audio design is poor. The bleed from each floor was huge. It looks like minimal, if any, effort was put into containing sound from one floor to another. This meant music had to be kept at MUCH lower volume than any other event we attended. Athletes were missing cues because of this.
2. Crowd/bleachers was awkwardly close to floors.
3. Judges area at an unusual angle to view routines and unusually close.
4. Whoever pushes play unable to get in front of team.
5. Incredibly crowded backstage area - unsafe and nowhere to have a quiet moment with team (prayers, etc) prior to performances
6. Temperature control in warmup room way off.
7. Internal signage was confusing (which floor was which?)
8. Pedestrian traffic flow was dangerously mismanaged. Arena entrance/exit traffic funneled through 1 woefully undersized area shared with the park entrance. I don't see an easy way to fix this massive design flaw.
9. The fire department (understandably) shut the event down while athletes stood in the heat for a LONG time unable to move. No one was willing to leave for fear they couldn't get back in, but no one could get in until people left. There was little to no communication about the resulting time delays, etc.

How they didn't foresee these issues is beyond me. Disney is normally fantastic at moving herds of people around. Surely they have software to model those things when building multi-million dollar arenas? They were running 3 floors and having major traffic issues - 4 seemed like an impossibility. If you couldn't run 4, why design the arena the way you did?

Event Logistics

1. Scoresheet distribution was inconsistent
2. Scoring not available online in timely manner
3. New schedule not updated in timely manner
4. No hospitality for coaches
5. Staff didn't know answers to basic questions
6. Event ended far too late in evening
7. Multiple errors in results/announcements
8. Legality and USASF booth undermanned, too far away from event
9. Some divisions too large to be judged effectively
10. Ran out of individual awards/prizes LONG before event was even close to being over

The marketing on Summit has been brilliant. They have convinced parents that Summit is incredibly exclusive, while simultaneously having the largest number of teams of any event in cheer. They need to spend some of that talent/energy on the event itself.

NCA and other events are truly fantastic experiences nearly every single year. Varsity can run some amazing, world-class events. 2018 D1 Summit was not one of them.

If video's are constantly posted online/youtube WHY do cheer venue's tape up the windows? With advent of Nasser I feel that there should be more transparency rather than less.

 

[Serena Brandt]

Been to the past 4 Summits. Last year was a bona fide sh-tshow. The new arena was godawful. Soooooo crowded, each stage was so small & dinky. You could hear music from all the other stages, and I ended up jammed up so close I could see up my CP’s nostrils. And OMG...almost saw 2 separate fights over seating. Hope they get their act together before this year,

Ewww. Sounds like CA gym on any given day due to overcrowding (more people more money-don't care)...I once saw a girl tumble into another team practicing it's that bad.

 

[Serena Brandt]

Would love to see your report. Wow

Wow is right. Owners don't want to hear about any serious issues going on in their gyms until there is a huge lawsuit (shocked their haven't been more). Glad to hear Summit is a complete waste of time and money....phew.

 

[Serena Brandt]

Normally, I would address issues with the event producer directly. On that note, I have expressed the desire to discuss my concerns in private with Varsity on multiple occasions. Once I was told they were getting a group of various gym owners and flying them to Memphis to discuss. (In fairness, that may have happened, but I wasn't a part of that.) During the event itself, I asked a higher-up when would be the best time to express my numerous concerns and was told that I should "bring it up at Varsity U". I'm sorry, but out of principle, I'm not paying to attend a Varsity infomercial just to express my concerns about Summit.

This is mostly from memory, but my issues with Summit fall into 2 main categories. The main one, by far, is the various negative effects the event has/has had on the health/future of our industry. That is a full-length manifesto by itself (perhaps for another day). The other is the actual event itself. Here is a brief list of the areas I thought fell short this year:

Venue Design.

We were sold the idea of the new building as the end-all-be-all building for cheer. It clearly was set up with the idea that you could run 4 simultaneous floors at once. There are multiple (foreseeable) reasons that just isn't happening. The architect needs to be sued.

1. Audio design is poor. The bleed from each floor was huge. It looks like minimal, if any, effort was put into containing sound from one floor to another. This meant music had to be kept at MUCH lower volume than any other event we attended. Athletes were missing cues because of this.
2. Crowd/bleachers was awkwardly close to floors.
3. Judges area at an unusual angle to view routines and unusually close.
4. Whoever pushes play unable to get in front of team.
5. Incredibly crowded backstage area - unsafe and nowhere to have a quiet moment with team (prayers, etc) prior to performances
6. Temperature control in warmup room way off.
7. Internal signage was confusing (which floor was which?)
8. Pedestrian traffic flow was dangerously mismanaged. Arena entrance/exit traffic funneled through 1 woefully undersized area shared with the park entrance. I don't see an easy way to fix this massive design flaw.
9. The fire department (understandably) shut the event down while athletes stood in the heat for a LONG time unable to move. No one was willing to leave for fear they couldn't get back in, but no one could get in until people left. There was little to no communication about the resulting time delays, etc.

How they didn't foresee these issues is beyond me. Disney is normally fantastic at moving herds of people around. Surely they have software to model those things when building multi-million dollar arenas? They were running 3 floors and having major traffic issues - 4 seemed like an impossibility. If you couldn't run 4, why design the arena the way you did?

Event Logistics

1. Scoresheet distribution was inconsistent
2. Scoring not available online in timely manner
3. New schedule not updated in timely manner
4. No hospitality for coaches
5. Staff didn't know answers to basic questions
6. Event ended far too late in evening
7. Multiple errors in results/announcements
8. Legality and USASF booth undermanned, too far away from event
9. Some divisions too large to be judged effectively
10. Ran out of individual awards/prizes LONG before event was even close to being over

The marketing on Summit has been brilliant. They have convinced parents that Summit is incredibly exclusive, while simultaneously having the largest number of teams of any event in cheer. They need to spend some of that talent/energy on the event itself.

NCA and other events are truly fantastic experiences nearly every single year. Varsity can run some amazing, world-class events. 2018 D1 Summit was not one of them.

So sue a venue but not a gym for some of same issues?