Big arena, big crowd , nice trophy. Yea .....big price ...... Give me a break. Let's make some more money off a child's sporting event $32.00 entry fee . No drinks or food allowed. A $5.00 plus menu....makes it hard for avg. families to get a chance to enter. Why so expensive . The arena don't make enough money off all the other events you got to make it hard for a kids event. Get real people give back to the kids instead of driving them away from a sport that keeps kids off the street and teaches discipline. No thanks..I'll pass

Then don't go...plenty of others will. This has been discussed many times on here, big tournament, best competition will cost more sometimes. Some of these clubs you accuse of making money are willing to open their books for you to look at and show you the millions they are sticking in their pockets. There are more than enough $15 and $16 tournaments around that we can go where our budget allows.

Not going is an option. Jacob has never been to the Wichita Classic. I can see paying the money for Tulsa and the Kickoff, but I feel that there is not enough competition for the price in Park City, therefore we have never gone. We stopped going to JOC two years ago for the same reason. Decide if the competition is worth the money.

I believe there is NOT a gate fee, which is unusual at a great venue like Hartman.......Noone says you can't go to the parking lot and eat your lunch that you bring with you, or go and get. I'm not big into the fancy awards, but there are nice trophies at this tourney as well. Like has been said above, if you don't see the value in going, don't go. Looks like Oklahoma is bringing kids again to meet up with our tough Kansas kids, so you'll miss out on some good talent if you don't come.

If you are the parents of the Helm kids that was entered in 6U state, I see there is one entered under that last name.

$25 entry, $5 gate and the same (if not worse) drink Nazis and priced food, plus if that was your child the drive from Ark City.

The 7 dollar difference shouldn't be the deterant here, honestly even $15 should. Wrestling is a expensive sport no doubt about it, but as I have said before the entry fee is the cheapest thing you will do all weekend.

If you can't handle that most clubs like mine have assistance programs to help the ones that truly can't afford the sport.

I think it is laughable how someone can complain in advance to a tournament they have the choice not to go to at all.

AT&T really pisses me off no coverage around Hutch and Haven, slow internet, missed calls. They are 20 bucks more than Verizon. If I could only switch some how...dang freedom....where are you....when I need you....

agreed

Question for those that have ran tournaments before? If you have a great venue like hartman and you lowered the entry to say 20 bucks but get atleast 1/3 rd more entries wouldn't you come out pretty close to the same revenue and improve the reputation of the tourney for the future?

I believe that is why some tournaments go the other way. Increase price and have a lower attendance and still make the same amount of money. Fewer wrestlers equal less headaches and still make same amount of money.

Yes that makes since, but this is the park city classic! Used to be one of the dates on the calendar that kids clubs cirled! We will take less than half the kids our club usually does to Hartman this year. Not good. Lets go back to the smelly cow barn.

One of the things that is hurting this tournament is the Leagues in District 2 are having their League Tournaments the same day. All of Ark City's Middle School Aged kids will be in El Dorado that day, along with Winfield, El Dorado, Clearwater, Rose Hill, Circle and others. I know of three league tournaments going on that weekend. It would be nice if we could get the Middle Schools to start the season just a little sooner.

Beeson brings up a topic that I have been wondering about. Why are middle school seasons not on the same schedule throughout the State? In the East part of the state my kid was done with MS mid-December, therefore only really missing one kids tournament. Just curious as to why that is that way. I assume that carries over to other sports also since they allow MS kids to basically participate in all sports.

Why? Because we live in Kansas. And they won't budge. Football, volleyball, basketball, baseball, tennis, etc. are all at the same time. Wrestling is the only sport, (that I know of) has a split season for middle school. That's why, your 12u/14u it's hard to find quality matches early or late in the season. Split sessions. Kansas needs to change, (which they won't) But if you are wrestling middle school and have no tournament on Saturday, why not let them do a club event. That's why we are in the dark ages.

Seems to surmise it's a District 2 issue with the schools that are involved. Is this correct? Hence, one can't justify Kansas is in the "Dark Ages". Is it really true Football & Basketball (ahem) are going on @ the same time?

Not same time! Duh! Each season, 1 sport. Fall Football, cross country. Winter, basketball, wrestling. Spring, baseball or track. What I'm saying is the STATE needs to be the same across the board. I don't see a split football or basketball season.

Go to western kansas classic instead, $24 entry, all the food and drink you want to take in, no gate fee. Great competition don't need to wrestle Oklahoma kids this point in year anyway. See kids haven't seen from district 4 this year. Well organized out in good time. Nice awards.

Mike Ewalt
Linn County Twisters
FHSU Alum

We will be there :}

Good post Mike. The Western Kansas Classic is the best big tournament to attend. Reasonable entry fee, no door Nazi's, and tough D4 kids to wrestle.

Josh Parker

I agree with Beeson on the middle school thing. Out here in district 4 most of the south is down with middle school wrestling December 7. A few up north are done at the same time. So if you were done in Dec. you play hell finding matches. In fact most tournaments out here don't even have 14 and under. We have had to travel at least 3 hours most time more just to find matches. We need to all be the same time.