I hate to bash anyone who attempts to run something of this size. It is a massive undertaking at least. Anyone who has helped at such an event can attest to this. With that said I do have issues with this year. The facility was not up to size for either the floor space or the stands. I understand that the dimensions of floor space was not communicated well and resulted in overly cramped conditions. This was compounded by the parents that soon realized that there wasn’t anyone controlling the back hall entrance to the floor. Within an hour of this it was almost impossible as a coach to get to the mat to coach a kid. At one point it took 8 minutes to get from the brackets in the hall to mat 2. By mid-day steps had been put in place to correct the situation, but the damage was already done.
The process of weigh-ins was also a joke at best. Only two scales for a district event?
I must agree with Jeff about the hospitality room and the staff. The young lady you were speaking of that was helping could give some manner lessons to the adults running the doors.
The need for a larger facility is at the bottom of all the problems. We have a good problem that our sport has grown to the point that district 1 can now fill something the size of a stadium. Let’s not forget that we are here to support our sport that we dedicate so many hours to and the kids that participate in it.
With all of this in mind we as parents, coaches, and wrestlers need to voice not only opinions, but suggestions for a fix. Mine would be not to run split secessions but to find a larger facility. What about Jo County, Baker, or even Memorial Hall in KC?