Open Letter from Kansas Kids Executive Director Greg Grater
concerning bracketing at the 2002 Kids State Folkstyle Championships:

I have always said as Kids State Executive Director that I would not respond to comments on the talk page when the topic or issue has already been discussed and decided at the State Body Meeting or at Executive Council Meetings. However, at Mike Juby’s request, I have decided to make an exception this time.

The State Tournament Directors, which are Bill Stanhope and Leanna Grater, want to run the state tournament, as everyone in the state would like it done. That is why at the State Body Meeting in November, Bill Stanhope went over the 2001 State Tournament and asked those in attendance if the State Tournament format should be changed back. If I remember correctly, no one said a word and I don’t think there much discussion regarding the State Tournament in general. In my report as Executive Director, I also asked how people liked the different format, and the only comments made aloud were positive ones. At the Executive Council meeting held the last weekend of January, Bill and Leanna asked what the council thought of the new format, and again, no negative comments!! I do not feel the talk page is the place to make an executive decision, when we have 165+ clubs in the State of Kansas and there is a possibility that some of these people posting comments are not the ones at the State Body Meeting who will be representing your local club and placing a vote. I would strongly suggest that you make your comments known to your club representative to discuss at the State Body Meeting in November or your District Director to discuss at the Executive Council Meetings held in September and February.

We do not feel this is something to change the week of the State Tournament simply because of some posts on the talk page. In an email received directly at our home last night (Monday), we were told not to number and write the brackets until after we had read the talk page comments. For those who don’t quite know how we do things – we receive the names of the state qualifiers from each of the districts shortly before noon on Sunday. At 1:30 our house is full of our club parents helping us complete the brackets, bout sheets, and numbering. At 4:45 p.m., the names of the qualifiers were emailed to Mike Juby to be put on the Kansas web page for everyone’s information. By 8:00 p.m., we were running copies of the brackets to be copied for club packets and sold at the State Tournament, as well as names for the Program Book. At 10:00 p.m., we were finishing up our motel reservations for our own club, etc. and making any corrections to the tournament information that we had received via email. The brackets are not done over the entire week as the email suggested, BUT in one day and that day was Sunday!! The rest of the week is used to get club packet list made, press passes completed, corrections made, and get everything packed up and ready to go. Of course this year, we are doing all of this with one less day to prepare.

We will probably follow last year’s format, which was to wrestle three front door matches and then part of a back door round. We need to also consider the table workers (some who are working all day), mat officials, Kansas Expocentre staff, and those individuals (volunteers) who are actually running the tournament. Just because the last match of the day has been wrestled, it doesn’t mean tournament officials get to go back to the motel. We try to finish the tournament on the first day around 6:30 – 7:00 p.m. Therefore, we must decide which match number will get us that far the first day. Sometimes we need to wait and see how the tournament is running before we announce the ending number. It may be noon or 1:00 p.m. before we are able to make that announcement. Yes, we have an idea of what number we will be wrestling too, but we cannot announce that until we see how things are going. I know for a fact, it will vary from year-to-year on how smoothly things go. Someone suggested it is because of money that we won’t wrestle the complete back door round. Money has never been an issue in this matter!!

I was trying to remember the reason the state tournament format was changed and if I remember correctly, it was brought up at the state body meeting to run Kids State similar to High School state. Generally I am not in favor of a change, because if something works, why mess with it? There was some discussion and Bill and Leanna were convinced to give it a try. We asked for feedback this year at the executive council meetings and state body meeting and didn’t’ receive any negative comments, even though I heard (but did not read) that the talk page had a few after the tournament last year. Bill said he received a few phone calls, but his comments to us were that the majority came from his District and the Topeka area. Anytime you make change, not everyone is going to agree with it until they get use to the idea.

To make a change, it takes a majority vote of the clubs to do so. Those decisions are made at the State Body Meeting in November. The vote cannot be taken by a phone poll (as one email suggests) on an issue of this matter, especially when things are already completed and ready to go. This is the reason State Body Meetings are held annually so people can discuss issues and vote on them at that time. Each year at the State Body Meeting the State Tournament is discussed and open for comments and suggestions!!

In regards to the motel situation, those clubs involved in Kansas Kids Wrestling, not your Executive Council members or anyone else, brought on the two-night requirement made by the hotels. Clubs were booking way more rooms than they would need, booking at two different motels, or waiting until a day before to release any rooms they were not needing. That is why year after year, we stress to those involved in making the reservations to keep in contact with the motels and recommend releasing the rooms on Monday. We know that a club from western Kansas this year dropped 25 rooms at the Holidome because they booked at two different locations. We sign a contract each year with the motel, call when our season starts to verify everything, call to release any rooms we do not need Monday morning, as well as fax a rooming list to them by Monday noon with all the necessary information for our entire group. I cannot blame the motels for making the requirements they have because club representatives of our organization have caused those requirements.

For those who don’t know, Bill Stanhope runs his own business and is battling a second bout of cancer. The family has been busy dealing with issues at work, as well as his health over the past several months. Please keep him and his family in your prayers, as you will not see him much at this year’s tournament! Leanna works outside the home for a CPA (which this is a busy time for her also), besides being a mother, wife, and very involved in our own wrestling club. I know I would like for them to have a little family time this week, instead of using all their spare time to prepare for the state tournament. Both of these individuals love the sport wrestling and will do anything for it. Remember, they are volunteering their time, as many do in this organization. There are a lot of midnight hours burnt at our home during State & National tournament time.

I know we are not going to satisfy everyone on this issue. We are going to give it a try once again this year. If individuals are still dissatisfied with it, I strongly encourage you to voice your opinion to your District Director, at your District Meetings, and to the individual who will be representing your club at the State Body Meeting in November, instead of posting on the talk page. Personally, I don’t have a lot of time or desire to read “everything” that is posted on the forum.

This is the State Tournament. It is a great weekend to watch some excellent matches and for individuals to learn more about the sport of wrestling. It is also a nice way to end the folkstyle season and reward the wrestlers for a job well done. As one post said, it is a lot better to go back to the motel or home, knowing you are still competing at the state tournament on Day 2!

Greg Grater
Executive State Director
USAW-Kansas Kids