Parkwayred,
I think your missing the point. I'm not bashing or whining on the clubs tournament. I was only expressing my experience at the tournaments that are of topic. Saying that spending 13 hours in a gym seems ridiculous to me, if that is bashing or whining the clubs so be it. What is ridiculous is for you to say that if your child wants to go to the next level they need to get used to it. It is that type of thinking that a lot of kids don’t make it to the next level. My son’s 02/03 was his first season, he wrestled in the 6u division. It is very difficult to entertain a LL kids for 13 hours so that they can wrestle. A lot of kids look forward to wrestling but when they spend that much time in a gym, that wears on them and they no longer want to attend a tournament because the last tournament they went to was “to long”.

I do have to admit that I haven’t been to a high match since I wrestled (graduated in ’88). But I can tell you that if my son is 14 years old (freshmen in HS) and still wrestling, I don’t have to worry about entertaining my son at that age. At that point in his life he’ll understand and realize the price you pay to wrestle. Your not trying to keep him in sport at the age, he is already involved. LL kids, you have to keep it fun for them and spending 13 hours in a gym isn’t fun for LL kids.

My club put on a tournament, Border War Challenge and I spent 2 days working that tournament. Day one, setting up the gyms (mats, cleaning, setting up tables (clock, watches, paper towels, first aid kit and etc) and etc). Day two, working the table, picking up trash and removing the mats from the gym. Also my wife worked in the concession stand for a while. I worked the tournament from start (6am) to finish (don’t recall the time). I even paid my nephew $20 to help at the tournament. I paid just like everybody else and had 2 sons wrestle in the tournament. Did our tournament have problems, yes, as everyone else. I hope we learned from our mistakes and correct them. I think that is more of the point of the “whining or bashing” (as you put it), have better time restraints on the tournament.

Speaking of volunteers, the Topeka Tournament was asking for volunteers throughout the Tournament, doesn't that say that the capacity exceeded the volunteers? That would also contribute to the time spent at a tournament? Adequate volunteers would’ve kept the tournament running more smoothly.

I don’t want KS fans, wrestlers or clubs to think that I have a problem with KS Tournaments because I don’t. I just have a problem with 13 hour tournament. Outside the Topeka Tournament, 9 hours was the longest time spent at a Tournament. To me 9 hours is all day, 13 hours is too long. Remember were talking LL kids not High School kids.