Your thoughts on Highlander competitions, sanctioned or no?

[Gin Master]

Dear IGX Cognoscenti and Proto,

This is a question for the board, Highlander competitors, HGers, SM, and whoever else has a thought.

I've put on a Highlander (1/2 Highland Games, 1/2 strongman) before and will do so in the future. I'd prefer to do two a year. I have a sponsor, and we both lose money on the deal and will continue to do so. Anything we make will be used to buy more kit to make the future competitions better. I just want to host a cool competition that's fun for competitors and spectators alike.

To obtain a sanction (and call it a Highlander), competitors have to get a $25 NAHA card. The entry fee (that goes to us) is charged on top of that. Last year we charged less for an entry fee than we did for the cards to keep the cost of entry down for the casual competitor (most of the people did their first comp with us and have gone on to do SM and HG). Again, my goal is to give interested people a venue in which to compete and build awareness for these types of events.

So here's the rub. Is it worth it to run a sanctioned event where people have to pay $25 for a card they'll use once a year (twice if they're in my state)? I appreciate the guys who started and promote the movement, and I'd be happy to grow the sport, but really...what's the point of a sanction if nobody else is hosting and promoting these events? Oh yeah, I'd have to pay a $75 sanction fee on top of collecting $25 per head if you want your event to be sanctioned.

I don't want to be a dick and take money from the guys who had the original idea, but this isn't terribly unique IP we're talking about.

Here are the questions:

* Is the sport growing enough that I should still be running these under the NAHA (there are fewer listed competitions this year than in the last three years)?
* Do competitors give a damn about participating in a sanctioned event and having their name in the state record books (that nobody knows about)?
* Are there any compelling reasons why I shouldn't just run my own shit, charge competitors a lower overall fee, not lose as much money on the deal, and throw better and more frequent competitions?

[TerryB]

Your thoughts on Highlander competitions

My opinion?

There can be only one.

[milosz]

Highland Games as we know them are, what, 150 years old? I don't see any issues with you 'stealing' from the NAHA. Comes down to people giving a shit about the record books, IMO - maybe call up some of last year's competitors and poll them? Would they rather pay $35 total for a non-sanctioned event 3/4 times a year vs $25/$25 twice?

[Blaidd Drwg]

NAHA is not organized enough to support it's own weight at this point. Too few regional contests. I'm still trying to pull the trigger on Nationals which is waay the fook out in Virginia and there has been zero local contests on the west coast this year. It's too bad but it is what it is. Indie contests are plenty fun and you can do the same shit. Ferinstance......




I think competition is good for the federation. The only problem I see with a HG based sport is those guys rarely step outside their comfort zone and so you may get labeled as having a weird contest that is lightly attended.

[milosz]

that event sounds pretty badass

[Gin Master]

I think competition is good for the federation. The only problem I see with a HG based sport is those guys rarely step outside their comfort zone and so you may get labeled as having a weird contest that is lightly attended.

That would be the most polite label that's been put on me. You've seen our contest (which is one week before the NAHA nationals). I'm just looking to attract more local folks and some others from down the road since it doesn't conflict with SM this year. The whole idea was that three other people would promote contests within driving distance of here, and that hasn't come to pass.

[Fat Cat]

Don't know anything about any of this, but I would surely watch it. Sounds fun!

[Gin Master]

By the way, that sounds like a fun contest, especially if it's done in a two hour window.

[Yes I Have Balls]

that event sounds pretty badass

It's be even more badass with a jump rope qualifier.

[Blaidd Drwg]

By the way, that sounds like a fun contest, especially if it's done in a two hour window.

I think if it got done in 2 hours it would be nonstop brutality. It is really a farm boy event, pretty unique.

[dead man walking]

what's the point of the comp?

get a bunch of blocky guys and thick-legged girls together? lift shit? throw other shit? have fun?

aren't you a lawyer?

so create your own federation. sanction your event. cost of membership and registration could all go into the same kitty, which will help pay for the next festival of big bellies and fat asses.

if other organizations actually grow and add events, then you can merge.

[Boris]

that event sounds pretty badass

Indeed. Two minutes of balls to the wall of anything halfway heavy is going to suck A LOT.

[Boris]

I'm just looking to attract more local folks and some others from down the road since it doesn't conflict with SM this year.

Then I would say no, don't bother with making it a sanctioned contest.

I don't know how different HG is from PL but, when I was doing PL, I'd always cringe at having to pay membership for one or at most two local meets a year. Competing in a third meet meant shelling out bucks for a different fed...

The dues weren't expensive but I was seeing no benefit from membership. It may sound silly, but I'd rather pay a $40 entry fee + no membership vs. $25 entry + $25 membership (w. reduced cost at future comps).

I know nothing of business or marketing, so take my opinion w. more than a grain of salt.

[Holland Oates]

I don't care about sanctioning.

If no one is interested in nationals then there's no need for it.

Lift, throw, and drink BLLs.

[Shafpocalypse Now]

No sanction, rather, get it so successful and popular that they ask you if they can sanction it.

[dead man walking]

do something meaningful. bring back the the dover olympicks:

It was during this period that an extravagant, history-loving lawyer named Robert Dover convened the “Olympick” festival in the green hillsides of the Cotswolds. At the time, in the 1620s, Puritans were attacking England’s traditional rural festivals for promoting gambling, drinking, and lewd behavior. Dover’s Olympicks were an act of defiance against this dour movement, and as an annual event, it lured thousands of spectators of all social classes to sit on muddy hillsides near the village of Chipping Campden. A motley range of sports was on the schedule, including hammer throwing, bear baiting, shin kicking, and the brutally violent “fighting with cudgels,” which left the contestants bloody and toothless (an accidental echo of the goriest of the ancient Greek body contact sports, the pankration).
The entire festival was marked by heavy imbibing of ale and a genial air of license, though Dover also included a “Homeric harpist” in an attempt to lift the tone and thus attract the gentry. One English poet in 1636 hailed Dover as a “Hero of this our Age.” But the exuberant festival could not last. The Cotswold games were canceled in 1642 due to nearby fighting during the civil war. Dover died heartbroken eight years later.

and no weak ass bud light lime.

[Gin Master]

Thanks for the replies. Power to the 99%.

[Holland Oates]

do something meaningful. bring back the the dover olympicks:

and no weak ass bud light lime.

I will rape you.

[Blaidd Drwg]

No sanction, rather, get it so successful and popular that they ask you if they can sanction it.

Shaf dropping wisdom like Galileo dropped the orange...


This is of course,the right answer..only question in my mind is insurance and getting cheap but good deal.

[Thatcher II]

Don't sanction. People new to the sport don't give a shit so you'd be charging the
$25 for no benefit. If I were you I'd consider making it free, expressly asking people to make a voluntary contribution if they enjoy it. This will likely net you more money than a flat fee. Particularly if everyone who participates gets a beer or two. Thank me later.

[WildGorillaMan]

do something meaningful. bring back the the dover olympicks:

It was during this period that an extravagant, history-loving lawyer named Robert Dover convened the “Olympick” festival in the green hillsides of the Cotswolds. At the time, in the 1620s, Puritans were attacking England’s traditional rural festivals for promoting gambling, drinking, and lewd behavior. Dover’s Olympicks were an act of defiance against this dour movement, and as an annual event, it lured thousands of spectators of all social classes to sit on muddy hillsides near the village of Chipping Campden. A motley range of sports was on the schedule, including hammer throwing, bear baiting, shin kicking, and the brutally violent “fighting with cudgels,” which left the contestants bloody and toothless (an accidental echo of the goriest of the ancient Greek body contact sports, the pankration).
The entire festival was marked by heavy imbibing of ale and a genial air of license, though Dover also included a “Homeric harpist” in an attempt to lift the tone and thus attract the gentry. One English poet in 1636 hailed Dover as a “Hero of this our Age.” But the exuberant festival could not last. The Cotswold games were canceled in 1642 due to nearby fighting during the civil war. Dover died heartbroken eight years later.

and no weak ass bud light lime.

Hero of the Age indeed.

[Mountebank]

The dues weren't expensive but I was seeing no benefit from membership. It may sound silly, but I'd rather pay a $40 entry fee + no membership vs. $25 entry + $25 membership (w. reduced cost at future comps).

This feels very true to me as well.

[Gin Master]

do something meaningful. bring back the the dover olympicks:

and no weak ass bud light lime.

I will rape you.

That's going to be the tie-breaking WOD.

"Ed"

For Time:
* drink 12 BLL
* rape opponent

[dead man walking]

do something meaningful. bring back the the dover olympicks:

and no weak ass bud light lime.

I will rape you.

so flirty

but i don't roll that way, big mon

[Holland Oates]

so flirty

but i don't roll that way, big mon

The more you fight the tighter it gets.