Some Basics about Running a Sanctioned Tournament
My perspective on being a Tournament Director for NHPA-sanctioned tournaments
Subtitled: 'So you want to be a Tournament Director?'
by Kay Keskinen, recipient of the NHPA Achievement Award (2020), Idaho SHPA Hall of Fame inductee (2022), and TD (2018-)
Tournament Directors are the life-blood of the NHPA (National Horseshoe Pitchers Association) and its state charters.
They are the people who put in countless hours hosting tournaments.
The time they spend includes not only running the show on tournament day but also all the pre-event preparations such as cutting the grass, edging the pitching platforms,
preparing the courts, accepting entries, setting up the classes, and promoting the tournament through various means of communication.
And then there are the post-tournament tasks: awarding the prizes and patches, putting away the items used for the tournament (broom, rake, tables, chairs, clipboards, etc.),
sending out press releases to the local newspapers, posting tournament information on social media (Facebook, eg), and sending the tournament results to the NHPA through e-Shoe.
What would the NHPA do without tournaments? Which leads to, what would the NHPA do without Tournament Directors?
This information is intended to assist the Tournament Directors (TDs) to run a sanctioned tournament according to the rules and guidelines of the NHPA which
are found in the RGS (RULES/REGULATIONS GUIDELINES SPECIFICATIONS);
the current (1/1/2024) RGS can be found in PDF format
here.
Disclaimer: This information does NOT speak for or represent the NHPA in any way, shape, or form. It is a compliation of notes of my personal experiences as a
pitcher and TD. This information is intended to assist the TDs to run a sanctioned tournament according to the NHPA RGS. The information is based on my own experience, adding specifics from the RGS here and there.
This web page is not to replace any rules, regulations, or guidelines of the NHPA, but rather to offer
information to help fill in the gaps.
What is a 'sanctioned tournament'?
A 'sanctioned tournament' is one that follows the rules of the NHPA and is held on horseshoe courts that meet the specifications of the NHPA as described in the current RGS. The courts have also been inspected
by the state's Regional Director (RD) such that the courts have been certified by the RD to verify they meet those specifications.
Every few years all courts must be re-inspected by the RD to ensure that the courts continue to meet the specifications outlined in the RGS.
If you wish to contact your state's RD, the NHPA website has a downloadable Excel file of the RDs under 'About Us' on the NHPA website.
Or, this link RD Directors may take you directly to the
download of the current (6/1/2023) Excel file of RDs.
Overview: What are the main steps in running a sanctioned tournament?
- 1. Understand the rules, regulations, and guidelines in the NHPA RGS (especially the sections related to TDs and tournaments)
- 2. Find sanctioned horseshoe courts
- 3. Work with your RD to schedule one or more tournaments; RDs post tournaments to e-Shoe (look under Events)
more on this topic
- 4. Reserve, if needed, the horseshoe courts for the dates and times needed for your tournament(s)
more on this topic
- 5. Promote your tournaments (local newspapers, social media, etc.)
The press releases I send to the sports desks announcing the upcoming tournament may attract pitchers on occasion, and many times it has drawn people who want to
watch. And then from the spectators, I have gained a few people who joined the NHPA and became pitchers.
- 6. Accept registrations for the tournament
more on this topic
- 7. Place the registered pitchers in classes
more on this topic
- 8. Prepare the courts (cut grass, prepare pits, paint stakes, etc.) shortly before the tournament.
- 9. Prepare materials: scoresheets with clipboards and sharpened pencils, cash box for registration fees, round robin or player sheets for each player, and such.
I ask that pitchers bring exact change for their registration fee; I am not a bank. I often pitched in tournaments that had a $15 registration fee,
and I always paid with three 5-dollar bills. The club treasurer thanked me because my exact change often helped her make change for those who gave her a twenty-dollar bill.
- 10. Gather needed tools for tournament: broom, rake, shovel, can of white spray paint, folding chairs and tables, water bucket (for clay courts), etc.
- 11. Arrive at the horseshoe courts at least a half hour before registration time.
- 12. Set up registration area with needed paperwork; place tools for pit tidying in a handy location; prep pits as needed including one last spray of white paint on the front of the stakes;
set out chairs with scoresheets, clipboards, and pencils for scorekeepers.
- 13. If you are offering water/coffee and/or snacks (donuts, granola bars, etc.) for participants, set those near the registration table.
Since COVID, I switched from donuts to individually-wrapped granola bars.
- 14. Wait for pitchers to arrive. Greet each, introduce yourself if needed. Welcome all, especially those who are new pitchers or who have come a long way to pitch.
- 15. Registering pitchers
more on this topic
- 16. Scorekeepers
more on this topic
- 17. Making announcements
more on this topic
- 18. Once everything is at the ready, let the games begin!
- 19. TD also pitching
more on this topic
- 20. Scoresheets need to be turned in to the registration table as games are completed.
Pitchers need to be kept updated as to how they stand in their class as the games proceed.
Round robin cards can be updated after each game, or perhaps scores can be entered into e-Shoe at the tournament site so class data
can be posted as the tournament goes forward.
- 21. At the conclusion of the tournament, thank pitchers for coming and making the tournament a success. Thank the scorekeepers and any other volunteers.
Announce those who place in each class, saving the tournament champion for the last name announced. Hand out patches and cash awards as needed.
Take any photos of the pitchers who placed and/or won their classes.
- 22. Ask for help if needed to collect tools, tables, chairs, scorekeeper items, and such that were used for the tournament.
Check all pit areas that no one has left a horseshoe, pick-up stick, measuring tool, towel, water bottle, etc.
- 23. Go home.
- 24. If all tournament stats were entered on site in e-Shoe, then the NHPA has all the tourney stats.
If e-Shoe was not used on site, then enter the data from the scoresheets into e-Shoe.
Here is the link to the e-Shoe Instructional Video e-Shoe Instructional Videos
- 25. Remit the 'per pitcher' payment to the state treasurer. In Idaho the TDs are to send $2 for each pitcher who competed in a sanctioned tournament to the state treasurer.
Other states may have a similar way to support the state association.
- 26. Tournament follow-up publicity:
more on this topic
Resources
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