[mike777]

A few recent ACBL notes:

Attendance was down at the Boston NABC.
Membership is up 1,389 from a year ago.
Regional table count was down 2%.
Sectional table count was down 3.5%.
Online table count was up 24%.
Online clubs will be able to run club championships quarterly on Mondays through Thursdays. They must be at least 18 boards and are limited to a maximum award of 3.9 masterpoints.
The budget for 2009 is expected to be in the red.

[mtvesuvius]

Interesting, Mike... I was in Boston, and I believe they had 2000 tables below the predicted table count. In Las Vegas they were under nearly 5000 tables... Why is this?

[CSGibson]

Probably had something to do with the economy - less disposable dollars to go to tournaments

[glen]

CSGibson, on Dec 27 2008, 05:15 PM, said:

Probably had something to do with the economy - less disposable dollars to go to tournaments

This, and aging customer base

[matmat]

and disallowing forcing pass.

[TimG]

mtvesuvius, on Dec 27 2008, 03:57 PM, said:

Interesting, Mike... I was in Boston, and I believe they had 2000 tables below the predicted table count. In Las Vegas they were under nearly 5000 tables... Why is this?

I don't think it takes much to tip the scales for many potential NABC participants.

It would be interesting to compare numbers in NABC events to regional events.

[JoAnneM]

At least the table count for 2008 NABC's was the highest since 2004. The economy, weather, and timing all play a part in a tournament's table count and predicting is nothing more than that - a guessing game.

For instance, in 2007 the San Francisco NABC started on Thanksgiving day so it didn't really impact the tournament very much, but this year at Boston Thanksgiving was in the middle of the tournament and probably had a much larger impact on the attendance.

I don't know why we need to have these national tournaments downtown in the cities. I am at the Regional Regional right now and talked to a couple from Houston today. They are getting ready for the Spring NABC that is to be held in downtown Houston. They said the parking is going to be so bad that many of the local players are not even planning on attending the tournament.

The whole point of scattering these NABC's around is so that everyone has an opportunity to attend and then they are made convenient only if you arrive by airport shuttle.

Anyway, I doubt if Las Vegas was a huge disappointment since it was the largest NABC since 1991.

[TimG]

I think the reason that NABCs are generally downtown is that's where the convention space is. Orlando, for instance, isn't downtown. Presumably because there is plenty of convention space away from downtown.

In New England, the options for a regional are rather limited because of convention space, I imagine it is a whole lot more difficult for a NABC.

[mike777]

TimG, on Dec 28 2008, 12:09 AM, said:

I think the reason that NABCs are generally downtown is that's where the convention space is.  Orlando, for instance, isn't downtown.  Presumably because there is plenty of convention space away from downtown.

In New England, the options for a regional are rather limited because of convention space, I imagine it is a whole lot more difficult for a NABC.

Interesting point, but I note in such places as......Chicago, LA, and SD there is plenty of convention space away from "downtown". I do not know about other towns but locals should know. OTOH downtown often gets you closer to clubs....super dinners and plays...etc etc. OTOH I just wonder how many just go for bridge, bridge and bridge and clean, safe hotel room with a fun packed bar.

[qwery_hi]

mike777, on Dec 27 2008, 03:50 PM, said:

A few recent ACBL notes:

Attendance was down at the Boston NABC.
Membership is up 1,389 from a year ago.
Regional table count was down 2%.
Sectional table count was down 3.5%.
Online table count was up 24%.
Online clubs will be able to run club championships quarterly on Mondays through Thursdays. They must be at least 18 boards and are limited to a maximum award of 3.9 masterpoints.
The budget for 2009 is expected to be in the red.

I see online bridge as one of the reasons for the lower table counts. For example, instead of driving 5 hours to Reno and spending $500, I can play bridge from home using BBO. I have made a few friends on BBO and I enjoy playing online with them.
I don't always miss the thrill and competitive fervor of playing in regionals/nationals, but sometimes I do.

Personally, one of the attractions for me to go to the regionals is so that I can play against zmud-balicki, or one of the top american players. I don't think I can name another sport where for $10 I can play against the current national champions.

[TimG]

mike777, on Dec 28 2008, 12:55 AM, said:

TimG, on Dec 28 2008, 12:09 AM, said:

I think the reason that NABCs are generally downtown is that's where the convention space is.  Orlando, for instance, isn't downtown.  Presumably because there is plenty of convention space away from downtown.

In New England, the options for a regional are rather limited because of convention space, I imagine it is a whole lot more difficult for a NABC.

Interesting point, but I note in such places as......Chicago, LA, and SD there is plenty of convention space away from "downtown". I do not know about other towns but locals should know. OTOH downtown often gets you closer to clubs....super dinners and plays...etc etc. OTOH I just wonder how many just go for bridge, bridge and bridge and clean, safe hotel room with a fun packed bar.

The last time the NABC was in LA, wasn't it really in Long Beach? Far from downtown, anyway.

But, your point is well taken: an NABC in Oakland would not be as popular as one in SF. NABC attendees do make their travel decisions based upon plenty of non-bridge related considerations.

[matmat]

wonder if the cell phone ban had any influence on this at all.

[TimG]

matmat, on Dec 28 2008, 09:47 AM, said:

wonder if the cell phone ban had any influence on this at all.

Josh wasn't in Boston, was he? That accounts for -1.

[mtvesuvius]

matmat, on Dec 28 2008, 09:47 AM, said:

wonder if the cell phone ban had any influence on this at all.

Good Point, but I doubt that this affected very much... Many of my partners were also not in Boston. Between us we could have raised the attendence by 20

[JoAnneM]

Well right now I am going to put a plug in for the Spring 2010 Reno NABC (I am finance chair). Room rates will be $89 at the Grand Sierra (once the MGM, Hilton, etc). It was a very large NABC in 2004 (almost 15,000 tables) and we are hoping for a large turnout this time as well. It is one of the most affordable NABC's around. Parking is free!

[mtvesuvius]

I'll be there

[barmar]

matmat, on Dec 28 2008, 09:47 AM, said:

wonder if the cell phone ban had any influence on this at all.

Very unlikely, since it doesn't apply to most events -- I guestimate that 5-10% of the tables at an NABC are in NABC+ events. Most players are in regional or I/N events.

[keylime]

Reno in Spring 2010? Hmmm I need to make some Canadian calls then....

[JoAnneM]

See you there, and you are going to love the registration gift!

[JanM]

Personally, I love Reno - I can drive there, I enjoy the scenery on the way and the view from the hotel, there are good restaurants, the playing conditions are good (at least now that we don't have to play in (on?) the tennis courts any more. But of course, what I like is completely irrelevant - I'm going to go to the NABC wherever it is. The people whose attendance affects the table count are surely the ones for whom NABCs are discretionary - those who don't go to all of them. lt's an interesting question what makes those people choose to go to one city but not another. There are lots of possibilities, I just don't know which are more important.

How easy is it to get to the site? Reno isn't very good on this, Las Vegas is great, Boston & Houston probably somewhere in between. Does it matter a lot or a little to the "discretionary" people whether they have to change planes on the way to an NABC site?

Are there things to do around the playing site? Within walking distance or easy to get to on public transportation. Since I have a car in Reno, it's easy for me to get to the restaurants and casinos that aren't nearby. In Boston I could walk to interesting places. I don't know about Houston, but my recollection from the last time we were there is that there was very little nearby.

Are there convenient restaurants? Within walking distance? Does that matter to people? I'm a "bridge tournaments are for playing bridge" kind of person, so I tend to go grocery shopping and eat dinner in my room when I'm playing, but it's nice to be able to go out when not. San Francisco was great, Reno's good except you need to have a car or take a cab. Boston was somewhat limited. I don't know about Houston.

How much difference does it make to the "discretionary" players when there isn't one site where all the games are played? I'd think it would be something of a problem, since I suspect that the "discretionary" players are more likely to want to play in the NABC events but then if they get eliminated would tend to want to play in the Regional events rather than kibitz the NABC events. That might have been a problem with Boston.