Actually this is probably the 2nd to the last year the Juniors and Cadets will compete in a consolidated tournament at Fargo. At the meetings in Fargo we will be voting on a new proposed schedule which will combine the Cadets & Kids in a national championship tournament held one week prior to the traditional Fargo date. The Junior Nationals would be held on the same week as Fargo, but probably at a different location.
There are two principal reasons for the proposed change:
- The Kids' National Championships has not been particularly successful the past few years. By combining the Cadets (a very successful event) with the Kids, the hope is that the excitement generated by the Cadets will carry over to the Kids, allowing both events to flourish.
- With combination of the Juniors and Cadets you end up with an event which is so large that you are severely restricted in finding a venue capable of handling the number of mats, lodging, meals, etc. that are necessary.
I'll miss the opportunity to watch all of the Cadet & Juniors competing at the one big extravaganza that is Fargo, but accept that it is all but inevitable that this vote will pass. I think that Fargo’s enthusiasm for hosting the event has waned as they have worn out their volunteers over the past 16 or so years. Also, the lack of viable alternatives has allowed Fargo to steadily increase the costs beyond what we would normally expect. Many of the states have to fly their teams to the tournament and have complained each year about the lack of affordable airfare into the Fargo airport. For these reasons and the two mentioned above, I believe the handwriting is on the wall.
If the vote is made to split the tournaments, and if the vote is upheld at the State Leaders’ Summit, then 2010 will be the last year the Junior & Cadet Nationals will be held at Fargo.