Just think of all the westcoasters going east all these years

as someone that has a less than 4 hour drive to Notre Dame every year.....YES! I have been spoiled! I can fill my car with food, and pillows/blankets - any comfort from home that I could possibly want!
I will have to pack differently if AYOP requires a plane trip next year! I just hope that it is a location that I can 'explore' a little bit too - make some additional 'fun' in to the trip. Vegas anyone????

just bumping this one up b/c someone is looking for info

Just trying to see.....it's September!!!

Has anyone heard anything???

Still waiting!!! I even sent an email to ask if a decision had been made and got no reply.

ahh! I just got so excited when i saw this topic...i was hoping the location had been picked...

Isn't this exciting? The suspense is just nerve wracking!
DM

Ok so I finally got a reply back from Nicole at AYOP headquarters and she says,"Sorry there has been no dates or location set yet. Nicole American Baton".

Looks like we're all going to have to scramble when they do finally make a decision.

With all due respect that AYOP, Don Sartell and NBTA deserve, I am getting rather annoyed that NBTA can not get it together enough to figure out dates and locations a head of time. This year I thought AYOP was at it's most disorganized ever. My mother and I arrived when the Monogram Room opened on Tuesday to be told there were no more programs. We paid for this contest! Judges scoring was in disarray this year.
I think Twirlmania really knows how to put on a top notch contest. I hope AYOP can adopt some of their style and methods.

Ditto to the above post. AYOP 2009 will have fewer contestants the longer they take to make a decision.

you guys could join us (USTA) in Tucson

I just got a list of contest for southern califorina, the dates are july 21st to the 25th and the location says tentative

How did you find out? Where in SoCal?

So. Cali would be a good location since it's been Eastern-ish for so long. It's good to hear SOMETHING!

I am going to chime in on this because i think there is some miss communication about ayop being in southern california next year, We twirl in southern california and if you go on our southern california baton boosters website they list the contest that are available to do for the up coming year, I thing ayop was just listed under the month of july because thats the compeition we go to in july not that we are hosting it as great as that would be finally for us i dont think its true but let me know if you hear anything else about that, Our coach is one of the best around and has been around a longtime so i am sure if she knew that kind of information she would of already told us,

Let's keep focused on the location with this post. There was quite an extensive post in the past about improvements that can be made to AYOP and improvements that have been made.

As for hearing in September....I wouldn't be surprised if the final details are being worked out this month, now that schools are fully back in session (assuming that one or more colleges are being considered for the new location). Administrations very likely need to consult with a variety of departments/personel for something of this magnitude and they might not have their own schedules finalized yet...plus would likely have to rearrange their schedules first, in order to accommodate this event (i.e. summer camps, maybe conferences). Almost the whole double bubble is used for 4.5 days, plus parts of it for the last 1/2 day and at least the whole day prior to the start of the competition. That's a lot of time for a lot of space.

I wouldn't have expected to have answers on Sept. 1. If we find out mid-October, that gives people about 9 months to prepare (financially and making travel arrangements).

No , I didn't mean it was going to be in Southern Calforina, but that would be nice. For everyone some place in the middle of the US would be good for everyone. I like what USTA does they move it around.

You are right to keep it positive. However, this situation has been known for a very long time. IMHO, it should have been finalized by July 2007 and announced at AYOP. Although I do understand how slow the system does work sometimes.

darn I mean July 2008. We have known since 2007.

do you think its possible they would just hold off on it for a year and wait to have it again next summer? I hope that wouldn't happen....but if they can't find a location i don't know what they will do. I just wanted to know your thoughts about that....

I truly hope they do not put it off a year. We always look forward to AYOP as one of our big summer getaways.Not much of a vacation for a normal person but once you get the twirling bug you can never truly be considered normal. Personally, I think Vegas would be a great idea, more costly but more of an extended vacation. Though I do see how it might be a problem for those on the East coast. Perhaps the only truly fair location would be in Missouri, Kansas, or Oklahoma. Mizzou or OU might be big enough for all of us. I won't hold my breath though, that the decison will come anytime soon.

Twirler7474 wrote:

do you think its possible they would just hold off on it for a year and wait to have it again next summer?.

I would be very surprised if they were to hold off for a year. And as for the Vegas twist...do folks with young children find it a good family vacation destination? I know there are more family friendly hotels now (or at least ones with kid friendly attractions - like the king arthur one and NYNY with the roller coaster) -- but going there as a teenager for the National Majorette championships, I remember it being a hassle to stay off the casino floor, etc.

This entire situation is an embarrassment for NBTA and AYOP, and disrespectful to twirlers. Depending on where it ends up (if at all, at this rate!), twirlers, teams and directors may need to drastically change their financial plans and fund raising, and the remaining 10 months may not be enough time. It is completely unfair to keep all twirlers in the dark.

How this could not have been foreseen, planned for, and publicly announced by now is ridiculous. Shame on AYOP. I haven't gone in nearly 15 years, and hearing this level of disorganization only confirms that I have made the right decision all this time.

vnhsdance wrote:

This entire situation is ...disrespectful to twirlers.

Again, this post is about location. Many twirlers don't even know if they have qualified until the end of June, for the event a month later. Those folks don't necessarily plan for 12 months in advance. So until we've all planned an event of this magnitude, I think it is hard for any of us to judge.
I haven't seen many suggestions of possible locations with the number of gyms required, near to each other. Does anyone know a good location?

On a post that you made dated July 25th 2007 you commented on the need of venue change for AYOP 2009. Since you have known for two years, I believe the powers that be knew too.
I am hoping that a date be set soon because my team and I plan in a year in advance. I know I will be going regaurdless of qualifying in June or not.