Entries for 2016

NASC Market Segment Meetings Provide Staff Growth

 Posted on: November 3 2016
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." This is a famous Thomas Edison quote from his quest to invent the light bulb. In a way, this quote can be turned around when talking about the Sport Tourism industry to read like this: "This is what we do, but there are 10,000 other ways that will work as well." This was quickly learned on a recent trip to Indianapolis, Indiana for the NASC Market Segment Meetings. Brady Turk and I represented the Rochester Amateur Sports Commission (RASC) and the two of us came away with a substantial amount of information and ideas that we can implement in our organization. The Market Segment Meetings are held annually in different cities across the United States and give Sports Commissions the opportunity to meet with other members in their market to discuss relevant issues and share unique approaches in the industry today. The meetings lasted just a day and a half, but provided non-stop education. Much of the time was spent ...

Register Now for Upcoming Event Webinar - USA Curling

 Posted on: October 27 2016
Upcoming Event Webinar - Register Now November 2, 2016 Check out our upcoming event webinar, below and reserve your spot today! USA Curling Wednesday, November 2 2016 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. EST Presented by Mike Dellemann Register Now! Join Michael Dellemann from USA Curling as he discusses the 2018 Olympic Trials for Mixed Doubles Curling and the 2018 Curling Night in America RFP’s.  Both of these events will be featured on NBC Sports, and Curling Night in America, in its third year, has already gained a strong following, reaching nearly 2 million views last year.  There will be time at the end of the presentation for questions. If you are unable to join us on November 2nd, remember you can download the webinar recording from our Webinar Archives (login required). https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6552437669261092609   REGISTRATION LINK

Variety Is the Spice

 Posted on: October 27 2016
At the October NASC Market Segment Meetings, a lot of the talk among attendees was focused on keeping kids involved in sports. As we’ve noted, by the time young athletes hit early high school, participation drops dramatically and with an organization like NASC, kids playing sports is vital to keeping the organization, and the industry, growing.  A recent article on ESPNW takes the youth sports discussion one step further—why you want your young athlete to be involved in multiple sports in this day and age of sport specialization. The author, sports reporter (and sports mom) Michelle Smith, gives five reasons why it’s good for kids to play several sports, including fewer overuse injuries, less chance for emotional burnout, exposure to different kids and different roles and not putting all your sports eggs into one basket.   The final point is perhaps important in the discussion of keeping kids playing sports. “Playing only one sport limits y...

Why I became an NASC Mentor

 Posted on: October 18 2016
Seven years ago I was hired as the Sports Market Sales Account Executive. I was straight out of college and had a lot to learn! NASC was the first trade show I attended and I was a little nervous about attending my first sports trade show for many reasons: I wouldn’t know anyone, I didn’t know what kinds of questions to ask during appointments, how would I choose which educational sessions to attend from all of the options, etc.  I was relieved to find that the NASC membership as a whole are a very friendly and helpful group. I would eat lunch with people I didn’t know and they would be more than willing to offer advice and suggestions. I quickly felt comfortable and now, seven years later, can refer to those helpful individuals as friends. A few years ago I was looking into joining a NASC committee. I saw the Mentoring Committee as an option and knew that was the committee for me! I can appreciate how new members have a lot of questions and can relate to their e...

A time for community

 Posted on: October 17 2016
We talk a lot about youth sports and amateur associations here—but let’s digress a bit this week and talk about how professional teams reach out to their communities. The trigger for the discussion is this week’s Hometown Huddle project by the NFL, United Way and others. The annual Hometown Huddle is an NFL/United Way initiative that happens in all NFL markets on the same day, geared toward promoting volunteerism and creating a lasting impression in the community. This year it’s on Tuesday, October 18, when coaches and players will go to a community building, a playground or similar facility and spend the day painting, landscaping and overall making the facility one that the entire community can use. That’s just one example of how professional teams look to give back: Besides the individual NBA teams planning events in their cities, the NBA itself has an “NBA Cares” all-star day of service; MLB teams often have community funds as a part ...

NASC Hall of Fame and Awards Committee Accepting Entries Now

 Posted on: October 13 2016
The NASC Awards and Hall of Fame Committee are delighted to announce that they are now accepting submissions for annual awards and the first class of NASC Hall of Fame inductees.  Nominate an Industry Leader to be Inducted into the NASC Hall of Fame First Class of NASC Hall of Fame Inductees to be Recognized at 25th annual NASC Symposium The NASC Hall of Fame Committee was established to honor those who play a vital role in the success and promotion of the NASC. The purpose of the Hall of Fame is to promote the professional management of sporting events and the sport tourism industry as a whole by honoring those individuals who exemplify the values of the NASC in their careers and by acknowledging their legacies to provide guidance for future members of the NASC. To be considered, nominations must be received no later than December 1, 2016. Submit a nomination. Direct any questions about the NASC Hall of Fame to Denny Gann, Hall of Fame Committee Chair.  NASC Awards Commit...

The Importance of being a Community Partner

 Posted on: October 11 2016
Community partners for you can come in many forms. They could be board members, advisory board members, universities, hoteliers, downtown alliance groups, professional teams, facility owners, volunteers, sponsors, etc. The one thing they need to have in common is the buy into your organization’s mission and vision. With this buy-in, you will be amazed at how much easier it is to understand and navigate political landscapes, fundraise, accomplish organizational goals and take your organization to new heights. Henry Ford once said, “Coming together is the beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” Most of your community partners’ primary business is not tourism, but their willingness to help and understand tourism’s contribution to the community is what makes them unique.  Most sports commissions or sports tourism departments are very small staffs, which lead to lots of travel, long hours and many weekend events. All of this ...

Caring for the young athlete

 Posted on: October 10 2016
As a rights holder or event site manager, you are very familiar with the rules and regulations of holding an event, as well as the insurance and liability coverage that you need to follow to make sure the event goes off smoothly. As a matter of course, most events are required to have medical personnel on site, in case of injury. Often, the medical provider will also be listed as a sponsor of the event. But how do you know that the medical personnel on hand are the ones who can treat the young athlete? According to a 2014 ESPN sports poll, more than 87 percent of parents worry about their children getting hurt while playing sports. Injuries, from a knee scrape to more serious fractures and tears, are not uncommon in youth sports. Getting the proper treatment quickly is important, both for the athlete and for you as the event provider. In a recent ESPNW article, “Helping your athlete kids recover from injury the right way,” author (and mom) Sharon Van Epps shares a ...

Do-it-yourself coverage

 Posted on: October 4 2016
If there is a universal complaint heard from many event organizers, it’s this one: “No one ever comes to cover my event.” You can fill in the blank as to who “no one” is—local newspaper, television stations, etc. Truth be told, it doesn’t matter who that media entity may be. There is a good chance, unless you’re holding a national or state championship or a huge community event (think marathon weekends), the media coverage is more than likely to be sparse. Why is this? The quick answer is, media doesn’t operate the way it used to. The longer answer is, most media outlets have fewer people feeding more media channels. That means whatever story they’ve been assigned to do, they have to contribute a report to the ‘traditional’ media (TV newscast, print newspaper) as well as to the website and social media channels. So they’re doing a lot more with one story. That leaves little time to cover severa...

Tragedy on the field

 Posted on: September 26 2016
We talk a lot in this space about the good that youth sports offers our kids, from exercise to discipline to life lessons. But students in northern Ohio were handed one life lesson this past weekend that we wish they didn’t have to learn at such a young age. Andre Jackson, a Euclid (Ohio) High School football player, died Sunday, following injuries he suffered during a Friday night football game. A junior fullback and outside linebacker, Jackson died after he was hurt during the school's game against Solon High School on a special teams play. Euclid High School head football coach Jeff Rotsky said the incident happened during a "completely normal" play. "It was a pooch kick," he said. "He was going for the ball, and their guys were going for the ball, and I think he got kicked or kneed." The school district said Jackson walked off the field after the play, went to the hospital, was examined and was later released. No cause of death has b...
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