I’m heading for Dallas in the morning, ready for what will be US Fencing’s largest tournament this season, outside of Summer Nationals. I’ve done all I can here at home to get ready, and will do more tomorrow afternoon when I get to the venue.
But there are far too many items I have no control over that could—and some undoubtedly will—affect the smooth running of events. So at least part of my flight time between attempts to nap will be indulging in wishful thinking, in hoping for random fate and intentional actions to combine to keep NAC C as not too awful as possible:
- I hope the weather and air traffic control system allow all the referees and armorers and BC personnel (and even fencers!) to arrive when they’re supposed to arrive.
- I hope all the fencers who are competing Friday morning and arrive early enough on Thursday get their gear checked on Thursday, so the Friday morning lines will be shorter than they would otherwise be.
- I hope the download downloads properly and the BC computer crew doesn’t need to spend extra hours getting everything set up and functioning.
- I hope the armorers have their systems for handling the long lines all figured out and working.
- I hope the automated check-in systems work properly all weekend.
- I hope all the referees have DART figured out so they all show up on time.
- I hope that any lunch items meant to be hot are mostly warmer than room temperature and any lunch items meant to be cold are mostly cooler than room temperature.
- I hope that fewer bouts than usual go to time in single digits.
- I hope that grounding wires and scoring machines and body cords all work the ways they’re supposed to.
- I hope the venue concessions have a decent selection and quantity of food available for officials to acquire with our little meal tickets on Friday and Saturday and Sunday nights.
- I hope no loud drunk people run up and down the hotel hallway shouting and singing at 3:00 am any morning throughout this tournament.
- I hope we finish up every night before the light rail schedule goes to only one train each hour.
- I hope that the Dallas LOC will provide its usual healthy and helpful crew of volunteers for posting and other useful odds and ends.
- I hope (probably forlornly) that every fencer has already checked that their seeding information is correct (and already had it fixed) and that all NCAA fencers have already made sure their affiliations are entered correctly.
- I hope the head referees already have their crews sorted and grouped for assignments before they arrive at the venue each morning.
- I hope that at least one night after we’re done that I won’t be too sleepy to be able to drink at least one beer.
Mary Griffith 