Run-up to 2008 USA Dance Nationals...

[NielsenE]

I know the 2007 nationals haven't happened yet, but has anyone started to put together their "pre-national" competition schedule for next spring? With the date changing from the summer to spring it seems like a lot of the "strategic" competitions to hit is going to change....

[swan]

Where is it anyway? I don't even know where to find info about the venue, actual date, etc...

[Joe]

http://dance-forums.com/showthread.php?p=412433&#post412433

[kimV6]

does anyone know which 2007 regionals will qualify for the 2008 nationals and which ones will not (although i will definitely be moving up levels in between then and now)?

[skwiggy]

I don't know the answer to your question, but you don't have to dance the same level, or even the same style, at the qualifier that you dance at Nationals. You just have to dance something.

[wyllo]

does anyone know which regionals from 2007 qualify for the 2008 nationals, and which ones do not?

USA Dance rules require that you dance in a regional qualifying event in the 12 months prior to nationals. So, I believe any regional held April 2007 or later would be a qualifier for 2008 Nationals.

[NielsenE]

Trying to get back on topic... I've seen that for the August nationals, most of the top competitors tend to hit Manhattan, (possibly North American), and Summer Sizzler for example as part of their pre-National run-up. I'm not talking about what competition people use to qualify, but what events people are looking at as their "preperation" for nationals events....

With the new date, I'm not so sure what those events are going to be and was wondering if people had started to think about it yet...

[kimV6]

Trying to get back on topic... I've seen that for the August nationals, most of the top competitors tend to hit Manhattan, (possibly North American), and Summer Sizzler for example as part of their pre-National run-up. I'm not talking about what competition people use to qualify, but what events people are looking at as their "preperation" for nationals events....

With the new date, I'm not so sure what those events are going to be and was wondering if people had started to think about it yet...

probably the same comps that i was gonna go to in march/april anyway: MIT and the northeast regional. a little further back, clover. and if we really want to go a couple months back, the MAC... although it's not like i qualify as a "top competitor"... haha

[NielsenE]

probably the same comps that i was gonna go to in march/april anyway: MIT and the northeast regional. a little further back, clover. and if we really want to go a couple months back, the MAC... although it's not like i qualify as a "top competitor"... haha


I thought I heard that MAC will be the NE regional again for 2008, since the national date is too close/before the Spring Fling...

[Nik]

You should do every competition possible.

[BM]

You should do every competition possible.

Initially, I'd agree with you, Nik. However, say there are 50 competitions before Nationals, and a couple's financial situation allows them to compete at maybe 20 of those competitions, they would have to decide which ones to attend. :)

[JANATHOME]

Great question! Local to me is

Tri-State (CT) in March
CSC (CT) in January

I think since the purchase of NorthEastern(I think this is the name), will be in February in Mass.....

[yanka]

http://dance-forums.com/showthread.php?p=412433&#post412433

I didn't see an actual date posted in that thread. Has the date been set, and if so, what is it?

[Joe]

I thought I heard that MAC will be the NE regional again for 2008, since the national date is too close/before the Spring Fling...
But there's no reason you can't still use SF as part of your run-up.

[kimV6]

I didn't see an actual date posted in that thread. Has the date been set, and if so, what is it?

a google search brings up a bunch of local usabda chapter websites that say April 3-5, 2008

[TUNes2o]

a google search brings up a bunch of local usabda chapter websites that say April 3-5, 2008

I don't paticularly like the date change at all. August was perfect. Summer vacation plenty of time to travel. Now I have to plan around school & Easter. Not mention that some o0f my favorite comps are at that time. Now I heard its going to be in Baltimore. A 3000 mile joint for those on the West coast.
Whos idea was this anyway. I thinkl it stinks.

[Nik]

I like Baltimore :)

[Laura]

It is more miles for West Coasters to fly to Baltimore, but I think it's fair to take turns! After all, last year the competition was in San Jose :) Besides, it's probably going to be cheaper to fly to Baltimore than it is to go to Louisville, and probably even cheaper than Minneapolis was due to the fact that Northwest is practically the only way to get there (from San Francisco at least). Low-fare leader Southwest flies to Baltimore (BWI), plus there are three alternate airports to choose from: Dulles, National (a.k.a Reagan), and Philadelphia. You'll need a car or to take a train from these alternates, but it does give people a lot of choices and options.

I hope they got a good group rate for the hotel! That can make a huge difference in the ultimate cost of the trip, too.

[ChaChaMama]

I like Baltimore too. :)

I definitely see T's point about summer being a good time to travel--and if it were a bit later in the year, we could have a DF barbecue at my house ;)--BUT at least it is early April, which is usually before the time things get super-stressful in the academic calendar. (This year's NE Regionals, by contrast, were in late April, only a couple weeks away from many colleges' exam week.)

And yes, it might be more fair to have the competition in the middle of the country so it would be equally inconvenient for people from both coasts, but I think Minnesota for awhile, California one year, Kentucky the next, Maryland the next shows some respect for the idea of changing up who is most inconvenienced.

ChaChaMama

[reb]

I agree - even from California, Baltimore is a great destination compared to some hard-to-get-to venues (don't even say Ft Wayne ;)).

We've wandered the Baltimore area and found and enjoyed many interesting places.

[RIdancer82]

But there's no reason you can't still use SF as part of your run-up.

for 2009???

[ChaChaMama]

My guess is that Spring Fling will shift back to being in March, as it was in 2006.

[Ithink]

I like the idea of Baltimore a LOT!:)

[skwiggy]

Yay for Baltimore! :)

[Nik]

Yay for Baltimore! :)

Yes!

[Kitty]

you are so funny, Baltimore people:-).


I am guessing that the date for Spring Fling will be such that it will be before nationas, rather than after, which would make sense.

[skwiggy]

I'm not Baltimore people. I'm "not too far from Baltimore" people. ;)

It will be nice not only to not have to travel very far, a luxury we rarely enjoy, but also perhaps some of my family and friends can come watch!

[Ithink]

I resent that! I am not a Baltimore person:) Usually I try to stay away, lol. But having a major comp like that in your own backyard sure has its benefits...

[Kitty]

comp in your backyard?..
"near Baltimore" people?

I'll just call you Baltimore people for short:-) :-)

[kimV6]

comp in your backyard?..
"near Baltimore" people?

I'll just call you Baltimore people for short:-) :-)

i don't think i'd ever want to be associated with baltimore. be that as it may, i don't know how much more excited i can be about nationals being during the school year and in the backyard... this means we can actually go!

[Kitty]

i don't think i'd ever want to be associated with baltimore. be that as it may, i don't know how much more excited i can be about nationals being during the school year and in the backyard... this means we can actually go!

Oh,

I dont' know much about Baltimore... why all of this reaction, with people meticulously specifying they are "Baltimore in my backyard but i am not in Baltimore"

I have been to Baltimore once, and liked it a lot, but I spent most of my time inside a restaurant...

[kimV6]

Oh,

I dont' know much about Baltimore... why all of this reaction, with people meticulously specifying they are "Baltimore in my backyard but i am not in Baltimore"

I have been to Baltimore once, and liked it a lot, but I spent most of my time inside a restaurant...

since i travel through baltimore every time i greyhound back and forth between school and my parents' house in new jersey, i can safely say that i've seen baltimore... and compared to every other city i've been to, it is the most run-down. plus hours of watching the wire doesn't help either. :)
there are nice parts, but they're very few. then again, i'm willing to let my mind be changed since i haven't traveled through it extensively. it could be my DC-bias shining through.

[Ithink]

The hotel where Nationals is being held is in the Inner Harbor, which is a nice part of Baltimore. But venture a few blocks away from it and you will see why none of us want to be associated with Baltimore... I think it's being cleaned up but not quickly enough...

[skwiggy]

Which hotel is it?

[ChaChaMama]

While Baltimore isn't one of my three favorite cities in the United States (those would be NYC, SanFran, and Miami, not necessarily in that order), it is not nearly as bad as some of you are making it sound.

Are there parts of it that I wouldn't want to be in, alone, at 2 AM? You bet!

Could the same be said for NYC, Washington D.C., SanFran, Miami, Chicago, etc.? You bet!

There are lots of interesting sections of Baltimore beyond the Inner Harbor, which is the most famous tourist spot and features the National Aquarium, Port Discovery, Maryland Science Center, tons of great restaurants and shopping.

There's Johns Hopkins University, the Baltimore Museum of Art, and Charles Village.

There's the Baltimore Zoo and Druid Hill Park.

There's Little Italy.

True, there is a lot of urban poverty as well, but I hope we would all acknowledge that just because a neighborhood is poor, predominantly black, and a bit rundown does not mean it is necessarily a bad neighborhood. Some are bad, some are good...they just don't necessarily have the money to Home Depot the heck out of their abodes.

I live about 45 NW of Baltimore, so Baltimore isn't exactly home to me, and I will fully admit it does not have the culture riches of America's greatest cities, but I have come to appreciate what it does have to offer.

Speculatively, I would say that the comp will almost certainly be held either in the Inner Harbor or certainly no further inland than the Baltimore Arena, which would be a great location and right across from a hotel. You will not be able to exhaust even 1/3rd of the things to do in the Inner Harbor alone if you have a day off during the comp!

ChaChaMama

[kimV6]

While Baltimore isn't one of my three favorite cities in the United States (those would be NYC, SanFran, and Miami, not necessarily in that order), it is not nearly as bad as some of you are making it sound.

Are there parts of it that I wouldn't want to be in, alone, at 2 AM? You bet!

Could the same be said for NYC, Washington D.C., SanFran, Miami, Chicago, etc.? You bet!

There are lots of interesting sections of Baltimore beyond the Inner Harbor, which is the most famous tourist spot and features the National Aquarium, Port Discovery, Maryland Science Center, tons of great restaurants and shopping.

There's Johns Hopkins University, the Baltimore Museum of Art, and Charles Village.

There's the Baltimore Zoo and Druid Hill Park.

There's Little Italy.

True, there is a lot of urban poverty as well, but I hope we would all acknowledge that just because a neighborhood is poor, predominantly black, and a bit rundown does not mean it is necessarily a bad neighborhood. Some are bad, some are good...they just don't necessarily have the money to Home Depot the heck out of their abodes.

I live about 45 NW of Baltimore, so Baltimore isn't exactly home to me, and I will fully admit it does not have the culture riches of America's greatest cities, but I have come to appreciate what it does have to offer.

Speculatively, I would say that the comp will almost certainly be held either in the Inner Harbor or certainly no further inland than the Baltimore Arena, which would be a great location and right across from a hotel. You will not be able to exhaust even 1/3rd of the things to do in the Inner Harbor alone if you have a day off during the comp!

ChaChaMama

don't get me wrong. i'm not completely against baltimore or anything. we've vacationed there a couple times. i would just rather be called a dc person even though baltimore is in the backyard as well.

[Kitty]

we'll save so much time and money by not having to travel to the West coast, that we might actually be able to explore the area and hang out!

[Tigerlilly]

I'm not that familiar with Baltimore, but here's John Waters' take on it -

"I would never want to live anywhere but Baltimore. You can look far and wide, but you'll never discover a stranger city with such extreme style. It's as if every eccentric in the South decided to move North, ran out of gas in Baltimore, and decided to stay."

According to Wikipedia, all of his early films were shot in Baltimore.

[wyllo]

What's the weather like there in April?

[Ithink]

I hear it's the Marriott in Inner Harbor.

The weather is probably in the 50s in early April although these days it's hard to predict what the weather will be like in this area...

Baltimore is fine. I was mostly kidding because truthfully it's like most larger cities - hit and miss. One thing I like about Baltimore is this restaurant in Little Italy called Amicci's and it's Panne Rotundo appetizer - basically a bread bowl with shrimp and this wonderful garlicky sauce in it. It's one of my favorite things I've ever eaten...

[Joe]

comp in your backyard?
You know, like all the comps in NY/NJ...

[NielsenE]

Do we have the date for the 2008 MAC yet? Their website doesn't seem to include that information