Stepping back a little from the nuts and bolts of the upcoming Chicago Tournament, it seems to me that there is an upswing of grassroots APBA activity organized by APBA fans. Geoff Giordano of the APBA Football Club got APBA Football fans together earlier this year in Canton Ohio. Of course, there’s next weekend’s Chicagoland Tournament. Now, I hear that Irv Mick is getting Philly APBA fans together for a meet up to discuss a possible future tournament (more info below). Even Dom Provisiero is exploring opportunities for a New York area APBA tournament.
Who knows? Perhaps this kind of APBA socializing and organized play has always been happening. I mean, there have been APBA leagues for pretty much every sport for decades but we get comfortable with our fellow managers. An organized tournament with new faces is a very different beast. We meet new people and re-connect with old friends.
Maybe with increased connections via social media like Facebook and Twitter, we’re just more aware of the goings on of our “APBA lives”. Further, maybe we just care more since we have more connection with our APBA brethren. Overall though, I think APBA tournaments and meet ups have been on the rise. It may be a case of “we can do it ourselves”. While the national convention and tournament is great (I’ve been to three and enjoyed it each time), there’s nothing stopping us from getting a good regional or local tournament up and going.
If I were APBA CEO John Herson, this would please me to no end. Increased regional interest in the game on a more social and interactive level can only be good for the game and the Company. Those more peripherally involved players in the game galvanize their interest and the word about the APBA gets out. This is best way interest the way the game can grow.
About the Philadelphia Meet up
For those in the area, Irv Mick is arranging a meet up for Philly APBA fans.
Yes we are having a Philly Lunch. It is going to be on Saturday November 16 11:30 am at Panera bread café Willow Grove Shopping Center 30 Park Ave. Willow Grove Pa.
This is just an informal get together we will be talking many APBA topics including a Philly Tournament.
Irv is the contact person on this. If anyone is interested in attending, leave a comment and I’ll make sure he knows about it. Irv plans on reporting back on any decisions that are made. Good luck, Philly fans!
It’s great that the second Chicagoland event is coming pretty quickly on the heels of the inaugural get-together in July (http://apbafootballclub.wordpress.com/2013/07/29/the-summer-of-apba-grass-roots-tourneys-spread-love-of-the-game/). We’ve heard several people over the past couple of years suggest spring and winter tournaments to keep up interest throughout the seasons. We’d been asked to hold our football tournament on the weekend between the conference title matches and the Super Bowl, and we’d love to get to that level of interest. There’s been some talk of getting an APBA group together for the World Boardgaming Championships in Lancaster. The possibilities are endless. Greg Wells had hoped for a golf tournament, and with the USGA Museum not far from AFC headquarters, we might try to pull that together in the near future. The possibilities are endless. Maybe the Chicagoland event could move to a more public venue — say, Millennium Park — for another summer tourney.