Just wondering if California doesn't open up to play Western National Tournament there, would Senior Softball consider playing it in Prescott, Arizona. Weather would be nice. Any thoughts.

You can forget Prescott. It is busy all summer long between seniors, regular age, kids baseball, girls fast pitch softball.....those fields are taken up long in advance. Same story for Flagstaff which is at 7000 ft in elevation and even better weather

Benji4, you should quit your day job and work the comedy circuit. Like all good comedy there's more than a hint of truth. Sad but true.

What is the possibility of the Western Nationals being in the Reno/Carson City area? Casinos are back in operation, why not softball?

Randy (T.T.),
Prescott is a great idea; I do not think the fields are being used and our motels/restaurants have been slow.
Maybe SSUSA could reach out to the City of Prescott Parks and Rec to inquire.
Hope all is well.
Mark (former AOS)

Benji, great comedy but laughing and also crying, because it's likely true.

Yes, SSUSA should look at alternate locations for Western Champs in Sacramento, Reno or somewhere with elevation in AZ are alternatives, but it's gonna be hot almost every west in late July.

It should be in Aurora, where it should be every year.

It would be great to get it out of Sacramento every year! Horrible fields, terrible drainage, no concessions and offensively hot!

Totally thinking out of the box on this one. So critiques are welcome.
Western National (7/28-8/2) is a month away - so change it to the Rocky Mtn. Championships, and hold it in Colorado. Work with Scrap Iron to find a new location as the fields in Aurora will not be available for that date.

Rocky Mt. Championships (8/21-23) Make this the new Western Championships date because Aurora has committed to the fields to be open. This gives teams a few additional weeks to plan their trip to the tournament. I realize this date is a week after the Spring Worlds in St George UT, but limited dates and facilities makes planning for SSUSA extremely difficult.

The facilities in Aurora can handle a major tournament fairly easily. While Aug. is hot in Colorado, it will be no where near the heat of Phoenix or Nevada. I'm also factoring that teams may not want to spend large $$ for multiple out of state trips this year. Make Westerns in Colorado a primary destination and it will attract teams from the Midwest and Texas, but may lose teams from California.

Hey E6, hope things are well with you to. Someone mentioned that Prescott would not be available to host the Western Nationals I assume Senior Softball are looking at options, hopefully cool options. Lol.

Well hopefully Senior Softball gets it situated soon because Western Nationals is around the corner.

Jawood, where do you usually play in Sacramento for the Western Nationals? We play at Sacramento Softball Complex. So-so fields, not horrible; terrible drainage? Maybe, but since it doesn't rain in Sacramento in the summer, and groundskeepers control watering, so what?; no concessions? They have a sit-down cafe; and offensively hot is true, except with low humidity it is usually tolerable, not offensive!

Play it at the RAC in Lacey WA.

Benji4 I just heard one of your teammates tested positive for Covid a day ago.I have played in two tourneys here in AZ wearing a mask at all times possible with no issues.Stay safe & play safe!

Play it in Reno, cooler temps and is only a 2 hour drive from the original location.

Is anyone sure Nevada will be open for senior softball in July?

Omar, We have not played at the Sacramento Complex, only Maidu Park, which IS horrible. It's about the drainage from watering, obviously not rain. A lot of the outfields have been under water the last couple of years. No cafe! Sounds like you have been playing at Golden Eagle and we've been playing in Carson City, making a comparison to Rock n Reno!

We have about a 2 week window to buy a plane ticket and I guess if we do not know if its a go somewhere we just won't be going. Our guys are not paying 300.00 plus for last minute plane tickets..

Ball4 Instead of kicking RMC to the curb wouldn’t it be easier for SSUSA to work with Scrap Iron and make it the Western-Rocky Mtn National
Championship?Just a thought?

Jawood, I haven't played at Maidu in 20 years so I will take your word for it and hope not to play there! But ease up on poor Carson City—it has its own rustic charm and is O.K. unless the wind is blowing (which, sadly, it usually is in the afternoon).

I think a lot of teams are waiting to see what Sacramento is going to do, Senior Softball has to be trying to secure a back up location. just hoping we get some information before entry deadline

TD is correct, people aren't going to pay for plane fare at the last minute but SSUSA is in a very tough position, trying to figure out what any west coast state will do!

Time to Cancel or Reschedule as many of the California Tournaments to Arizona and/or Nevada. Flights to/from Phoenix & Las Vegas are by far the most reasonable (IMHO) . . .

Have Fun, Be Safe,
Jeff White - AZ Elite

DBax right on the money, AURORA, beautiful fields, hardly used.

Id like to 2nd Wood 1966's idea. Move it to Reno if fields there are available. I know its easier said than done but opening up in Cali in a month could be an issue.

I think Aurora Colorado would work nicely. You could rename it the Rock Mountain Western Nationals Tournament, which is held August 21. PROS: Nice weather, nice fields, and probably more teams, since Aurora is more centrally located for some Mid-Western teams to participate. True Reno is closer, for the California teams that participate, but let's not forget all teams eligible for the Western National tournament. THIS TOURNAMENT IS ALSO the first leg of the Triple Crown, and should be more centrally located for all teams to participate in.

If it was moved to Reno, you could call it Rock 'N Westerns.

Making the tournament "more centrally located for all teams to participate" sounds great, but then we should just play every tourney in St Louis then. I think the effort should be to make the tournament as convenient and as close to the original location as humanly possible. Colorado is neither, Reno is both. That being said, we are not playing in Sacramento this year, but if it was moved to Reno we probably would, and we are already playing in Aurora. combining the two reduces revenue but more importantly, it reduces the chances teams have to earn a berth in the TOC. I also think Reno would welcome the revenue that comes with the tournament.

Probably won't happen In Aurora so far Senior softball is closed in Colorado young mans ball is being played but parks are not letting Senior leagues to open could change hopefully who knows

* * * ARIZONA BEING SHUT DOWN BY GOVERNOR DUCEY THROUGH JULY * * *

Forget Reno, our esteemed governor has extended Phase II through the end of July. So gatherings like softball will be limited to 50 people or less.

With the Arizona shutdown there is still this piece of the governors order that will allow a city or county to decide for themselves.

"Under the latest order, the state's Department of Liquor Licenses and Control will suspend special event and festival licenses, although a city or county would be allowed to approve a large gathering, if social distancing and other safety guidelines are followed."

Hopefully this means that Prescott will not get cancelled!

Just got word, Prescott tournament is cancelled. Now what?

All of the Casinos in Nevada are open with thousands of people inside, yet playing softball outdoors, getting a little exercise is not allowed ? Drove by Graton Casino in wine country 2 weeks ago, its open, the parking lot was packed full of cars. I cant believe county officials allowed that to open.

Just a question, but since Reno canceled the Rock-n-Roll tournament, why would one think they would allow the Western to be moved there?

I am 100% certain that SSUSA is looking at all potential options with respect to the Western Nationals. It doesn't make sense for them to post IF / THEN scenarios on the message board because too many people will treat potential information as factual information. It's kind of like the posting of "TENTATIVE" schedules- things beyond SSUSA's control happen, changes result and somebody goes berserk.

As for the "move it here, move it there crowd" you need to remember that most parks in the country were already booked with other events on January 1 (pre-virus). Picking up and moving an event of this size to "Y" location isn't as easy as you might think.

My advice on all COVID-19 matters remains unchanged. Be patient. SSUSA will share information when they have something concrete.

We're as anxious to safely resume scheduled tournament play as you are, maybe more so, but it's not quite as simple as "..Hey, SSUSA should just move the _____________ event to ______________________ and everything will be perfect!.." ...

• Every venue we use is booked months (and often years) in advance by the same promoters and events for almost every week of the season ... Example: Losing Reno this year broke a 33-year event streak for us and nothing else is open there through September;
• If a venue re-opens for business, the pre-existing promoters get their dates back! ... It's not like the booking/bid process starts all over and we get to move to the front of the line or join an open bid auction;

• SSUSA intends to retain (where permitted) all existing dates AND locations for any event originally scheduled after the date of any potential re-opening for a location ... Examples: Northwest, East & West, Northern's, Rocky Mtn. and World Masters;
• If we lose a date/location, the next priority is to use the same location at an available later date that makes sense ... Examples: Texas State, Spring World's & National's and Southwest;
• If it's a "something else" problem, then we'll be the skilled juggler with all the balls in the air at the County Fair ... We're doing that to some extent already in a couple of locations! ...

Please maintain your patience, don't speculate too wildly and we'll let you know within minutes of us knowing ... Thanks! ...

Dave, keep your balls in the air & may they all land safely!

Thanks, Win! ... We're hanging in there ... Terry and Fran are the Master jugglers ... I just do the technical teams' games load demand calculations in the ever shifting mix of available fields and imposed restrictions! ... It's like a jigsaw puzzle where they hide some pieces from you just for fun or occasionally change them at the last moment! ... Stay safe! ...