It’s about to get real in 3-2-1-GO!
The big event is Saturday, October 23rd. we wanted to give you some thoughts and tips to make it the best day of your year and maybe even a top 10 day of your life!
DOWNLOAD, PRINT AND SIGN THE WAIVER
Your Host should have copies available at check-in but it’ll speed things along if you already have the waiver, signed, in hand. We know you likely signed a digital waiver but we require the paper waiver for on-site competition.
BRING YOUR REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION
Have at least one member of your team bring a team registration confirmation if possible. Team members were emailed a copy at registration. All team members don’t need one. It’s not required to bring but it’s a good idea.
HOST CONTACT VIA EMAIL LIKELY
Your Host will likely be sending you an email in the few days before the event date with info about their specific Festivus Games event. If you don’t get an email it doesn’t mean there’s a problem. By the time you finish reading this message you’ll have 99% of what you need to know anyway.
What if your Host doesn’t send an email? Contact them on the Thursday prior to the event by starting here http://FestivusGames.com/host-list and then clicking on MORE INFO for your Host. If you want to ask your Host a specific question just click on CONTACT HOST once you are on the more-info page.
COVID COMMUNICATION FROM YOUR HOST
We have advised every Host they should follow the latest CDC guidelines, as well as all state and local guidelines. We’ve also advised all Hosts to send all athletes an email at least 48 hours prior to the event with their Covid policies. If your host does not send the email or you don’t get it and you have questions please contact your host direct by starting here. As this thing continues to surprise us keep in mind your host may not know exactly what their Covid policies will be until a few days before the event.
COVID RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ATHLETES
- If you have any host-specific concerns or questions prior to the event be sure and reach out directly to your host by starting here https://bit.ly/3gfjQ6e .
- If you have safety concerns on the day of the event try and find the person in charge and have a discussion with them. If you are not satisfied and don’t feel comfortable continuing to compete leave the event and contact Festivus Games with all the details of your position on the matter. https://festivusgames.com/contact-us/
COVID MANDATES FOR ATHLETES
- If you are sick, have a fever or aren’t completely clear from your own Covid-19 illness OR you know you’ve been exposed to someone with Covid-19 in the past 14 days, do not go to your host.
- Be as kind and understanding as possible with any communication. This has been a LONG stressor for all of us, we’re all a little or a lot weary from it all.
OFFICIAL SHIRTS
If you registered by September 19th (and did not switch Hosts after that date) your shirt is included and you’ll have an official Athlete shirt waiting for you at your Host when you check in (assuming you didn’t switch Hosts after 09/19). If you registered after 09/19 the shirt isn’t included and won’t be waiting for you at the Host.
If you’d like to order an official, Festivus Games Athlete shirt (or an extra shirt) you can still do so by vising the link below.
If you get the wrong shirt when you check in you may exchange it if our vendor receives it by November 30th it’s never been worn. Please make sure you include your full name, ship to address and what style/size you need as a replacement. Replacement shirts will be shipped by January 15th, 2022.
Exchanges should be sent so they are received by November 30th to:
Joan’s Trophy
C/O Festivus Games
508 NE Jefferson St
Peoria, IL 61603
4 KEYS TO MAKE THIS A TOP 10 DAY OF YOUR LIFE
Keep just a few things in mind to help make it so:
1. Above all else? Good mechanics and have fun! Mechanics refers to technique – your ability to move properly. This means moving yourself and external objects in the most efficient, effective, and safe manner possible. Never sacrifice form, even with a max effort!
2. Have fun!
3. Remember, everyone involved is trying their best and is a perfectly flawed human. That includes your fellow competitors, judges, support staff and Host.
4. Stuff happens – as a member of this amazing community we’re taught to expect the unexpected. We expect a fantastic, smooth event but in case anything unexpected happens – hey, we roll with it!
We advise all our Hosts to make SURE their judging is impartial (no box favoritism) and that they educate their judges about how to score, proper form and when to call NO REP. Even so? It’s impossible, with dozens of Hosts and thousands of Athletes for mistakes not to occur. Heck, mistakes occur at the big-league Games with professional judges. Unless something is incredibly heinous or infuriatingly absurd please see the four guidelines above.
WORKING AROUND AN ACHE OR PAIN? TELL A STAFF MEMBER/JUDGE
We never recommend that an injured Athlete compete. No competition, especially an amateur comp, is worth making an injury worse. “No pain no gain” does not apply to connective tissue and injuries.
But if you are working around an ache or pain and you can’t do a movement be sure and communicate to a staff member at your Host and definitely your Judge to make sure everyone is on the same page.
Participating vs. Competing
We welcome adaptive athletes! And, if you are limited by range of motion or you have something nagging on your body but you feel you are safe enough to be a part of Festivus Games then here’s how it works and here’s the difference between PARTICIPATING and COMPETING. Don’t be bashful about asking staff at your Host how best to manage things like this. Your safety and fun are our top priorities.
Participate – if you are unable to complete the movements of your division with proper and full range of motion according to the standards written and shown you may still be a part of the fun. Communicate with your host and judges so they aren’t yelling NO REP! and also so adaptations can be made if necessary to accommodate your needs while you do the best you can. But also know that your judges will ONLY count the properly-executed reps you do when all things are considered including, but not limited to, range of motion, proper form, and order of movements. It’s quite possible you could get a score of zero for a WOD but still participate the best you can and have a ball doing so.
Compete – when you are able to complete the movements of your division fully as written and shown without any further scaling or adaptations being necessary.
SCORING AND LEADERBOARD RESULTS
Scores may not be visible during the competition. Some hosts will make the scores public, some will not, while the comp is occurring.
So when WILL scores be visible? All scores will be on our website, on our global ranking page by Tuesday, October 26th at 5pm Pacific time. We will announce when they are ready via Facebook and Instagram.
Of course awards will be issued at the end of your local event and your Host may choose to share all of their local results prior to our global leaderboard being available.
We’ll provide the link to the Leaderboard as soon as it’s available.
Please do not bother the score keepers during the event. No hovering, looking over their shoulders or asking them how you stand so far. They have a tough job making sure all the scores are entered properly and they aren’t experts at explaining the ranking system, especially before the competition is complete and before all scores entered for every WOD.
We know some Athletes like to see their scores in real time as the event progresses. Some may say “Well I would have tried harder had I known where my standing was after WOD 2…” To that we just say this – Do your very best every time. Leave nothing on the table. Give it your all no matter what. The outcome will not be different had you known your ranking along the way if you do.
WOD STANDARDS REMINDER
Please take another look at the WODs and the WOD Standards Video here
https://festivusgames.com/wods/
TAKE LOTS OF PICS AND HASHTAG #festivusgames
The official hashtag is #festivusgames
Any pics or videos you post on social media please make sure you hashtag #festivusgames so we can find you. We may feature your pics on our Facebook or Instagram page!
SO HOW DOES THE DAY TYPICALLY GO?
More than half of our athletes are brand new to competing. So if you’re new you are in great company! Being nervous is normal and so we wanted to give you a general road map of how the day typically goes.
Check-In : Although you’ve registered you need to check in the morning of your event at the Host when they say you need to be there. If your Host has given you the time of your first WOD you still need to check-in along with everyone else bright and early. When is that? It’s normally 8am your time but it can be 7am or 8:15 or …. something else. So visit the INFO link for your Host and see what they say about it. http://FestivusGames.com/host-list
Gym Bag/Cooler : Your Host will have an area for you to put a gym bag, and small cooler. There may be room for a foldable chair but there might not. This is where you’ll hang out when you aren’t checking out others doing the WODs or competing.
Athlete Briefing : The MC, gym Owner or Head Judge will give all Athletes a run down of how the day is going to go, what they expect from you with respect to sportsmanship, to respect the fact that nearly all Judges are volunteering and paid nothing so be respectful and accept their decision, where to put your stuff for the day and so on. Some Hosts will also use the briefing to demo proper/expected form of each movement. Other Hosts will demo proper/expected form right before a new WOD starts in their day.
Assignment to a HEAT : You will be assigned to a HEAT (which is a group of athletes who perform a WOD at the same time.) If a Host has 50 athletes they may have 10 heats of 5 athletes each. This would mean you’d do whatever WOD is required with 4 other athletes at your specific time. They may have 5 heats of 10 athletes. In that case there’d be 9 other athletes besides you all doing a WOD at the same time. It is 100% up to the Host how to break up their athletes into HEATS and LANES (a station you do your WOD at). Assigning athletes to HEATS and LANES is how Hosts keep things relatively sane without having too many athletes active all at once.
Warm-Up Area : Most Hosts will have some designated area for you to warm-up. In smaller boxes there might be a very limited area possible for this. As an athlete we recommend you talk to your Coaches and be thinking about optimal ways you can warm up for each WOD without even having access to barbells or equipment and assuming a very small space to do so. The great thing about functional fitness is there are great body weight only movements or body weight + band/rope movements that’ll get you by in a pinch.
WOD Order : Your Host does not have to run the WODs in order. They may start with WOD 3 first or whatever logistically works best for them. What we ask all Hosts, however, is to make sure all athletes of a same division all do the WODs in the same order for fairness.
When Is Your First WOD? : Depending on what heat you are in you may be actively competing at 9am or you might not even have your first WOD until 11 or whatever. It depends on total athletes, how many heats and lanes the Host has sets up, and what heat you are in. You will know your heat after you arrive and can take a look at the heat sheet the host provides.
Time Between WODs : We advise all Hosts to try and give you a 30-minute to 90-minute break between WODs. Some flexibility to this is necessary though as Hosts need to do what is best for their space, safety, staff availability etc. But as an athlete you can expect that once you complete any WOD you’ll have about this much time as a break until you are doing the next WOD.
Floater WOD : Some hosts will run a WOD as a floater, some will simply include it as a regular WOD. If it’s a floater some Hosts will simply have a separate area for the Floater and it’s first-come, first-served. Some Hosts will ask that you sign up for a time when you want to do the Floater. Regardless of how the Host has the Floater WOD set up start thinking about WHEN you think you’re going to want to do it. The Host has the discretion to set the time it MUST be done by. This is because the Host knows it must be done by everyone before it’s time to figure out who goes to FINALS so that podium placements can be determined. For some Hosts they may need everyone to have the Floater done by Noon. Other Hosts won’t need to have the Floater done until 3pm or so. It’ll depend. Ask the Host if it’s not clear when it has to be done.
Finals WOD : There is no finals WOD for the October 2021 event.
Podium Awards : The top three Teams/Athletes in each division make the podium and get a cool Festivus Games medal and some great swag too!
Day Finishes : Most Festivus Games events finish by 4pm but some will finish by Noon and others won’t be over until 6pm or so. It really varies on total athletes, number of heats and lanes the host runs, space and more. Be prepared to start your day VERY early and not be leaving until dinner time.
What To Eat : We wrote a post that covers this topic really well. Check it out here. http://tinyurl.com/hdw4msn
TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF
Get a massage, stay healthy, take your vitamins and fish oil, your training should now be almost done, stay injury free.
We know this was a lot to read. If we missed something visit our CONTACT US page.
http://festivusgames.com/contact-us/
We look forward to seeing you all Saturday, October 23rd!
David Greenwalt – Owner