So, let’s kill some time on the upcoming nhc lottery. Something to do while we wait, huh?
I’m hoping that it’s not a straight names in a hat drawing. It would be disappointing to be trying to get one beer in and not get picked but someone else gets picked and enters fifteen beers.
It would be a little complicated but I like the way our state draws for special hunt tags. You accumulate points in various ways, such as not getting picked one year gives you an extra point, turning in a poacher gets you multiple points, and your total points equals how many times your name is in the “hat”.
In this case maybe being a member would be an extra point, placing last year could be a point, judging, etc…
I am planning on trying to enter two beers. But I’m not going to be bummed if I can’t. We’ll see before too long I guess.
Thoughts?
I’ll add that I don’t envy the folks who have to decide these things and will support whatever they come up with. Just a new guy here for the fun.
I guess it all depends on how many individual people submit entries. If no more than 8250 distinct people submit entries, everyone would get one. What would be left over would either be distributed for a second entry (if enough spots were left) or random drawing if not enough spots were left.
I’ve been known to upset apple carts with questions before. I don’t mean to. I guess I’m just curious how it’s going to roll.
I can see the more popular styles getting filled fast. The only realistic and manageable way I can see doing it is having the preregistration set up like a wish list. Like entry 1 might be IPA, entry 2 APA, etc. The more popular the style the less likely you’ll get picked, but people who put IPA as a first choice would have a better chance than people who put IPA as their last choice.
However it goes I think I’ll try to enter my Blonde and my Mild.
Have they ever put caps on the number of entries in a category? Again I have no inside information, but I’m hoping when then tell you how many entries you have, you will have the ability to select the one you want.
Seriously, politics and religion are less contencious.
But since you asked…
I’ve been running in a very popular DC race for a couple years - the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler. They have a great lottery with features I hope the GC adopts, as I think they can be adapted to NHC. In a nutshell…
Open registration for the lottery over 2 weeks.
Registration is well ahead of time so those who get in can prepare.
Elite athletes are guaranteed entry (I’d propose that NHC regional winners get guaranteed entry for the next year to keep a pool of great brewers in the game).
Volunteers get guaranteed entry for the next year (this race has NO shortage of volunteers).
Those unlucky few who get locked out multiple years in a row also get guaranteed entry.
All remaining slots go to everyone else randomly.
I have never heard a complaint about this lottery.
Open registration should keep the server from crashing.
Time to think about it. But some styles should be started now.
I was pondering how a brewer could be vetted based on past performance. I know some guys who need to defend or compete.
Work is rewarded.
Persistence is rewarded.
Fair draw for everyone else.
You could have saved us a lot of time and effort by simply posting this previously
The official decisions for what we implement for 2014 will come in an announcement from the AHA, but I will say this - we have discussed nearly every point above.
I have changed your bullet points to numbers to make it easier to talk about.
Some kind of extended registration period is likely, like #1.
As in #2, we will try to have registration as early as possible and it may move earlier in future years. I think there is value in this, which was also brought up by udubdawg previouly.
#3 has some supporters and some detractors - tracking and implementation could be an issue. Another question is, is using the NHC to qualify for future NHCs fair to great brewers who are unable to get their entries judged because of entry constraints? I’m pretty sure Gordon Strong has said getting a medal with one out of three beers is a good rate, so if you can only get one beer in the competition . . .
#4 is very likely to happen, the more volunteers the more entries we can judge, and that helps with a lot of these problems.
We have not discussed #5, but it is worth considering.
#6 is in line with our thoughts as well.
The main thing to bear in mind is that some of these changes are going to take a while to implement. The competition is going through a lot of growing pains right now and a lot of competing priorities so it is unlikely that everyone will be thrilled right off the bat. But we’re going to continue trying things in order to keep the competition fair, keep it inclusive, keep it growing, and keep it great.
Re: #3…
Since we know only members are getting in now, it would seem like tracking by AHA number wouldn’t be that hard. But assuredly there’s difficulties I have no idea even exist, so OK…
I would submit that any winner of one of the 4 major individual awards should get some guaranteed entries, if they want them, for life. I’d let you sort out how many. Sort of a “Green Jacket.”
Adding giving single-year guarantees to the 84 medal winners doesn’t seem altogether unfair - I think any medal winner deserves a chance to defend it if they want.
one more thing - will additional volunteerism mean additional entries? Let’s say I judged at two different regions last year, as well as the Finals. Is that valued any higher than someone who just helped out at one region?
…tough call I’d not want to have to make. Good luck. ;D
