Comp Organization--Stuff We Like - Stuff We Don't Like

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unless the towel was wrapped around a nice bottle of wine...

The problem with this is that they'll raise prices somewhere else to counter the freebie. Also, if anyone could get in for free, and the ballroom became crowded, it could pose a security issue, because people do leave their stuff laying around.

T, maybe there could be an area for competitors to leave their stuff? As it is now, there is always a security issue...

I like that idea. How about reduced entry fees if you are competing another day, but just want to watch that day? I often want to watch friends compete on days that I am not dancing. I'll watch just the champ or schol round, just a portion of that day's session. I have to pay for the whole day. It would be nice to have a rule that if you are competing in the comp, you get a free or reduced rate pass to watch the other sessions.

At my very first comp, about 4 years ago, a small personal towel (with the comp's logo on it, of course) was part of the package along with the program and such. They were quite popular.

Personally I'd rather have it free for the pro-am ams, since we're already paying an arm and a leg to be there. Requiring us to pay FURTHER for the privilege on the days/sessions we're dancing is a always feels a tad like gouging to me. The spectator-only hasn't already forked over the entry fees so I don't see why they should get in free, plus I agree with Tanya, that's a security concern. I really cannot see adding to the hassle by making us put anything of value (including things we might want between rounds) somewhere "secure". I don't see rewarding the people spending $25 while that cost will certainly get passed on to the people already paying a few hundred.

Another thing I don't like, though I understand different hotels may make this beyond the organizers' control: putting the vendors in the ballroom itself. Setting aside needing a ticket, sometimes the background noise isn't conducive to talking with the vendors.

I freely admit my ignorance, here, but ... plain, white, generic towels are pretty cheap at a wholesale club or discount store and probably cheaper yet wholesale. If you're organizing a comp (even a college comp) why not buy a couple gross of them and plunk them at convenient spots for people to use and toss? It would add two or three bucks to the cost of the comp, max. No laundry required. People could take their (disgusting, fake tan juiced, sweaty) towels with them, if they wanted. Or they could throw them away.

I just googled and found plain white "economy" hand towels for less than a dollar apiece and bath towels for less than two dollars each. First link I found. No comparison shopping. Probably not the best price in town.

If people want towels at comps, I say we lobby for them. DF is a powerful lobby. *grin*

Yep. I think a hand towel or two would be an easy and relatively inexpensive amenity to add.

I'll just put in a vote against the cheap polyester blend towels that are given away at some competitions. It's a nice thought, but I prefer my own cotton towels that actually absorb sweat to towels that are only good for spreading it around on my face.

If the competition is in a hotel, though, making cotton hotel towels available to borrow is a nice touch.

Picky, picky! Just kidding.

Good point. The site I pulled up yesterday had both cotton and cotton/polyester blend towels. Neither were expensive. Just sayin.

At the risk of beating a dead towel and I swear this is my last post on the subject. Not a fan of the hotel towels idea, from the perspective of an event planner (never done a ballroom comp. Done plenty of other events, though.)

Hotel towels would cost far more than they'd be worth, which is (I'm guessing) why more comps don't offer them. Think about it. For a well-attended comp, the hotel(s) are booked to capacity. The staff is providing and laundering linens for hundreds of people. Now, on top of doing laundry for a sold-out crowd, they have to, from somewhere, cough up hundreds of extra, high quality cotton hand towels that would get polluted with the hideous chemicals that ballroom people use. Then the staff would have to somehow somehow re-launder all the towels well enough to remove the fake orange before tomorrow's sessions. All weekend. Uhh.. Have you ever looked at how much hotels charge for laundry services?


Uhh ... Nope. I'm going to vote with buying a few gross cheap, white, cotton towels and letting people take or toss them.

cheap price != cheap quality.