Should We Provide Food On Draft Day?

Andy Tu La Daddy · Post by **Andy Tu La Daddy** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 6:11 am

Originally posted by Gordon Gekko:

Andy - again, sorry for taking my time during the draft. I was not (and shouldn't be) concerned with your post draft driving arrangements. I was trying to do MY best.

I will say that the level of competition on sunday was higher than any of my other events. Of which, I'm not thrilled about my team in that league. In addition, I felt a need to "rush" a couple of my picks as "news" of who I selected on saturday would have likely made it to a few of the contestants.

Good luck to you this year. I'm a Gekko fan, don't be so emotional.

While my driving to Jacksonville to be with my family shouldn't be a concern for you, your family "pestering you" was not a concern of mine either.

I agree with you that this draft was the toughest draft I have EVER been a part of. The starting pitching run was COMPLETELY unpredictable and shook up the entire draft. For diversity sake I took Carlos Lee in the second round when perhaps I should have gone with Upton (I took him in the main the day before). The FAAB process will be quite difficult judging by the draft.

Best of luck again,

Gordon Gekko · Post by **Gordon Gekko** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 6:14 am

Originally posted by Andy Tu La Daddy:

your family "pestering you" was not a concern of mine either.

i gotta admit that the pestering at the end was like..."Dad, you said you were taking me to the park an hour ago" or "Honey, you said the draft was going to be over an hour ago!!!"

God love my wife/kid for having patience!!!

Lost Sailor · Post by **Lost Sailor** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 6:34 am

No need for food. Most were hip to it's absence and brought sandwiches, chips, etc. Would LOVE to have coffee service, though - even in NY. I can't see that being an exhorbitant expense...

ALL-IN JD · Post by **ALL-IN JD** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 6:37 am

Mark, you should have combined the two complaints and said, "honey, you could have taken the kids to the park an hour ago!"

JohnZ · Post by **JohnZ** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 6:50 am

Greg,

Keep as is...

I would suggest updating on the MB and those last week e-mails with the items that are going to be served, especially for newbies.

Everyone can then decide what works best for them.

[ March 20, 2008, 12:51 PM: Message edited by: UFS ]

ToddZ · Post by **ToddZ** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:05 am

This has to be one of the more bizarre thread hi-jacks...

As the administrator of the Super Draft in question, I believe there was something I should have done to speed up the proceedings which would not have impacted the fairness of the proceedings.

I followed the "rule-book" instruction of not starting the clock until the sticker was affixed to the big board. Considering the lag to call out the owner on the clock via phone hook-up, perhaps I should have officially started the clock when the sticker was found -- after all, the next person should know they were up and can begin thinking before they are officially on the clock. Ultimately, the time they have to consider their next pick would have been the same if the draft were live.

Say this cut off 10 seconds per pick, that is a little less than an hour, pretty significant.

Quack · Post by **Quack** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:22 am

no need for food....I am too nervous to even think about eating.

Pollcat Marv · Post by **Pollcat Marv** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:24 am

Greg,

Save the money and skip the food.

However, I keep reading about people having battery issues with laptops - why not have power available at the tables for the main event? Even if you have to charge a reasonable surcharge to laptop users who want power - I would gladly pay for the privilege.

JohnZ · Post by **JohnZ** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:29 am

Originally posted by Pollcat Marv:

Greg,

Save the money and skip the food.

However, I keep reading about people having battery issues with laptops - why not have power available at the tables for the main event? Even if you have to charge a reasonable surcharge to laptop users who want power - I would gladly pay for the privilege. My suggestion - Anyone that wants to power during main MUST bring a power strip to share with others. No strip, no use.

Quack · Post by **Quack** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:32 am

Originally posted by UFS:

quote:Originally posted by Pollcat Marv:

Greg,

Save the money and skip the food.

However, I keep reading about people having battery issues with laptops - why not have power available at the tables for the main event? Even if you have to charge a reasonable surcharge to laptop users who want power - I would gladly pay for the privilege. My suggestion - Anyone that wants to power during main MUST bring a power strip to share with others. No strip, no use. [/QUOTE]Funny, I tried that "no strip, no use" line with my wife some time back...she was not amused

BEF · Post by **BEF** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:33 am

Pizza was provided at the Friday NY auction, which was good and bad. Good because a number of people were hungry and didn't know to bring their own food, but bad because it definitely added nearly a half hour to the process. Why? Because the hotel only brought out enough pizza for one draft while two were going on. So we stopped, some guys ate, the food ran out, we started, and 20 minutes later we stopped again so the rest of the guys could eat. Plus they had a two slice limit, and judging by the size of some of the guys in that room they use two slices of pizza just to clean their teeth between their regular meals.

My suggestion for New York (because it's so outrageously expensive to get food from the hotel) is to find a decent pizza place nearby and put in an order for a dozen pies in advance, and have them deliver it to the Sheraton. That's maybe a couple of hundred bucks, compared to whatever the Sheraton would charge.

I don't know if that would work for the Main Event, but remember that the auction is a 7 hour event that goes through the dinner hour, while the Main Event is a 4 hour process that takes place after lunch and before dinner.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:36 am

Originally posted by Lost Sailor:

No need for food. Most were hip to it's absence and brought sandwiches, chips, etc. Would LOVE to have coffee service, though - even in NY. I can't see that being an exhorbitant expense... Coffee it is. It is not that big of an expense and was just eliminated by a little over exuberance by a staffer.

We hear you loud and clear on that one.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:40 am

Originally posted by Pollcat Marv:

Greg,

Save the money and skip the food.

However, I keep reading about people having battery issues with laptops - why not have power available at the tables for the main event? Even if you have to charge a reasonable surcharge to laptop users who want power - I would gladly pay for the privilege. Not having power for the main event isn't a money issue. As you saw with the Sunset Ballroom, there isn't a guarantee that we could get power to every league. I know there is power within the floors, but there were very few wall outlets and I'm not sure that running power cords all over the floor is the answer. Each convention center is different and supplying power to all leagues would be extremely difficult.

For that reason -- along with liabilities when several laptops are unplugged when people trip over the extension cords -- we've just taken the blanket approach of allowing laptops as long as you use your own batteries.

I understand the problems of this in a 4+ hour draft, but the other way is just too troublesome.

Captain Hook · Post by **Captain Hook** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:42 am

Originally posted by Pollcat Marv:

Greg,

Save the money and skip the food.

However, I keep reading about people having battery issues with laptops - why not have power available at the tables for the main event? Even if you have to charge a reasonable surcharge to laptop users who want power - I would gladly pay for the privilege. Marv - Greg can weigh in but I can tell you from past experience that the hotels in Las Vegas charge a FORTUNE to provide power for the draft rooms/tables. They cite Union costs; additional staffing requirements; weekend hours; etc.etc.

Either bring a backup battery or just charge it up during the breaks - worked fine this year.

Nutty Scrats · Post by **Nutty Scrats** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:43 am

Friday night - yes food, Saturday- no food. Being that the Friday night start at 4:00 and most people are there between 2 and 4 it would be nice to have pizza available from say 2 - 4 or at the first break. Usually the auctions last around 6 hours give or take and hour or so. Food would be a nice gesture.

Saturday however I just think since the drafts are at 1:00 not need for food as most probably would have ate lunch prior to the main event.

Just a thought.

RedRyder · Post by **RedRyder** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:51 am

Last year there was tea with the coffee, can some of us hope for a spot of tea too?

Too bad there is not something that can be set up like a pizza cart or something, where customers can pay if they want something to eat (no events fee).

mlbbug · Post by **mlbbug** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:52 am

Greg,

Providing coffee service would be great.A little caffeine jolt between rounds might get rid of some of the cobwebs that can set in when you get into the later rounds of the draft.As far as food,there are plenty of places in the immediate area of the Sheraton to grab a bite either before or after the draft.I don't know about anyone else but I get a little sleepy after a big mid-day meal.I'd rather keep a sharp edge and coffee service is the answer.

Quack · Post by **Quack** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:53 am

As someone whose job involves these time large meetings and catering, I can tell you the costs are up there. Aside for the costs of just food, the hotels add on multiple surcharges, high minimum orders, and then service charges for having an attendant there (sometimes $200/hr). Just "food" for thought.

Also, as for ordering out food and bringing it in for a large convention room...definitely a no-no, as the hotels see that as Big revenue

Dyv · Post by **Dyv** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 8:40 am

Wtf, I want prime rib in round 15 please?

Served by little waitresses in skimpy dresses.

I'd also like my post draft dessert to be cheesecake.

I don't like it, but I find if others are thinking about it later in the draft I'll be better off.

Dyv

Nutty Scrats · Post by **Nutty Scrats** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 9:00 am

Originally posted by Dyv:

I'd also like my post draft dessert to be cheesecake.

Dyv I wonder if they would add some strawberries to go along with the cheesecake. That would be a nice touch. Desert is always good after the main course.

MadCow Sez · Post by **MadCow Sez** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 9:02 am

Coffee good....y'all need me more revved up in Vegas. I'm too low key w/o caffiene.

Quack · Post by **Quack** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 9:04 am

Originally posted by Nutty Scrat:

quote:Originally posted by Dyv:

I'd also like my post draft dessert to be cheesecake.

Dyv I wonder if they would add some strawberries to go along with the cheesecake. That would be a nice touch. Desert is always good after the main course. [/QUOTE]what about if they add the strawberries to the waitresses in the skimpy outfits?

MadCow Sez · Post by **MadCow Sez** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 9:07 am

Body shots from scantily clad cocktail waitresses during the main event? That could be problematic and a wee bit distracting.

DOUGHBOYS · Post by **DOUGHBOYS** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 9:11 am

Originally posted by Dyv:

Wtf, I want prime rib in round 15 please?

Served by little waitresses in skimpy dresses.

I'd also like my post draft dessert to be cheesecake.

I don't like it, but I find if others are thinking about it later in the draft I'll be better off.

Dyv The waitresses would have to be Judy, Lucy, and Ethel.

Dyv · Post by **Dyv** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 11:23 am

Originally posted by DOUGHBOYS:

quote:Originally posted by Dyv:

Wtf, I want prime rib in round 15 please?

Served by little waitresses in skimpy dresses.

I'd also like my post draft dessert to be cheesecake.

I don't like it, but I find if others are thinking about it later in the draft I'll be better off.

Dyv The waitresses would have to be Judy, Lucy, and Ethel. [/QUOTE]Ethel would have a big frontcourt I bet...