I just went back and reviewed the posts from 2015 and 2016 that were similar to this. In 2015, I was forced to make this post about 8 days after registration opened, with a cap on Open Longsword of around 65, and the caps hadn't even been hit yet. They were just closing in. In 2016, this post came 3 days after registration, about 24 hours after almost everything had sold out. It's 3:15 right now as I start to write this. Registration opened 3 hours and 15 minutes ago. The only tournament with slots left are Tier A Longsword and Women's Longsword, two events with strict entrance requirements.

So, let's go few our next steps and what else is coming down the pipe.

Tournament Capacity

This has become our most consistent, most visible challenge. This year, we almost flat out doubled our tournament capacity. We estimated that this meant registration for the tournaments would last at least as long as last year. But while we increased tournament capacity by 100%, registration went at least 1000% faster.

Usually, we are able to release an attendance sheet by the end of the first day, even with an initial surge of registrations. However, it looks like there might be almost as many people registered for the event in 3 hours as we had total at Longpoint 2016. It will take us a few days, maybe a week, to work through all of this. Once we do, we will have some updates. Sit tight.

What you should know is that there are always registration errors. If you are interested in an event, email [email protected] to be put on the wait list. As we work through and resolve registration errors, spots will open up, and they will be offered to the next person on the list. People who are registered for the event have priority over those who are not registered for the event on the wait list. If you have sent an email already, you will not lose your spot, but you might by the end of the week if you are not registered for the event.

As we do every year, we will be exploring possibilities for expansion. As we say every year, there's no guarantee on this. It requires larger staffing solutions, more space, and more time. This would not happen for a few months.

 

It's Not All About The Tournaments

With all that said, Longpoint has never been a fully competitive event. It gets the most press, and it is the cause of these initial surges of interest, but the reasons to attend Longpoint are many. Over the next couple months, we will be announcing instructors and their classes. We will be fleshing out the schedule, which includes space for sparring 24/7, no matter what is going on, as well as themed sparring times to get practitioners together with a plan at a given time. Socially, Longpoint is hard to beat; you will meet, talk to, and drink with more of the nationally and internationally recognizable names than at any other event in the western hemisphere.

Keep an eye on the Longpoint pages to keep up to date with this information.

 

In Conclusion

As I wrote above, we will need some time to process this. We will have an update within a week. If you have any questions, notes about registration mistakes, would like to be put on a waiting list, or anything else, email [email protected]. The tasks will be worked through in order, and your part of that list will be reached. We will be in touch with all of you soon.


Ben Michels
Longpoint Director