Partners in Team Travel (PITT)

Ok, a little more light on the subject

(At the risk of p@#&**&%g somebody off)
With a booking agent, a contract is signed.
It is an agreement, that for their services, they retain exclusive rights. The organization may or may not receive compensation depending on the agreement. As with most contracts, they all differ.

PONY, or Rising Stars, or PGF, or Team NJ, or ASA, or Ronald McDonald, or whomever (the list goes on and on) may require you to use the booking agent based on the legally binding contract that was was signed. There could be a penalty clause in the agreement. If so, the team would be penalized for not using them.
PITT is very well organized and will help with any thing they can. They are real folks, doing a real job, just like all of ya'll. They have been called by many of our teams that may have an issue with a hotel. They usually work with the team to seek a resolution.
PITT was used for the ASA State. They did it because we asked. No compensation to us as far as I know and I am the one who contacted them.
I receive $3.00 per room for the EC Fireworks. That came to approx. $2200 give or take a few dollars. I spent about that much on umpire rooms. It is pretty much a wash.
There you have it. I made an absolute killing on rooms at the EC Fireworks!

Shouldn't all this be on the rant and rave section of the board.
I would assume that everyone blasting away on this board has a job. For their job they are compensated. I am sure, as with my job, nobody likes what I charge for my "real job" services either.
I don't like that Pepsi or Mtn. Dew is $1.49 for 20oz bottle.
I don't like that Skoal is $3.98 a can.
I don't like that gas is $2.59 a gallon. I could go on and on.
Wndmllr, old buddy, you know I was going to use the Peace College field but it was $50 per hour with a requirement that we have a Peace person on site for another $20 per hour. I thought that was was a little high too.

My point is, we are all quick to judge without knowing all the ins and outs. I am sure there are some of you who work at a place that charges for a service. Maybe ya'll can telll us all where you recieve your compensation so we can ridicule what you do for a living. PITT is a good company, in business to make money and help people find housing. Don't blast them for trying to earn their living just as you do.

My last post on this subject.

 

Most hotels, I've found, when using something like PITT or similair associations (ASA, NSA,etc) instead of offering a discount to teams, offer "Comped rooms" for the tournament staff & umpires so that they can reduce the out of pocket expenses for themselves.

ASA does it in burlington, NC @ the Ramada and Best Western, I believe. Teams still get a small discount and you are not "forced" to stay at those two, but they do block rooms there for that reason.

Ever wondered why NSA takes so long to announce the location of the world series after the annual meeting? I got lucky one year and just happend to call at exactly the right time, and got a $30 off/night over the "negotiated great rates" that NSA was showing on their sites.

The fact is though, that for $30-40 / game if they didn't do that, they wouldn't have enough umpires to work major tournaments.

 

Great points.... well spoken....

I think the rub most feel is that teams are required to use the service and book teams rooms through it.

The service guarantees that rooms will be available for the teams, at a specific cost, and within a easy drive to the parks.
Booking on your own, might be a little less expensive, but you might be staying 30 miles away, especially on a holiday weekend.
Freedom to make an educated choice, would eliminate allot on this thread.

I absolutely agree that the rental cost quoted to you to use my field at Peace, was way out of line.... and understand why you did not use it......
I would not have..... unfortunately, I had no vote in the decision...

I view it as an opportunity lost to showcase my campus....
You made a decision based on cost vs value, and secured other facilities...

One a side note...
There will never be a day that I would question your integrity or commitment to NC Softball and it's girls.... what you do is very hard, and requires a person to make tough decisions, some that are not gonna be popular with the rank and file.
People need to walk one day in your shoes to understand...

 

This thread was not started as a rant and rave thread. Rather it was to get thoughts and experiences people may have had with a service that many may not be aware of.

It certainly did not mean to cause friction between two of the leaders who have had major impact on the sport of softball for the area and the state through their dedication to the girls.

The posts have been very enlightening! When people are aware of the issues involved in putting together large tournaments they may be more understanding of why things are like they are. That is one of the great things about forums like TBR.

It is pretty clear now what PITT is and does. Experiences and opinions people have had with the type of service is also enlightening, which is the intent of the thread, to hear those opinions--not rants, though.

When people are able to make informed decisions it becomes just that--their decisions. Not knowing is where the problem comes in.

 

I think part of the rub, especially in a lousy economy, is also perception. What folks see is the same people and organizations, time after time, sponsoring tournaments and making money that indirectly all participants pay for, that allows for business profits and teams/organizations self sufficiency.

When that occurs people feel gouged at the gates, concessions, hotels, and sentiment spills over, especially when you have folks angry about having to justify what they do and why, and others can only answer "if you don't like it don't go play, or go find another team.

It's never, lets find a better solution so ALL can benefit (for the girls -wish I had a nickel for every time I heard that).

THis is no slander, but what the ASA should consider is adopting some type of polcy in all fairness, and either allow all orgainzations a chance to have a HUGE fundraiser to help reduce cost, or completely run tournaments, hotel bookings, and such...in house. Maybe if the ASA takes a $5 fee per hotel room and makes $30,000 on bookings and then takes that money and passes that on to reduced team tournament fee's ($0, $50, etc.), everyone benefits. There has got to be a better way.

Anyone going to tell me the ASA can't call and be as affective an PITT and say, "we've got 40 teams coming to your city and we need X rooms at a bulk rate?" I think not.

It's the way things are run....and perception, image, regardless of on field success by the chosen few.

I'm all pro business, I have one, and I don't have all the answers, but people do not live with blinders on. JMO

 

I don't want my post to come off as a rant and rave but I am trying to get an answer to some legitimate questions and I'm kinda slow but I didn't see the answer to my question. A team has been offered a place to stay for free. Can they stay there without a penalty or would you be willing to reduce the penalty as $500 per team seems a little steep. Are teams that are within driving distance of their home required to stay in a selected hotel or can they go home? If local teams don't have to stay in a hotel what would be the difference of a team that has a free home to stay in? What if a kid has family that live there and they want to combine a visit with playing ball? Everyone has different circumstances and this shouldn't be a requirment. I know I do not want to stay in a hotel with alot of teams because frankly if I'm paying for a hotel room I want to get some sleep. I have stayed in hotels with teams before and the parents gather in one room to drink and put all the girls in a room and let them literally bounce off the walls half the night. If you need the extra bucks to pay umpires why not work that cost into the tournament fee or take a little less profit and let people stay where they want to. The economy is tough and I don't know about everyone else but we have kids who want to play but can't afford it so many times their expenses come out of the coach's pocket. Some of these bigger organizations can go on the world tour every week, but don't forget about the little guys that you big organizations are letting fall through the cracks. Let's think about ALL the girls not just the ones that have big organizations backing them. As my daddy used to say, "don't bite the hand that feeds you". It is a chain reaction, the little guy is going to be eventually bled dry, not able to participate in fund raiser tournaments and then those trips around the world get a little more expensive for the larger organizations. Help us help you. Everyone might not understand but some of us are fighting just to keep teams on the field. Again not a rant and rave or a dig just trying to throw some ideas out so we can help ALL the girls.

 

I understand exactly where you are coming from.

In the early years of coaching I was associated with two organizations primarily, the NC Challengers and the Triangle Lightning. I have personally witnessed leaders and coaches from those organizations take their own personal money--not team money--and help kids who otherwise wouldn't be able to play. I'm not talking about star players, either, I'm talking about players who might have had a chance to be star players some day. This happens frequently in HS also.

Every coach I've ever coached with in TB was a volunteer. Even the HS coaches don't really profit monetarily. If it was for the money they'd be better off at Wendy's--or mowing grass maybe.

What all that says to me is it's not all about the money; it truly is about the girls!

Any perception that someone is taking advantage is not taken lightly. That is reason enough to make people aware of what goes on. Then they have choices. If they tolerate a take it or leave attitude that's a different thread.

 

Ok, I said I wouldn't but..

I thought I answered the question. I don't have a penalty that I'm aware of.
NC ASA is a non profit. There isn't a lot of revenue generated. All the positions (and there ain't but a few of us) work strictly on a volunteer basis.
Moneys from NC ASA tournament fees are used for scholarships, advertising, insurance, National meeting expenses, registration expense, ect...but it's not a large number.
I make my living just like everyone else. I work a 50 to 60 our a week job. I spend another good amount of time working the ASA stuff. (approx. 2 to 4 hours a day)
I don't have time to contact hotels and arrange rooms for tournaments.
Now if I could get someone to volunteer their time to do it, I would gladly accept some help. Problem is, we all want what we want, but without a lot of effort.
I do host several tournaments. The funds generated from these help fund our team.
We stopped player fees a couple of years ago. I choose to help my folks out.
I pay my own way.
I make up any difference in the expenses incurred of my team. It is my hobby, not my livelihood.
Some spend on playing golf, Nascar and drinking beer. I spend it playing softball.
I will welcome any volunteers to come help NC ASA out.

 

Cool, no penalty, the team stays at the house for free and everyone is happy. Thanks for your answer. Congratulations for making enough that you don't have any team fees. That's awesome.