Tournament Ready!

Mass Planning

Planning for a US Youth Soccer Championship Series tournament takes more than a year of planning.  A staggering list of details and logistics demand attention so that 232 teams (nearly 4-thousand players) can compete seamlessly on 21 fields.  US Youth Soccer estimates that players, volunteers, coaches, referees, vendors and soccer families in Boise this week will total about 20-thousand people!

US Youth Soccer reps meet with IYSA staff and officers planning the biggest gathering of elite youth soccer players in the west.  How many Region IV champions will move on to claim a national title?

The fleet of more than 50 golf carts needed to move people around the 21 fields.  

Two utility carts.....

Fitting that one of the utility carts is painted in BSU Bronco colors! 

Details, details.  IYSA even had to plan for 46 portable toilets to be delivered to the fields.

Tent space for T-shirts, college coaches....

..a place for injured players (we hope it won't be needed, but there are, after all, nearly 4-thousand players in action tomorrow.  

Sun or rain shelter for field marshalls 

Already dubbed "the referee palace."  Well, there are a lot of them.  

Beautiful fields set against a backdrop of the Boise Foothills.  Green aided by Mother Nature....

...and the Boise City Department of Parks and Recreation.  Beautiful job, everyone!

Water stations, courtesy of US Youth Soccer. 

Flags representing every Region IV state.  Thirteen states, but California gets to count as two states with its population.  CA teams are representing as CA-N and CA-S.  (Fourteen "states" ??)   Hawaiian teams get to claim distance traveled.

Western goodwill, courtesy of New Mexico Youth Soccer Association Executive Director , Jim Tilley, who showed up early to help.  Say hello to Jim when you see him on the fields this week.  He's a good friend to IYSA. 

About 4000 goody bags with small gifts and coupons from local businesses.  Gathered by Sam Sandmire and Pam Draper.  Thanks to Boise Nationals U15 Boys & parents for helping stuff the bags.  Distribution...thanks to FC Nova, Real Nampa parents for jumping in to help. 

And thanks to Kohl's for the bags! 

It is a logistics and detail list guaranteed to send most of us racing to a dark corner.  IYSA's secret weapon is Shelly Adlard, who has carried lists, spreadsheets and minutiae around with her for more than a year checking and double-checking.  On the list, things like: 100 trash cans, 50 recycle bins, 325 referees and making sure they are fed.  Her admirers are calling her The CEO and she is really pretty calm just before the curtain goes up. 

Our CEO, Shelly Adlard, giving guidance to the field maintenance bosses.  Shelly is a bit hard to pin down with a camera, but there are determined photographers to get the job done.  When you see Shelly this week, say hello and thank her for a tremendous effort.  

And welcome, welcome, welcome.  Take the time to explore our beautiful community.  The locals are very friendly and will answer questions and help you find your way around.