Ahh, Atlanta Big South ! Big traffic, big money, gotta love it. If, and when you should return, visit Spondivots for seafood. Awesome, but STAY OUT of RUBY TUESDAYS nearby. Their hospitality includes "booting" your car and holding it for a $100 ransom. ( cash , no credit card) Nice going Rube. Use the $100 dollars to purchase a regulation sign.

One of the best ways to get better is by playing better competition. Kudos to Xtreme's 18s for competing in the Big South's 18 open division! Probably learned a ton!
Only other local squad I know of who did something cool like this was Batavia's 15s who played in the Great Lake Center's (Sports Performance sponsored tourney) in Chicago during President's Day Weekend.
Great strides are being made when opportunities like these are undertaken.

Agreed, the only way to get better is to play the best competition. But I'm not sure why you only cite two teams from our area that are doing so. VFX sent 4 teams to Atlanta to play in the open divisions of 14s, 15s, 16s, and 18s. In addition, their 12s have been playing in 14s tournaments, 13s in 15s tournaments, 14s in 16s, etc. The NFVB 12s played up in 14s and actually won the tournament! It seems the idea of searching out the best is the norm around here rather than the exception.

Sorry zenvball, didn't look to see if anyone else hit the Big South, just a little bit jet lagged from a trip to the LA qualifier. It was so exciting.

Props to anyone going to qualifiers. Although certain qualifiers have varying strengths of field. Really wish that the JVA teams weren't still boycotting the East and Middle-state qualifiers... those days were so exciting. Then Baltimore, Atlanta, Hoosier, Northern Lights and Missou were something quite different than they are today.

I think unfortunately any well assembled local team of all stars has to play up hereabouts. Too bad.

Here's the results:
http://www.bigsouth.us/sites/default/fi ... nishes.pdf

18 Open (40 team field):
VolleyFX 17th
Xtreme 39th

18 National (52 teams):
Niagara Frontier 17s 22nd
VolleyFX 182s 24th

17 National (68 teams):
FX 48th

16 Open (44 teams):
FX 23rd

16 National (92 teams):
NF 15s 18th

15 Open (36 teams):
FX 33rd

14 Open (24 teams):
FX 8th

13 (92 teams):
FX 18th

Agree with zenvball. Have to play the best competition or play up. VFX 14's have played in all local 16's tourneys and won two of them. Played in 14 open at Big South and finished 8th overall. Nice work.

Lancer.....went to Spondivits while in Atl. Place was packed on a Sunday night. Waited 45 minutes. File' Seafood Gumbo was outstanding! Why would anyone travel 800 miles and go to a Ruby Tuesday???

Exactly, why anyone would go to a Ruby Tuesday anywhere is a mystery to me. They make money by visitors unknowingly parking in their lots. Again, nice job Rube ! At least Spondivots neees your space.

Lancer and Justadad bring up an important point concerning club volleyball travel. I consider myself very lucky to have had the opportunity to attend several National Qualifier tournaments and Nationals as both a coach and as a parent on both the boys and girls side of club. I can tell you that when I attended my first travel tournament to Richmond, I was pretty lousy at it. I spent the entire three days of the weekend either inside a convention center or in my hotel room with my family. What a mistake! I have since learned what an opportunity volleyball travels presents in terms of quality time with my kids, the chance to form strong and lasting friendships with parents, and most of all the ability to experience the best of what some pretty cool, major cities have to offer. I now spend countless hours researching the best restaurantes, pubs, museums, local sports, etc. so I can take full advantage of whatever part of the country I am in. Because of club volleyball I have:
Played blackjack in Reno
Waited for a million bats to fly out from under the Congress Bridge in Austin
Been to the Atlanta Aquarium and Coca-Cola Museum
Seen Lake Tahoe
Had a cold beverage in the Gingerman in Austin
Eaten ice cream at the Berkey Creamery at Penn State
Had a team dinner at Hard Rock Baltimore
And so much more

My advice to all parents who are new to the whole travel tounament thing is to wrap yourself up in the entire experience. Yes, the volleyball is always fantastic, but only half of the fun. Experience each weekend and the new city it presents to the absolute fullest extent possible. I will meet you all at the Minneapolis Town Hall Brew Pub in July or Taco Macs in Atlanta in June!
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Well said, Zenvball. We have tried to make the most out of these trips.

The best though........taking the team to the Rodeo while at the Lone Star Qualifier!! Can't see that in the northeast.

All great and fun things but what I will take from my daughters volleyball travels will be the friends we have made . The many people who have become part of our family . Looking in the paper on a Wednesday in the fall and seeing that so and so had 35 assists and sending off an email to their parents . Walking into the sectional finals with several hundred people in the gym and knowing many of them . I can't believe I am waxing poetic like this after we just finished 3 tournaments including 2 qualifiers in 4 weeks lol .

These are all the things that make volleyball a community that my family and I are lucky to be a part of .