"Now the Seats are All Empty ..."

Now the seats are all empty
Let the roadies take the stage
Pack it up and tear it down
They're the first to come and last to leave
Working for that minimum wage
They'll set it up in another town...
- Jackson Browne, "The Load Out"

Day Four of the NAC A has followed the first three days into the history books. Congratulations to Sarah Timmons (pictured) of Iowa State University Fencing Club, who took seventh in Division III Women's Epee. The Iowa Division had two fencers on the podium this NAC. Gotta love it.

Will Des Moines host another NAC, ever? Word on the street is positive. We asked a lot of people point-blank what they thought of Des Moines as a venue. Everything said nice things to us. They might have been trying to spare our feelings, though. Whenever I was wandering through the crowd, though, on those occasions when I heard anyone say anything about the venue or the city, it was positive. (Steve overheard one person say, over the phone, "Well, I never thought I'd say this, but I'm in Iowa." As a transplant to this fine state, I've sometimes said similar things.)

Some of the online discussion (see fencing.net, for example) notes the decline in the number of fencers participating from last year to this year. Various culprits are named, but few seems to think it has anything to do with Des Moines; more people cite the economy, or the changes in the cadet event formats. Many people noted the difficulty of flying to and from Des Moines, since it's hard to get a direct flight unless you live in a hub city like Chicago or Denver. Common problem. Those of us who live here and have to do business travel feel your pain.

The event was blessed with a phenomenal corps of volunteers, headed by Local Organizing Committee chair Kevin Fitzpatrick. We delighted many of the USFA regulars by helping them get out of the venue by dinnertime on Thursday night, despite many of us having never set up metal strips before. We seemed to please on Monday afternoon as well, when it was time to load out; our fencers, parents and friends joined in and got everyone out in short order.

But the only time that seems too short

Is the time that we get to play ...

Some of us will see some of you next month in Kansas City. Peace.

- RJL

(Photo of Sarah Timmons by Kevin Powell.)