Not badmouthing Oliver, I'm truly thrilled by how well you guys are doing... just there are a few things you've got wrong (as was to be expected, every first time promoter makes mistakes). They're all correctable so all is not lost, I just think you'd be better taking six months to do this... and here's why:
-the short timescale has eliminated too many eager contestants; you have 12 competitors... I had 40+
-the one month membership requirement means a lurker from some other board will win each class, lots of people are complaining about this already... and I'd hazard a guess that some of the competitors will feel justified in dropping out because of this. I had made May 28 2006 the entry requirement because that was the date of Adonis' original challenge which grew into this contest idea... seems only fair, Adonis was challenging fellow GetBig members, not possible future members
-supplying pics instead of video means most if not every contestant will be photoshoped, and that's before Frozzor enters with Ron Coleman's pics... and others start googling pics
-I had intended requiring video submissions and cutting the show together into a downloadable/broadcastable format so we could all watch it... with free posing round and live scoreboard just like a pro show should be done... maybe throw it on the FitShow and have the favourites video some workout footage for regular teaser updates leading into the show
-the prizes include a Rusty Jeffers DVD for the best poser, commendable... but there won't be a free posing round so how will you judge?
-the prizes are great... in just a couple of weeks you guys have gathered thousands of dollars worth of prizes-great job!!
Why do you think you need to hurry the contest? You've generated all this interest in three weeks... that indicates the success of the formula... let it GROW!The prize purse will only grow along with the contestant number if you let it build... I guarantee that if you have the contest in two months you'll get lots of sponsors contacting you in the weeks and months after the show looking to supply prizes... they won't think of contributing those prizes to NEXT YEARS show if the execution of this contest is botched or amateurish, which is a real possibility when these things are rushed... So what's the rush?
-Why not extend this contest to other boards? Some are already complaining that Mayhem members might enter... two separate classes (GetBig and Mayhem) would eliminate this and turn the show into something comparable to a pro show in terms of purses.
-spread the prizes more equitably... we're always bitching about how badly the pros are treated yet our own contest has the same prize disparity and the same steep remuneration curve
-organise a drug test for the Natural winner (or top 3), a sponsor will gladly pay for this... the honour system is pretty redundant when prizes are on the line... especially when most of the prizes go to first place
These are all things that I had considered and addressed, I understand you are running the show now Oliver... I'm not trying to usurp anyone, that's why I wrote you and 240 that extensive pm with all my thoughts on show format, rules, guidelines, classes etc etc for you to use as you see fit. I'm not berating anyone, I've been involved in the promotional/organisational side of the Irish bodybuilding scene and understand the steep learning curve involved... it's not for the faint hearted.
Again, congrats on what you've accomplished... my comments were more geared towards encouraging you guys to THINK BIGGER!! You've organised all of this in just a couple of weeks... I've no doubt you could easily make this a major event if you took say...even, four months instead of two... you've already proven you can do it!!
Why not go for it?
Realise the dream... a fan coup within the IFBB!! Take over bodybuilding!!
Good luck guys, and remember... I'm here to help if you need me for anything.
The Luke