One thing I’ve noticed since I’ve been in the winter strawberry capital is that there are a bunch of big tournaments held here.
I know, I know — I’ve been the sports guy here for five months now, I’ve seen a lot of what this place has to offer, and I shouldn’t be too surprised. But, I am.
I’ve covered my fair share of small tournaments throughout my career, from things such as wakeboarding and waterskiing to 7-on-7 football, but those weren’t exactly big deals. I’ve covered the city of Palms and Queen of Palms basketball tournaments, which are absolutely big deals, but those are different: There’s only one court and one game being played at a time.
You’re sitting down for long periods of time in the back corner of a high school gym (or next to the scorers’ table, if you’re lucky) and multitasking between watching the game and staring at a laptop, writing a coherent running log of the action in front of you. Or, you may be weaving in and out of a sea of spectators, video camera in hand, trying to get a unique shot of the action and maybe post a few tweets. That can be more fun than I probably just made it sound, but oh, man! Those with claustrophobia need not apply.
The United Youth Football League tournament was the first one I’ve covered that actually felt like something done on a big scale, thanks to the size of the Otis M. Andrews Sports Complex. I, for one, enjoy being in a place where I can’t look anywhere without seeing a football game being played.
And, being in an open space, it was much easier to notice all of the people from out of state. Sure, you’ll find those people at city of Palms, but, as a journalist, you’re too busy looking for big-time college coaches such as John Calipari and Thad Matta to catch the tourism draw.
It’s great to see all of these people from outside of Florida gathering here to watch sports and pump some money into the local economy. For all of the mean things that native Southerners (and myself, ironically) say about snowbird drivers when we’re on the road, it’s nice to know that Plant City is a place where people want to be, for any period of time.
Important people, the ones in charge of such national tournaments, love the place, too. There are plenty of reasons for the UYFL tournament and the upcoming NCBA/NCSA showcase to keep coming back, but chief among them is that the event organizers love the people here. I’ve honestly never heard anything different.
And, now, we’re getting two long-established tournaments in one package deal. The Let It Fly Flag Football Tournament and the Kick It 3v3 Soccer Tournament are joining forces this weekend to create what should be a great weekend festival for all sports fans; word from both parties is that they’d like to keep it in Plant City — and eventually expand to include basketball and lacrosse.
That basically amounts to one big tournament each month, and two of them coincide with the Strawberry Festival — already the city’s biggest tourism draw. Heck, the college baseball/softball showcases’ first week takes place during the festival, and those players will definitely head down to the grounds to see what we’re all about out here.
As a sports fan, I’m hoping that national interest in Plant City as an ideal tournament site hasn’t peaked with the Let It Fly/Kick It additions. This kind of thing truly is good for the winter strawberry capital and those of us who live and work here.
