The 2010 Alberta Annual Classic
Team Penning Jackpot
Northlands Expo Center
Edmonton, AB.
Nov. 4, 5, 6, 2010
(dates tentative)
The Alberta Annual Classic
Sponsored by Tim Hortons
To all CTCPA members,
Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Grant Sterling and as the elected Chairman of The Alberta Annual Classic – Sponsored by Tim Hortons (previously the Zender Fall Classic) I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight some of the changes that we will be making to the show this year. For many, this may seem like we are jumping the gun by introducing these changes so early in the year but it was the Committee’s intentions to meet early, determine what was working and what we felt could be changed for the betterment of the show so people would be in a position to align their teams, their time and their finances to fit The Alberta Annual Classic into their busy penning schedule. The Committee strongly believes that with the changes we are making to the show, we are addressing a number of past concerns while concentrating on representing the best our sport has to offer in all levels to draw bigger crowds, improve the payouts, shorten the length of each day and increase the opportunities for our sponsors to be rewarding for their support. While there are many small details that are still to be worked out and the show schedule itself may change as the year goes by, the basis has been formed and we believe this to be the right direction for the show.
Obviously, as mentioned above one of the more significant changes to this show is the name. For 15 years, Ken Zender and Zender Ford were great supporters of our sport and his dedication to helping make this show what it is today will not be forgotten. At the conclusion of last year’s show, Ken felt it was time to step down and turn the reins over to others to carry on. We do hope that Ken will still be interested in supporting the show in some way but with his new interests in the cutting pen, we will definitely understand if his focus and support shifts. Thank you Ken, for all your hard work and financial support. When this decision was announced and the new committee formed, one of the first agenda items was to create a name that would represent this show no matter where in Alberta it may end up and no matter what time of the year it runs (more on this later). After discussion of various ideas the committee settled on “The Alberta Annual Classic”. Depending on who the major sponsor for the year will be, the supporting line of “Sponsored by …” will be added. One of the other key benefits to the move to a somewhat generic name is the opportunity to brand the Classic with logos, merchandising and a consistent marketing approach. After all, we would all enjoy seeing full stands both Friday and Saturday to watch the sport we all love and enjoy and to improve the draw we have to look at how we are marketing our sport to the public.
Probably the most significant change for the 2010 Alberta Annual Classic will be the class structure. Over the years, the Classic has had a somewhat unique class structure with the 6 Shootout, 8 Class, 8 Shootout, 14 Class (added last year), Open Shootout and the Zender Shootout (or in previous years this was called the Cherokee Shootout). One of the ongoing comments was that it did not allow people that rode all year together in any class but the Open to take that team to Zender and still be competitive. The class structure invariably forced people to break up teams to try to put together teams that maximized the class rating. In addition, having two #8 classes (even though one was a shootout and the other an aggregate) seemed to be overkill for that segment of penners. And the big spread between the #8 classes and the 14 class was too much to attract certain people to move up. And finally, with six classes, the entries were diluted across a greater number of classes, the time frame to run all six classes was longer (last year it was a 7 a.m. start each day and it wasn’t over until after 9 on both evenings) which was hard on penners, officials and our sponsors. So the 2010 Classic will look like the following however please note that the number of teams in each class has not yet been set in stone and the payouts are only estimates at this time as they may fluctuate depending on operational costs, entries and sponsorship.
7 Class Aggregate with a 5 Class Incentive
- $600 / team
- $270 / team in addition for the 5 Class incentive
- Maximum 6 entries per rider (split between 7 Class and 5 Class Incentive, no more than 4 entries in one Class. i.e. Four 7 Class teams and two 5 Class Incentive teams or three teams in each or two 7 Class teams and four 5 Class Incentive teams but not five and one or all six in one class)
- 190 teams
- Change out 2 riders
- Sample payout based on 190 teams in the 7 and 20 teams in the 5 Class Incentive and all expenses being on par with last year.
o1st place day money on both Thursday and Friday - $6800+ for the team
- o1st place finals money on Saturday - $12000+ for the team with 6th through 10th receiving their entry fees back.
- o1st Place day money on both Thursday and Friday for the 5 Incentive - ~$675 for the team
- o1st place finals money on Saturday for the 5 Incentive - ~$1350 for the team
- Taking into account that the 7 class in all associations is one of the biggest classes next to the 10 class and the fact that the 8 and 8 Shootout are usually fairly full and finally that this class mirrors the class structure of all associations, we felt it was the best fit for the entry level to intermediate level penners. A 7 Class is a great opportunity for the 1’s and 2’s to gain experience with the 3’s, some 4’s and even the odd 5 in a class that is not too intimidating. By including a 5 Class Incentive, the typical 5 class teams are not left out and in fact have an opportunity to take money from both pots. The 5 Class Incentive teams would have to pay a slightly higher entry fee and 100% of the entry fee above the $600 7 Class entry fee per team would be paid out to the 5 Class Incentive teams. However, if the 5 Class Incentive team is also in the top 5 spots of the 7 Class, they would also get the appropriate payout for that class as well. In many circles, the term used for this would be double dipping. For those of you that ride the ATCPS Ltd Open class, you are probably familiar with the number of times that a Ltd Open team took home Open money as well as Ltd Open money.
10 Class Shootout
- $690 / team
- 4 entries per rider
- 110 teams
- Change out 2 riders
- Sample payout based on 110 teams and all expenses being on par with last year.
- o1st place finals money on Saturday - ~$22000 for the team with 6th through 10th receiving their entry fees back.
- In previous years there has been too big a spread between the 8 classes and the 14 class. By adding in a 10 Class and setting it up as a shootout format, it gives the broad spectrum of penners, from a 1 – 7, the ability to ride in a class. And because this is a 10 class, there is a greater opportunity for the lower numbered riders to ride with the more experienced penners. As most of you are aware, this class is typically the largest class in most associations because it does allow such a broad mix of skill levels.
14 Class Aggregate
- $600 / team
- 4 entries per rider
- 120 teams
- Change out 2 riders
- Sample payout based on 120 teams and all expenses being on par with last year.
- o1st place day money on both Thursday and Friday - ~$4500 for the team
- o1st place finals money on Saturday - ~$7500 for the team with 6th through 10th receiving their entry fees back.
- With the introduction of the various jackpots (80/80’s, Super 70’s, etc), the 14 class has become a very popular class because there are so many opportunities for team combinations. As the sport grows and the number of 3’s and up increases, there is a greater need to have a class where these higher rated riders can pen in an aggregate format. In 2009, the 14 class showed great promise and it is believed that with the other changes that were introduced for 2010, this class will be a much bigger hit.
Open Shootout
- $900 / team
- 6 entries per rider
- 80 teams
- Sample payout based on 80 teams and all expenses being on par with last year.
- o1st place finals money on Saturday - ~$21000 for the team with 6th through 10th receiving their entry fees back.
- In previous years we have run with the Open Shootout and the Zender / Cherokee Shootout (depending on the year). Unfortunately, the Zender / Cherokee Shootout only filled on the day before the class was to run and the Open Shootout never really filled the way it should have. Also note, that this is the only class (at this time) where we will not force the change out 2 rider rule. It was felt that the Open class should be just that, an Open class where everyone has to ride for the money the same way and if riders wish to box up then so be it. It was also the biggest complaint from a number of Open caliber riders who stated that the change out 2 riders made it more difficult to fill up. As well, by combining these two classes into a single larger class the payouts will be that much better for the competitors.
As well there are a few other guidelines for this year’s show.
- There will still be a 3 CTCPA sanctioned show qualification.
- You must ride one other class besides the shootout classes. In other words you can’t enter just the 10 Class Shootout and Open Class Shootout.
- The change out 2 rider rule for the other classes is still open for debate and we will be awaiting further feedback from the penning community prior to finalizing our decision on that one.
- The change in structure was also put together to facilitate a later start time (expected to be 8 a.m. this year rather than the 7 a.m. of 2009). Thursday night should end at a reasonable hour thereby allowing competitors to support some of our sponsors and get a decent amount of rest prior to Friday’s penning.
- Speed Penning may return this year but it will be entirely dependent on whether or not Northlands will provide a suitable time slot for us to run it. If the Speed Penning does go ahead this year then we would also look at a few modifications to the format for both the competition and the pen.
The 2010 Alberta Annual Classic Committee is comprised of the following individuals. If you have any suggestions or constructive comments, please do not hesitate to contact myself or anyone of the committee members.
Committee Email Addresses and volunteer jobs:
Grant Sterling (Committee Chairman) – gsterling@commgroup.com
Officials / Announcers / TimekeepersAl Keeler – akeeler@suncor.com
VolunteersCarmon Reich – raftercd@live.ca
Cattle / FacilitiesDaren Hawrish – Darren.hawrish@kitchenpartners.com
Budget / advisorDarla Rathwell - freereinhorseandrider@telus.net
Darlene Gulka – darlenegulka@aol.com
Show SecretaryDeana Adams – raftercd@live.ca
PrizesHoward Pratley - hpratley@telus.net
Sponsorship / MerchandizingIvin Potts - getalongranch@yahoo.ca
Cattle / FacilitiesJames Tardif - fidratsemaj@aol.com
VolunteersKelly Feth – Kelly.p.feth@esso.ca
Cattle / FacilitiesKim Hull - Kimberly.hull@cra-arc.gc.ca
SponsorshipWendy Dwernychuk – wdwernyc@sturgeon.ab.ca
SponsorshipCindy Sterling / Lee Potts
Entries / StablingGlen Olfert
Herd Settlers