MC Regatta Management System

The Need

While the list of administrative details for putting on a regatta is long and demanding, the MC Regatta Management System can help if you ever ask any of the following questions:

How do I make sure the word gets out about the regatta?
How many skippers are coming?
How do I communicate with those who have already pre-registered?
How do I contact all those who came last year to invite them to this year's event?
How many meals will be required?
How many T-shirts of what size should I order and not lose financially?
How many people will need to be available to handle the on-site registration process?
How do I get a list of registrants/sail numbers to the PRO when the Race Committee will be heading out to set the course within 30 minutes after closing registration?
How can I populate the scoring program without having to key in all the names, sail numbers, and club affiliations?

Here is a description of the system used by regatta organizers of 26 out of 49 MC regattas during the 2007 season. This system is being continually improved and expanded to reduce the administrative burden of organizing and running an MC regatta. The table below shows how use has grown over the past four years. In 2007 the System was also used for the C Nationals, the C-Midwinters and three other non-MC regattas.

Notice of Race (NoR) This is the invitation to your event and if you feel comfortable creating Web pages for your fleet or club, you are well on your way to using the rest of the system! Maxincuckee and Augusta created the NoRs you see on the right. Your Webmaster created the NoRs for the Black Tie and the Nothin's Finer regattas. Note that these NoRs all have two important links to the: 1. On-line registration page, and 2. List of registrants page.

On-Line Registration This page is a bit more complicated to create because it requires a good working knowledge of JavaScript and the programs running on the MC Web server. This gets messy because you also have to worry about browser compatibilities. Your Webmaster can put these together on short order, especially if we can use most of a previous season's template. 10-Second On-Site Registration Print out the registration forms e-mailed to the organizing committee and have a plastic bag waiting with t-shirt, SIs, and other information you want to provide each skipper. Skipper signs list that he picked up material and he's on his way. No more standing in long lines!	Some observations about the four different registration pages displayed below The System can handle discounts based on membership, age category, or specific calendar day - e.g., early registration discount It is simple to add different items you wish to sell. Note that organizers are starting to limit availability of non-XL shirt sizes to those who preregister. A running total cost field keeps track of how much it will cost the skipper If your club is set up to accept credit cards, the System can provide a SSL secure connection to accept credit card information Entries are automatically added to List of Registrants and e-mails sent to one or more mebers of the organizing entity - no manual effort except that by the registrant!
List of Registrants This is a real attraction because by showing who has already signed up, others may 'get off the fence' and sign up as well. A special feature is invoked in cases where you require or provide a discount for MCSA members. The System is linked to the membership database and will verify the skipper's MCSA membership status; a green background color designates paid up membership. When you have a multifleet event, it will group each fleet and sort it by sail number.
Editing List of Registrants It never seems to fail - just when you think that pre-registration is going smooth, someone calls and informs you that he is bringing another guest and wants to purchase more meals. No problem! Here is what you do:	Bring up the Edit Registrants screen, select your skipper, and press Update Registrant	Modify affected fields and click on Update Information. If you need to delete a skipper, click on Delete Skipper instead; you will be asked to confirm this decision before the program performs the deletion.
Communicating with Registrants You will be wet sailing your event and want to make sure everyone brings the proper length of line and a buoy. How do you communicate with all those who have registered already? Here is what you do to send them an e-mail message:	Bring up the Edit Registrants screen and click on the Send E-mail to Registrants link above the Registrant column.	This page provides a panel where you can compose a message to all registrants who supplied an e-mail address. After you click on the Send button, it will show a screen confirming you sent a message. As organizer, you will receive two messages: one when the mailing proces starts, and another one when it is finished. The latter message will contain information on the number of messages sent.
Exporting Data It is quite common that I participate in a regatta and also handle scoring. That means I have to provide the PRO with a list of participants by the time the skippers' meeting is over - about 30 minutes after registration closes. And I also have to get out on the course in time for the warning gun! Not a problem! The evening before the event, download the file with skippers who pre-registered. Import that to your favorite scoring program. Our experience shows that 85 - 95% of skippers pre-register so only a few have to be added during on-site registration. With the right scoring program you'll be out on the course with time to spare!	Bring up the Edit Registrants screen and click on the Export Data link above the Sail Number column. It provides access to the export screen for your event as shown below.	Registration Data In preparing for large regattas it is very useful to periodically download the registration data and use Excel to tally all the meals and T-shirt orders received todate. This can be done at any time and provides the organizers with critical information to plan for a better event. Here is a sample of the instructions to export the Registration file
		Scoring Programs The MC Regatta Management System can supply an output file for use with the MC Score program. (Customized step-by-step download instructions are included.)

How do you get started?

There are several ways we work with regatta organizers. The only requirement at this time is that a local MC fleet be actively involved in running or supporting the regatta. It does not need to be an MC-only event but MCs should be one of the fleets sailing; the system readily supports multi-fleet events.

If you have someone locally who is chomping at the bit to create the Notice of Race and then place it on your club's Web site, you should encourage that. In that situation we will only do the Registration form and the list of registrants portion. This approach is used by a couple of the fleets we have worked with.

While the Registration form is in html, it contains a lot of custom JavaScript that works with Perl programs resident on the MC Web server. That form, even if generated locally, must eventually reside on the MC Web server for the system to work properly.

So when you have worked out most of the details of your Notice of Race, send it to Secretary@mcscow.org. Target having the data ready to go live about 6 - 8 weeks before the start of your event. We will keep you abreast of progress.

Look forward to working with you!