NORWICH – How is this for a sales pitch for potential Gus Macker volunteers?
Come join the best Gus Buster team in the country.
Longtime local tournament director, Tom Revoir of the Norwich YMCA, said his team of Busters picked up a prestigious award at a recent regional Gus Macker meeting in Cicero (near Syracuse).
“We had no idea we were getting an award,” Revoir said, who attended the meeting with several other local volunteers. “Scott McNeal (Gus Macker’s president) announced at the meeting that Norwich was the national Gus Buster program of the year for 2010. He stated that we were the most organized and have great busters.”
Revoir credits the continuity among the Gus Buster leadership from year to year as a key factor in such a smooth running tournament. Head buster Mark Abbott and Super Buster, Steve Benenati, have been with the tournament since day one. “Steve and Mark put countless hours into this before, during, and after the tournament,” Revoir said, who also named at least a dozen other key contributors. “We have so many great people coming back year after year to volunteer and help us out.”
To prepare Gus Busters, a pre-tournament meeting is held for all prospective Gus Busters (officials and scorekeepers), and all of the rules are reviewed line by line. “From beginning to end, we explain all of the rules thoroughly, and we put a mock court on the floor to show different scenarios,” Revoir said. “We give (Busters) a hands-on experience about the rules and what they are for.”
It is that type of diligence that has allowed the Norwich group of volunteers to excel. Additionally, a contribution from volunteer Bruce Bonney (see sidebar story) was implemented as part of Macker’s official rules.
Bonney addressed volunteers on the do’s and don’ts of handling a conflict situation, and he outlined a specific set of procedures to handle confrontation. Most importantly, Bonney stressed in his outline, “to use your head because (fans, players) will be responding with their hearts.”
Over the years, Revoir has had the opportunity to view Gus Macker tournaments in other cities. Some tournaments field 1,000 teams or more. Norwich’s entries rose rapidly the first four years reaching 500-plus teams by year four. Revoir and the tournament committee placed a cap of 400 teams, and that total of teams has worked out perfectly for the corresponding amount of volunteers. “We had to put a cap on the number of teams because of the volunteers,” Revoir said. “We’ve been to other tournaments where some of the people volunteering on courts have no idea what they are doing. Being a Buster, it’s not just knowing the rules, you need to have a concept of how basketball is played. If you don’t understand it, you’re going to have problems.”
Revoir said that from Court Red A (the 8-and-under age group) to the top men’s court, he has experienced, knowledgeable volunteers who all “know what they are doing.” He said it is the Busters who serve as the glue that holds the tournament together, and he hopes this year’s tournament, the 16th, brings more national recognition.
“I want to win the Gus Buster award again for 2011,” Revoir said. “I truly believe we have the best group of Busters in the nation across the board.”