We are delighted to announce a new addition to the ABSP Committee. For some time we felt in danger of lacking real expertise in tournament organisation, with only a couple of committee members currently running regular events. I'm happy to say that situation has now changed, and we now welcome Peter Thorpe to the position of Tournament Officials Liaison. Pete will be able to offer assistance and advice to both active and prospective tournament organisers, directors and computer operators. Pete has also agreed to be Deputy Webmaster for the ABSP Website, will be regularly updating the calendar and Home Page, and in addition, will be helping to get some out of date documentation such as the Tournament Organiser's Guide updated. He is also keen, with the new WebMaster (in due course) to completely review the webpages, to bring them up to date and improve their functionality. Pete will also be taking up a position as UK representative on WESPA's Executive Committee.
On the flipside, we are sad to say goodbye to Colin Nicol from the role of Clubs Co-Ordinator he took on last Summer, due to personal and family commitments. Colin already has many Scrabble-related responsibilities involving the various leagues in Scotland and has found that he is constantly managing a backlog and struggling to find the time to see his plans through to fruition. As such, he has made the difficult decision to step down as he feels the position will be better filled by someone else with more attention to devote.
The purpose of the Clubs Co-Ordinator role is to provide a link between Scrabble Clubs, Leagues & the ABSP, but in many ways the role is a blank canvas and could be taken in a number of different directions depending on the candidate. In truth, liaison with Clubs is an area where we have just been treading water for a little while, and is crying out for someone to come along and put some renewed focus into it. It's an ideal opportunity for someone with some drive, who enjoys interacting with a wide and diverse base of people, and perhaps already has some strong club links themselves. If you think this may be you, or are interested in serving on the committee in any other capacity, please get in touch with any committee member.