Convention Anticipation

by Jonathan Ketterer

After several weeks of no posts, the Friday blog is back and will be discussing a little bit about San Antonio for the upcoming convention. For starters, I have been to the beautiful city three times prior to this week's upcoming trip, and I can say with certainty that it will be a great place for the AVCA to be holding their convention. From the Riverwalk to the Alamo, San Antonio's scenic beauty will be sure to match the beauty of the convention and the matches that will taking place at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center and the Alamodome. Beauty aside though, I'd like to point out a few things about the both the city and the convention that I am personally excited for.
 

The Republic of Texas Restaurant



On my prior trips to this Texas city, I have done the obvious tourist tasks of riding a boat down the Riverwalk and seeing the Alamo. I can say that both of these activities are rather unique, and if you find yourself awed by history, I am sure the Alamo won't disappoint. The Riverwalk though, is something I have always found to be an awesome part of the city. Every time that I have gone to San Antonio, I have eaten a dinner on the Riverwalk, and for this trip, I am happy to announce that this streak will not end. One restaurant that is highly reviewed and rather unique to the rest is the Republic of Texas Restaurant. Dining on the river itself is surely an experience to say the least, and while sticking true to the motto that everything is bigger in Texas, they offer a 46 oz. margarita. Another unique restaurant on the Riverwalk is Dick's. Although I have never been there myself, I hear that they simply act jokingly rude and that it is in turn supposed to be a fun atmosphere for those who have a good sense of humor. I also hear that their half pound burgers are delicious and that the restaurant gets a little more active around nighttime.  

As for the Riverwalk itself, boat rides are offered for those who are interested, but if you're more like me, you can appreciate doing an actual walk by the river. As an avid traveler I can say that set ups like this are awesome if you can find a restaurant to match your mood. While it may seem outlandish, I could almost bring myself to compare the Riverwalk to the canals of Amsterdam or a place like Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco.

As for the convention and the events, I can say that there are a few things I'd also recommend to spend some time experiencing. Over the course of the past few months, I got a chance to listen to audio recordings of a classic convention session called Tales from the Locker Room by UCLA Men's Volleyball Coach Al Scates. This year, another addition to the collection will be made, and I strongly advise that attendees of the convention take some time to sit back and hear a few classic, and possibly humorous stories from a long-time advocate of the sport. Another part of this year's convention that has me excited is the Under Armour High School All-America Match and Skills Competition. While I have spent the past week working with the media guide, I can safely say that this match won't disappoint. As a proud native of Kentucky, I was somewhat sad to see that no Louisvillians made this year's rosters, but nevertheless, the teams are stacked with commits to all of the top tier programs of Division I. If you aren't able to attend the match in person, ESPNU will air the match on December 26th at 7PM ET.. From our questionnaire, I might have to say that Team East's Sarah Burrington is one of my favorite players on both squads. Not only is Sarah her high school's kill and block record holder, but she also stated in our questionnaire that she wanted to marry Harry Potter, a clear sign of her genius. As a Potter fan myself, I can appreciate her love for the series. In addition, she also told us that she considered my very own college, the University of Kentucky, among other schools, but ended up signing with Florida State University.

So if you're going to the convention in Texas next week, I suggest you take your time in deciding where to eat when you leave the convention building, because I think that if you hit the right restaurants, the food could surely be something to write home about. Also don't forget to sit down and highlight some of the convention sessions that you may find interesting before you get to Texas (Schedule can be found here), and of course, don't forget about the Under Armour All-Americans, who will be taking the floor at the Alamodome on Friday at 8:00. For those not attending the convention, I hope you can make plans for our future events, notably the Spring Conference in L.A. and the 2012 Convention in Louisville. Since this will be my last time blogging, I would like to thank the entire AVCA organization for allowing me this opportunity to write on a weekly basis for both the members and the readers of this blog. If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or concerns, e-mail me at jonathan.ketterer@avca.org. Thanks for reading!