These are busy times for us behind the scenes at the CoCo - we're moving quickly to put as many tournaments as possible on the calendar for you all, the players, to enjoy.

Last week brought big news on that front, as we announced that the 11th annual Crescent City Cup was CoCo-sanctioned and open for business. We're immensely grateful to Lindsay Shin and everyone else on the New Orleans organizing team for helping make that happen. And now, we move forward! It's time to get a few more events up and running.

Today, I'm excited to announce that we have 4 more tournaments ready to go. A couple of them are already mainstays on the CoCo calendar, and I'm sure longtime players will recognize them; another couple are new events that we're sanctioning for the first time. But all 4 should be awesome. You'd better not miss them.

Let's dive right in:

Bend, OR

Dates: Dec. 4-5, 2022

Director: Peter Armstrong

Bend is an old favorite spot that some longtime West Coast Collins players may remember. I used to co-run an event there alongside Travis Chaney back in the day, but we haven't had a tournament there since 2016. I'm thrilled that Pete is now bringing Bend back.

Bend is a small town that's a little bit out of the way - about 160 miles southeast of Portland - but it's absolutely worth traveling to. With great food and craft beer, beautiful scenery, and some cool nearby attractions (check out Smith Rock State Park!), there's a lot about Bend to love. Pete's planning a house-style tournament where everyone spends the weekend together in shared lodging and enjoys Scrabble and meals and after-hours fun together. Players are also welcome to stay off site. I'm sure it will be great.

Los Angeles, CA

Dates: Dec. 31, 2022 - Jan. 1, 2023

Organizer: Sandy Nang

Director: David Whitley

A historic first for the CoCo in more ways than one! We've never had a tournament in L.A. before, and we've also never had one take place over New Year's Eve. Sandy and David are set to break both those barriers.

Sandy is excited to host everyone in the Venice neighborhood of L.A., which means you'll be right by the beach, ringing in the start of 2023 in style. Come for the tournament, which will span Saturday and Sunday, with a New Year's celebration in the middle; stay for the Rose Bowl and the parade that comes with it on Monday, if you'd like.

Hood River, OR

Dates: Feb. 18-20, 2023

Directors: Jennifer and Evans Clinchy

This was the tournament that started it all for Jennifer and me... and now it's back for the fifth annual!

Longtime players know what to expect with this one. It's a fun-filled long weekend with 20 Scrabblers getting together in a big lodge in the woods to play Scrabble, eat, drink, and be merry. Like the Bend tournament, players who want to play the event but stay off site are welcome. It's the most enjoyable Scrabble weekend of the year for many, myself included. We've got a loyal cohort of Hood River players who keep coming back every year, but we'd love to see a few new faces join the group as well. It's first come, first served, so sign up quick!

Austin, TX

Dates: April 1-2, 2023

Director: James Curley

And now for another returning fan favorite! James ran the popular Austin Tile X-Words (ATX) event last year alongside Becky Dyer, and now he's back again for ATX2.

Last year saw a field of 20 players converge upon Austin for one of the most competitive CSW events seen on American soil in quite a while. There was a heck of a field, a great player experience, and a really cool city to boot! I can't recommend Austin highly enough. (I say this not just because I got to eat Texas barbecue 4 times in a single weekend, or 5 if you count that taco for lunch Saturday that had brisket in it. There are other reasons Austin is wonderful, I swear.)

ATX1 was a blast; the second one is not to be missed.

For all 4 of these tournaments, our whole team is excited to hit the ground running with organizing and running everything. We think we've lined up 4 really enjoyable places for players to visit, and we're blessed to have great people running the show for each event. All of these tournaments are in capable hands.

And by the way, if anyone else out there is a Scrabble director - either an established one or someone who aspires to start running tournaments anew - we would love to hear from you. We're always looking to add new events to the tournament calendar we have in place already, and enthusiastic directors are vital to that effort. So if you're interested, or know someone else who is, please do drop us a line.

As for all the players out there: These tournaments are ready to roll! They're all open for registration starting today.

So why wait? There's no better time than the present to make plans for your next awesome Scrabble weekend. Hop to it.