Judge Orientation Videos:
(click links below)
Speech Judge Orientation
Team Policy (TP) / Lincoln-Douglas (LD) Judge Orientation
Parli Judge Orientation

***Please be patient with us as we learn the new StoaHub system.***
***The tournament's daily schedule may change from the published version; start and end days will remain unchanged.***

The Gobbler Fest Tournament
November 7th - 9th, 2024

Registration Opens: Monday, September 30th (10:00 am EST)
Registration Closes: Wednesday, October 9th (11:59 pm EST)
Please visit our Payment and Fee tab for important information about fees, payment method, and dates.

Tournament Location:
City Gates Church
9401 Little River Turnpike
Fairfax, VA 22031

Debate Check-In: Thursday (12:30 PM)
Speech Only Check-In: Friday (8:30 AM)

** IMPORTANT Payment Information**
Gobblerfest is collecting all fees through PayPal.

**After completing your registration, pay all fees via PayPal to:**
apexspeechanddebate@gmail.com (Sarah Giddens)
**Include the following message with your payment:**
 GF2024 (Your StoaHub Account Name)

Tournament Fee Calculator
Follow the fee generator below to determine your total fees due.

**PRE-REGISTRATION DETAILS**
All competitors must be members of Stoa for the 2024-2025 season. A StoaHub family account must be created and Stoa dues must be paid BEFORE registering for a Stoa tournament.

See the "Registration Information" tab for details and instructions.

PARENT PARTICIPATION
All students must have a parent or adult chaperone present to staff or judge at the tournament.
If a parent cannot attend, prior approval and an alternative contribution must be arranged with the tournament director for the student to participate. 

• Chaperones may only cover 2 students; exception is granted to families with more than two children. Each parent will be responsible for judging at least 6 rounds. (See Parent Page for more details.)
• Parent signatures (or the designated chaperone's signature) will be required at the student check-in for all participants. Parents are expected to remain present throughout the tournament to take ballots.
• 2024-2025 judge training will be available at the tournament throughout the day.
• Every parent should come to the ballot table 30 minutes before each round to ensure sufficient judges are balloted. Although we ask you to sign up for a specific judging time slot, please don't leave the balloting area until ALL the ballots have been distributed. You may be needed for a round outside of your scheduled time.
• Students not fulfilling their judging obligations may be disqualified from the tournament. Thank you for your cooperation.

TOURNAMENT OVERVIEW

Debate Events: 
Parliamentary Debate: $40
Lincoln-Douglas, Team Policy*: $40
*Because we are an early tournament, all teams must submit case titles and mandates. See the TP Case Sharing tab for more information.

Speech Events (max. 3 speeches per pattern):
All Stoa Speech Events: $40 for the first event, $15 for each additional event
Apologetic categories: 1, 2, 3, 4
Extemp topics: International, Domestic, Economic, Cultural
Mars Hill topics: Current Film and Television (last 5 years), Classic Music, Literature, The Arts

Thursday: Debate only
Friday: Speech and Debate
Saturday: Speech and Debate

Timers:
Debate competitors are expected to self-time their rounds. Please bring a timing device; cell phones cannot be used as timers.

Meals:
Meals can be ordered at registration. No meals will be offered on Thursday during the shortened schedule.