Four weeks out: fix the evidence
Regional opponents will ask to see your cards, and experienced judges will read them. Go through every piece of evidence in your case and check three things: the quote says what your tag claims, the citation is complete, and the source would survive a "who wrote this and why" question in crossfire. Replace anything that fails. Then do the same for your blocks. See Five research skills every debater should learn.
Three weeks out: write blocks for the arguments you have not heard
At a local tournament you have probably faced the same four or five arguments repeatedly. Regional teams run others. Read this season's topic primer for the full list of pro, con, affirmative, and negative ground, and write a two-sentence answer to everything on it, including the arguments you find silly. The arguments you find silly are the ones you will lose to.
Two weeks out: practice against faster, better opponents
Ask your CUDL coach to arrange practice rounds against the strongest students in the league, or against college debaters who volunteer with us. Have them speak at the pace they competed at. You do not need to match that pace; you need to be able to flow it and answer it. Record the rounds and re-flow them afterward.
One week out: adapt to the judge
Regional tournaments often publish judge paradigms, short statements of how each judge evaluates rounds. Read them. Some judges want slow, explained arguments; some are comfortable with more technical debate. Before every round, ask the judge how they would like to see the round debated, and then do that. The team that adapts to the judge beats the team with the better case more often than seems fair.
Then rehearse the parts of the round that are not speeches: the coin flip, crossfire etiquette, asking for evidence politely, keeping your own time. Small things done smoothly make a first-year team look like a fourth-year team.
Logistics
CUDL handles registration, entry fees, and transportation for partner schools. Coaches should confirm the roster, collect permission forms, and share the schedule with families a week ahead. Students should pack their evidence (printed or on a charged device, with a backup), flow paper, pens, water, and something to eat between rounds. Business casual is fine. Sleep the night before matters more than one more hour of prep.
At the tournament
- Read the ballot from each round before the next one begins. Fix one thing per round.
- Watch an elimination round, even if you are not in it. You will learn more in that hour than in a week of practice.
- Talk to opponents after rounds. Regional debate is a small community and the students you meet will be judging and coaching in a few years.
Regional tournaments are where a student from a first-year program finds out that they belong in the room. Almost every one of them does. More on the competition pathway.
Get new guides and topic primers by email
One email when a new topic primer or guide is published, about twice a month during the season. No other mail.