I've held my tongue for quite some time on this, while giving a few hints about my feelings, but I finally am going to voice my real concerns over the conference situations we have going on across our area.
Here's some key points to consider:
1- Transportation costs are outrageous, and they will probably always be outrageous as long as we have stupid and outrageous fuel economy from our cars & trucks (which has really been unchanged for over 20 years).
2- The West Central Conference is unstable, as it recently was forced by the MSHSL to accept Mora & Milaca.
3- B-B-E is facing a levy referendum, asking local taxpayers for more money to balance the budget and carry existing curricular and co-curricular programs at the school.
Here's some schools I'll kick around for a new conference: Sauk Centre, Paynesville, Melrose, Osakis, Minnewaska Area, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg, New London-Spicer, Albany, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City, Long Prairie...and B-B-E.
Can you imagine the Sauk/B-B-E or B-B-E/Paynesville rivalry becoming a conference showdown? It would be fun, no doubt.
For sure, the Central Minnesota Conference is an excellent conference with excellent schools. It would be tough to see the rivalries we've developed with the CMC disappear if we left. A trip to Pierz is always worth it, as they have an outstanding athletic program in every respect (facilities, coaches, attitude & support of the parents/community for their student-athletes). But we have to come to the reality that something has to change, something's gotta give, the status quo is un-sustainable.
It costs nothing to talk about it, and it costs nothing to ask what the possibilities are.
Sidebar: B-B-E taxpayers, make sure to mail in your ballot before June 18.