Here is a little something that I think we all forget from time to time. You don't have to move up in class anymore. It's not required and/or mandated. The problem is we refuse to pass something that allows the individual to choose the class he/she is best suited for. I, by no means, am suggesting that you can't move down but it is a process. It simply shouldn't be that way.
As far as difficulty creep, that would be one of the reasons to add the Expert class back for those districts that support it. Expert could equalize the jump from class to class and make for a smoother transition. Again, I don't think this is an end-all solution and there are definite pros and cons to adding another class. It's time for us to think outside the box though. I was also there when we went to turn-around and I agree it wasn't pretty. I was just a college kid back then and didn't really understand everything behind it. I think it's quite apparent that sitting on our laurels isn't increasing participation.
Instead of asking us old farts that are in Masters and FAI, I think these questions ought to be posed to the lower classes and especially, those that tried it and stopped to find out why. Sure, we get the occasional guy that comes in from say, IMAC Unlimited and jumps into Masters but that's not where the source is. I believe that is exactly what Dale and company is trying to do with the survey. Instead of us just saying "that won't work", let's take a moment to listen to the folks that stopped participating and maybe learn what will work. These are all just ideas in the end.
