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Tournament time in Rochester

ROCHESTER, MN (KTTC-DT) -- It's action time in Rochester as holiday tournaments bring in players and their families from around the Midwest.

Sports arenas aren't the only places getting filled, but hotels and restaurants as well.

Between the US Bank/Rotary Holiday Classic Basketball tournament and the Kiwanis Hockey Fest the exact number of visitors is hard to measure. Many athletes and their families come to Rochester just for the day to watch or compete, have lunch, and then leave.

Supporting the economy doesn't always start with money. One parent says it starts with his kids.

"You chase your kids around. Whatever they're doing you go with them. You support them," Vern Jones said. He and his family have been coming to Rochester from New Richmond, Wisconsin, for 2 years now, to support his sophomore, and also our grocery stores. "Well you gotta shop, don't you? You gotta eat."

Eat, and of course, sleep. Based on hotel bookings, the Convention and Visitors Bureau estimates more than 50,000 people visit the Med City for amateur tournaments throughout the year. A small number considering Rochester hosts more than 50 amateur tournaments a year. If you combine both hockey and basketball, from Monday to Wednesday alone, more than two dozen high schools will compete. While many of the athletes and their families live here, or just come in for the day, quite a few who are visiting make plans to stay for a while.

Eric Rolland and Bobbie Edin, are busy with hockey and catching up with the office by day, and by night, they make time for fun.

"Some disco and Karaoke here," said Edin. "It's a parent thing too," said Rolland.

The amateur tournaments are certainly a hotel thing, as well. The Holiday Inn in South Rochester was almost at capacity -- that's nearly 200 rooms.

Ed Hruska, the Executive Director of the Amateur Sports Commission, says Rochester is fortunate enough to have 5500 hotel rooms. "That gives people that come from out of town a great selection... It just strengthens the communities economics across the board. Everyone benefits from it."

For the holiday season, everyone will benefit for a while longer. The Hockey and Basketball tournaments run until Wednesday, but the Wrestling tournaments will begin in January.

The Convention and Visitors Bureau estimates the financial impact of all these tournaments on Rochester at about $6-million a year.