"No Minors" Beta Testing FAQ

WFTDA is beta testing a proposed revision of WFTDA Rules Section 6 (Penalties) that would eliminate minor penalties. Download the Beta Testing Rules Section 6: No Minors document at http://wftda.com/rules.

Why is WFTDA testing a no minors rule set? And why now?

The no minors concept has been discussed within the WFTDA community for years and there have been various informal discussions of how such a system would work. We have invested a lot of time into first developing a beta test system and then developing a process and rule set for this particular beta test to ensure that the testing produces meaningful results to inform future decision-making. The purpose is to collect information that will help our membership decide, at a future point in time, whether this is a change we want to pursue.

Won’t getting rid of minors just make play sloppy and dangerous?

Not necessarily. In crafting the rules that will be used during the beta test, we didn’t just eliminate minors; we adjusted the impact levels for each category of penalty. We don't believe it will make the game more dangerous, otherwise we probably would not be moving ahead with the beta test. However, the main reason for conducting testing, rather than just changing the rules, is to see how such a major shift would affect game play. The safety of our skaters is paramount.

When will these changes go into effect?

At this point, we don’t know whether these specific changes will ever become a part of the official WFTDA rules. Rules changes are voted on by WFTDA member leagues. As part of the next rules update cycle in 2012, member leagues could choose to adopt the changes, or an amended version of the beta no minors rule set. They could also opt not to eliminate minors.

How did WFTDA select the bouts for the beta test? Will the bouts still be eligible for sanctioning?

We accepted applications from teams that wanted to participate in the beta testing process and accepted bouts that met the criteria of our rules beta testing framework. Provided that they meet the other sanctioning requirements, bouts will be sanctioned if the teams choose. Both teams will be playing under the same parameters during these bouts, so there is no reason not to sanction them.