What is available if I am flying to Dallas?
There are two major airports in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. Dallas Love Field (DAL) is close to the Hyatt Regency and is a hub for Southwest Airlines. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) is one of the largest airports in the world, a hub for American Airlines, and is about a 20-30 minute drive.
If you are flying into Love Field and aren’t planning on renting cars or vans during the tournament, you can take the light rail service from the airport to Union Station via DART, Dallas Area Rapid Transit. It’s only $2.50 each way. Rail transit is also available from DFW. Go to https://www.dart.org/guide/transit-and-use/rail/travelling-to-and-from-dallas-love-field-airport for more information.
What makes the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dallas a little different than most?
We did our National Bible Quiz Finals back at the Hyatt Regency in 2011. Since then, the hotel has had a complete remodel. It also is cashless for all the services there including paying for the hotel room, the three restaurants, coffee shop/café, and gift shop. The only cash needed is for tips for the bellhops and housekeeping (church groups often have a reputation as poor tippers, so please do all you can to dispel that notion) and off-property spending.
What is the cost of the National Finals for quizzers and coaches in 2024?
Coach and quizzer registration remains the same for the fourth year in a row at $195. Registration includes Saturday’s ice cream fellowship, lunches (Monday-Thursday), Thursday night fellowship and food, Friday’s formal banquet, Welcome bags, finals program, T-shirt, lanyard and more. (This is heavily subsidized by the generous sponsors of this year’s National Finals!!) The Hyatt Regency hotel cost is $139 for up to four people in a room (regular rate $201). Discounted parking at $10 per day (regular rate $22).
What are some activities to do in Dallas besides the actual BQ event?
- If you have never gone up the Reunion Tower to view the city, you must go up. It is right next door. There is a cost, but it is well worth the experience. Reunion Tower is a famous symbol of the city — for years it was seen in a fly-by shot in the introduction of the TV series “Dallas” (remember J.R. Ewing?). If you like baseball, the Texas Rangers have a homestand for the full week of National Finals at Globe Life Field in nearby Arlington, which is roughly halfway between Dallas and Fort Worth.
Other places of interest:
- The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, the site in the former Texas School Book Depository where Lee Harvey Oswald perched to shoot and kill President John F. Kennedy, is about a quarter mile away.
- The Dallas Zoo is 2.2 miles away.
- Six Flags over Texas theme park is 15 miles away in Arlington.
- The George W. Bush Presidential Center details the life and times of the 43rd President of the United States, including a replica of the Oval Office and items from the wreckage of the World Trade Center after its destruction on 9/11. It’s on the campus of Southern Methodist University, about six miles north of the Hyatt Regency.
What’s this about toll roads in Dallas?
If you will be doing much driving in and around the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, you are likely to encounter toll roads. Almost all of them are cashless. If you come from the Northeast or Midwest with your own vehicle, there’s a good chance you already have an EZ-Pass — but it doesn’t work in Texas, which uses its own systems. If you are renting a vehicle, your rental agency has options to handle tolls, but they may be more costly. The best option is to set your GPS to avoid toll roads (Google Maps can be set for that). If you can’t or it’s too inconvenient, check this out: https://tapnpay.info/txhub
Are there places to eat near the hotel?
Hyatt Regency Dallas has three restaurants on the property, including Crown Block at the top of Reunion Tower; it’s expensive and there’s a Sunday-best dress code, plus online reviews are mediocre. Parrino’s (expensive) serves Italian food and Centennial (moderately priced) specializes in Texas fare. Away from the hotel but within walking distance:
- Cindy’s NY Deli and Restaurant (breakfast and lunch only), just northeast of the Hyatt and Union Station
- Texas Spice in the Omni Hotel, “farm to market” with local ingredients and rated four stars by Yelp, about two blocks east of hotel
- The Owner’s Box, sports pub next to Omni that opens at 3 p.m., moderate prices
- In-N-Out Burger, which has branched out from its California-Nevada roots (headed for Tennessee next), great burgers and fries cheap and about five miles northwest of the hotel. There are also three Subway stores within three blocks of the hotel
- Record Grill, a hole-in-the-wall, cash-only comfort food joint that gets 4½ stars on Google, is about three blocks away and next to Dealey Plaza (breakfast and lunch only, closes at 2 p.m.)
I’ve heard we should come into National Finals based on the time zone where we live.
There is some merit to that. Let’s say the National Finals is in Florida and you are on the West Coast. The time for quizzing is 8:30 A.M. every morning. That would be 5:30 A.M. body time for your team. Think about quizzing at 3-5 p.m. Your team will be very tired. It was just the opposite when we were in California and we started at 8:30 a.m., it was already 11:30 for the East Coast teams. So at 4 p.m. in California it would be 7 for the east coast teams. You work hard all year! A day or two earlier to get the body adjusted is not that much more expensive in light of eternity.
What should I expect when I arrive?
This largely depends on what day you arrive and the time zone you are coming from, as well as your budget. Some teams start arriving on Wednesday and Thursday. We have no official meetings or rooms available for practice at this time. Those teams just find a quiet place to study or practice, and then relax or go sightsee. On Friday afternoon, we are hoping to have one or two quiz rooms available for practice, with more quiz rooms available on Saturday. Registration opens at 6:00 p.m. and the new coaches’ orientation is at 7:15. At 8:00 we will have the Ice Cream Social for everyone to fellowship.
What’s the Senior Shootout after the Sunday morning service?
We have all our senior quizzers, either quizzing on a team or in the Individual Tournament, come to the front of the room. They are seated at tables facing the audience and the multiple quiz boxes have all been linked together. We normally average 26-32 seniors going for the questions over the material we are quizzing on. Every question is worth a gift card or cash and in some instances both. At last year’s Senior Shoot-Out, one quizzer earned $180.00 in cash and gift cards.
Is there an opportunity for a quizzer to minister in Fine Arts categories at National Finals?
Absolutely. Those that would like to share a 5- to 7-minute devotion, sing, play an instrument, drama or minister on the worship team contact Bernie Elliot at [email protected]
What’s new in Adult Quizzing this year?
After all the Teen Bible quizzing is completed, on Thursday we have traditionally done adult quizzing. This year the Veteran Division will quiz over James chapters 1-5. The Fun/Novice Division will quiz over James chapters 1-2. The quizzers will be the quizmasters and judges. Seniors who competed at their last National Finals will have first choice for a position to officiate. Before we do the Adult quizzing, we will do an Adult Quoting Bee over James Chapter 1. There will be two groups. Ages 18-39 and the other group will be 40 years old and up. The registration for Adult Quiz will be on site and 100% of the fees goes into the BQ Scholarship Fund.