I see what you guys are saying...

Well what if we ran them one after the other?

The smaller one first than the longer one after. There would be a longer wait for the results for the smaller one, but we can announce it a bit ealier while the judges are working on the main competition entries.

It could work as a warm-up to the big one and take advantage of all the early event hype. That way it draws in maximum participation and everyone gets a crack at it.

It would make it very competative though. But I think that that is a good thing. Better showcase for next year.

AND it gives more chances for others to pick-up an Excellence award that year! All the entries for the mini compo will count towards the big awards too.