Ask Cruz: Volume IX — “Happy Birthday, Bietz!” Edition

NEW YORK, N.Y. — I have a confession. Originally, I was going to bring back the twice-weekly “Ask Cruz” column next week; I’m going to be working on a couple of difficult questions as well as fielding some old classics this weekend as I prepare my next few installments. But, hey, it’s Mike Bietz’s birthday, so I couldn’t resist.

Today, Ask Cruz features a Bietz theme. And for the sake of full disclosure, I not only provided the answers, I also wrote the questions. That’s life. Your questions will be answered next week. You can post further queries regarding debate trivia right here on VBD, and I’ll select a few to answer in my next installment. Alternatively, you can e-mail me directly. Keep in mind that I archive these questions, so if I don’t get to yours right away, I may be getting to it in the near future.

Who was the youngest person ever appointed to the TOC Advisory Committee?

Truth be told, I thought I had that honor when I was asked to join the Committee before the 2006 TOC. But, no, Mike Bietz had to burst my bubble. You see, he had beaten me to it. Before coaching at Harvard-Westlake, Bietz coached LD at Hopkins, and policy at Apple Valley, and then helmed the LD program at Edina for quite a few years. He was first appointed to the TOC Advisory Committee at the tender age of twenty. After being away from the Committee for some time, he was again appointed in 2006 and continues to serve.

Each year at the Edie Holiday Tournament, the Blake School presents three special honors: Coach of the Year, Friend of Blake, and the Tab Room Turkey. These awards recognize three different types of qualities. Has anyone ever won all three awards?

Yes. Mike Bietz.

The rationale behind the Coach of the Year and Friend of Blake awards should be obvious. Perhaps less obvious is why Bietz — a respected director of tabulation, who has long served the Edie — would win an award handed out to highlight the person who caused the biggest headache (or biggest gale of laughter) in the tab room. The year Bietz won the Tab Room Turkey Award, he had erased all the tournament data during round five. Rough.

Has any school ever won both Nationals and the TOC in Lincoln-Douglas in the same year?

Only one program has achieved this feat. In 2004, Edina High School’s John McNeil won the TOC; his teammate Jed Glickstein won Nationals. Their coach? Mike Bietz.

As an aside, in 2003, Jed and John became one of only two pairs of debaters ever to close out the Glenbrooks. Who were the others? John and teammate Nick Green, in 2002. That makes John McNeil one of only two people ever to win the Glenbrooks twice.

You know, I’m hard pressed to think of a coach who has had debaters close out more tournaments than Bietz, to be honest. The list includes — in addition to the two Glenbrooks close-outs — Blake, Valley, the Iowa Caucus, Hopkins, and Greenhill. Even if that’s not the all-time record, that’s pretty impressive.

One last tidbit: John and Jed had a combined 37-1 ballot count when they closed out the Glenbrooks.

Who has coached the most close-outs in a five-year period?

I guess I already answered that. I’m not entirely sure, but if I had to take a guess…it would be Mike Bietz.

Did I mention that Bietz is one of only four coaches ever to coach back-to-back LD state champions in Minnesota? (He also coached a policy team to win the state championship!)

What is Mike Bietz’s taste in music?

Eclectic. Others might focus on his love of Magnetic Fields, but I will always fondly remember when, during my days at Berkeley Carroll, we drove down the highway with a car full of folks during a tour of the greater Edina area, blasting “MMMBop” and singing along.

Go wish Mike Bietz a very happy birthday.

—
Jon Cruz is still thankful to Mike Bietz for finding the rare variant of the already rare Jorg Sacul action figure on the shelves of Big Lou’s. He paid Bietz a commission after selling it over a listserv of elite Star Wars collectors.

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