Paper score sheets fall under tables. Spreadsheets formulas fight with you at the worst possible moment. Group chats become anarchy after someone says "wait, I'm missing a few sheets."
SquirrelScore keeps applications, scores, prep, and results in one place so contest night feels exciting - not like a sadist's scavenger hunt with a stopwatch.
Ask yourself which hat you're wearing:
- Running the contest? You're thinking like a producer
- Scoring people? You're a judge or tallymaster
- Showing up to help or compete? You're a volunteer or contestant
You don't need to understand every feature on day one. Start with the pain you already have (lost apps, late scores, messy reveal night) and see how SquirrelScore covers it.
- Skim What is SquirrelScore? so the big picture clicks.
- Get your login (or apply / invite link) from your producer or site admin.
- Log in and open My Contests.
- Click into one contest and poke around the left menu for your role only.
- Try one real task: view contest details, open a score form, or check prep - whatever matches your job.
- Bookmark the wiki (this site) so help is one click away during crunch time.
// Chris - To Do: Screenshot of One contest, one "home base"
// Chris - To Do: Screenshot of Role-specific menu
- One shared contest- everyone works from the same event with the same data, not twelve email threads named "FINAL_v7_reallyfinal" that not everyone is copied on
- Consistent scoring- totals follow the rules your producer set (including Olympic-style or averaging options when enabled)
- Application queues- contestant apps, volunteer apps, and judge agreements live where producers can review and track them
- Clear release rules- contestant's result packets wait until the producer is ready to release them (no accidental spoilers)
- Prep tracking- optional Chaos Ops checklists keep tasks like planning, travel, paperwork, and anything that needs to be collected from living only in someone's head (or in someone's Google drive, in a spreadsheet not shared with anyone)
- Exports when you need them- PDFs and CSVs for results, judges, and stage tools
- Free for the community- no fee to use the beta; but optional ways to say thank-you are here: Support SquirrelScore
- Start small: one test contest, a couple of test people, and a calm click-around session. You can't break much from the Settings page. (Probably.)
- Producers: invite a co-producer before show week. Getting enough sleep is a feature, not a bug.
- Judges: save often. Coffee spills and shitty WiFi will get you at the worst moment.
- Contestants: take a deep breath and enjoy the experience.
- Trying to learn every producer tool when you're only judging (you'll confuse yourself for free)
- Sharing your personal login instead of getting a proper login from a producer or admin
- Expecting contestant results before the contest is completed
Can we still use paper as a backup?
Sure - many teams keep a paper fallback for emergencies. SquirrelScore is meant to collect everything and be the source of truth for you when the contest is running normally.
Does it replace our group chat?
No. It replaces things like the "where is the score sheet?" part of the group chat. Banter may continue as usual.
Is this only useful on contest night?
Nope. Applications, judge agreements, and prep often start weeks earlier. Contest night is when the prep pays off.
What if our contest is tiny?
Small contests love less chaos too. You can keep settings simple and ignore optional tools unless you need them.
What does it cost?
Nothing currently. See Home and optional Support SquirrelScore.