Ratings & Qualifying for the Championship

I am working under the assumption that most readers of this blog (if there are any readers at all) have at least some knowledge/interest in tournament chess. Therefore, I probably will not spend a lot of time on elementary discussions of tournament types, rules, etiquette, etc. However, I thought a few resources related to the US Chess Federation rating system might be of interest to some:

About USCF ratings
Distribution of USCF ratings

As far as the BCC Championship goes, all members rated > 2200 (USCF Masters) are automatically invited to play. In addition, the top finisher in the Reubens-Landey Under-2200 Qualifying Tournament also receives an invite. After all invitations are accepted/rejected, remaining slots are filled by the next highest Reubens-Landey finishers with overall positive scores (3 or more points out of five). Therefore, the field for the championship is generally made up of several masters (> 2200), a few experts (2000-2199), and an occasional A-player (1800-1999).

Should I be invited to play (as the 2nd place finisher in Reubens-Landey, my chances are quite high) I will be that A-player. While my chances of winning are virtually nil, the chance to play so many strong players is well worth it.