The Triple Crown Fastpitch 10U and 12U World Series is scheduled to come to Park City on July 9-14 So far, 97 teams from eight states have registered for the weeklong tournament, said Katrina Maestras, event director.

Most of the teams will consider the competition to be a culminating tournament, which families often treat as a vacation, Maestras said of the roughly 3,500 people in attendance.

Triple Crown, the company that hosts the Fastpitch World Series (which is not associated with USA Softball), selects destination towns and cities to accommodate the vacation aspect of the tournament, Maestras said, then further facilitates vacations by partnering with local recreation businesses.

The company works with Destination Sports and Adventures, which hosts rafting trips, as well as Park City Mountain Resort, for its summer programming.

"We really try and push (the players) out to enjoy the location they are staying at," Maestras said. "So, they get the whole outdoor experience as well."

The softball tournament will start with a parade at 5 p.m. on Monday on lower Main Street. Games will be played over two days of pool play, then three days of modified double elimination play, culminating with the championship game on Saturday.

All players will receive glass trophies to commemorate the trip, with different trophies given to the champions.

The games will be held at the Park City Sports Complex, Park City High School, Treasure Mountain Junior High School and Ecker Hill Middle School.

"Out of all the three locations (including Reno, Nevada, and San Diego) all the teams I talk to (say) Park City is their favorite," Maestras said. "A lot of these people have never been to a mountain town, so they are awestruck when they see what it's like."

The event is so popular that it has spilled over into Coalville and Oakley, and Maestras said the tournament is using every available field it can book.

"If (Summit County) could build more venues, I would use them," she said.

For more information go to http://www.tcfastpitchworldseries.com