I have yet to see this apocryphal “secret handshake” you have stated exists. Neither has anyone else. How does it work? You attribute it to others. Who are they? This appears to be another of your strawmen or, considering we are coming close to Halloween, a ghost-like buzz word that you have conjured up. What’s next, are you going to say that the Illuminati run chess, or will they just “leverage volunteers” for us? If you see some of their silly junk e-mail that comes out of the blue, they say you have to contact them only in certain ways. Maybe they know the “secret handshake.”
Given the lack of interest by the USCF in your management and promotional ideas while it is trying to redesign the website, the question is moot. Systemic solutions cost money. Half baked suggestions cost more. Really bad ideas get hacked and end up with people downloading malware. Beware! There are a number of websites on ratings and tournament management, including leagues, that set off alarms in computer security software concerning hacked sites and malware. Google is notorious for not vetting the sites their search engine leads you to.