and what are the differences between each branch (if any)? anyone have personal experience? jw thanks.
and what are the differences between each branch (if any)? anyone have personal experience? jw thanks.
j00b wrote:
and what are the differences between each branch (if any)? anyone have personal experience? jw thanks.
Are you talking about Branch of Service? The Navy has no WCAP. I don't think the Air Force does either. I think only the Army does.
The Navy has an All Navy running team, but that's not the same as WCAP. All Navy runners simply do their normal jobs and travel to big races (paid for by the Navy) to compete. In Army's WCAP, training is your full time job.
RunDaddy wrote:
I don't think the Air Force does either.
As a matter of fact, they do...
http://www.afsv.af.mil/AFSports/WCAP.htmI stand corrected.
Army no longer has WCAP... just ask Kirkpatrick!
The Army does have WCAP however it is not currently supporting any runners to my knowledge. If you look in the USATF X-C champs results you will see several Army athletes listed. They are members of the All-Army team. The All Army team consist of any Soldiers who apply and meet whatever minimum standard the Army has set for that team. They work a normal job just like other Soldiers. Basically if you can run the equivalent of 55 minutes for 10 miles you will get selected. Depth in the Army running community is not high at the moment. Sandu Rebenciuc is the top runner and he is a Pentathlete (although former WCAP steepler).
danwelsh wrote:
Sandu Rebenciuc is the top runner and he is a Pentathlete (although former WCAP steepler).
.... and close to 40 yrs old!!
do they have other sub-elite teams for army and AF? i know WCAP is very selective and only within a couple years of each olympics.
All Army is essentially the sub-elite for the US Army. It is not a "program" in the sense that WCAP is. You basically get temporary orders (for about a week) to go and compete at whatever event you qualified in. It is up to you to train prior to the race and equip yourself with whatever gear you want. Once the race is done you go back to your unit and regular mission.
I was lucky enough to be selected this past year for the marathon and 10 miler due to a fairly weak selection standard and just plain luck. Previous years were tougher because the WCAP guys were around and my time was taken up with work. Commanders will support you as long as it does not interfere with the mission.
Bottom line: There is no free ride. All Army exist to provide an athletic outlet for Soldiers with moderate talent (local to regional) to compete and represent the US Army at Armed Forces events.
danwelsh wrote:
All Army is essentially the sub-elite for the US Army. It is not a "program" in the sense that WCAP is. You basically get temporary orders (for about a week) to go and compete at whatever event you qualified in. It is up to you to train prior to the race and equip yourself with whatever gear you want. Once the race is done you go back to your unit and regular mission.
That is essentially the same scenario that you will find within the Air Force.
thanks for the reply. not looking for a free ride lol just a place to still compete if i do join post-college.
i suck at math wrote:
thanks for the reply. not looking for a free ride lol just a place to still compete if i do join post-college.
If you are looking for post-college, why not Nike, Reebok, Asics, Adidas or Team USA???
If you're somewhat close to a Trials Qualifier you could probably make the AF WCAP. Just contact them & find out. You would probably be based in Colorado Springs. Wasn't Vigil the WCAP coach for the Army for a while?
Because he has stated that he is "sub-elite." Even if he were elite, many elites get paid about the same as an E-1 with 0 years of service to run for the shoe companies.Not to mention no benefits.
Why?? wrote:
If you are looking for post-college, why not Nike, Reebok, Asics, Adidas or Team USA???
Most people on the AF team get 6 weeks permissive TDY. A good deal but don't join the service thinking your gonna run for a living. I think a 9:29 steeple made the team that year so it is no elite program. Although some runners might have gotten a better deal. ( I am talking mid 90's here. Things might have chaged)
what do they really pay? wrote:
Because he has stated that he is "sub-elite."
Even if he were elite, many elites get paid about the same as an E-1 with 0 years of service to run for the shoe companies.
Not to mention no benefits.
& since he or she is probably a college grad, they very well could be an officer & be in WCAP.
you hit it on the nail. i guess i would run for nike, adidas, etc if they were throwing money at me when i graduate in 2 years but i somehow don't see that happening.
Yeah, to clear things up the Air Force has both the All-Air Force team AND the WCAP program (there's hasn't gone anywhere unlike the Army's). It's pretty standard across the board for WCAP--Olympic trials qualifier (B-Standard) gets you the opportunity to send a package up, you'll likely get accepted if you meet the mark. A couple of recent Air Force Academy graduates from the past few years (the NCAA Javelin champion from the past two years as well as the Pole Vaulter who was All-American) have gone straight into the program, and if you're in WCAP that is your SOLE job until after the olympics are over (then you have to resubmit a package 3 yrs out and go through the whole process again). You also don't have to be stationed around Colorado Springs, they let you choose your location in the US which you feel would best suit your training needs in most cases.
The AF usually brings fewer people into its WCAP, but if you do get in you are far more autonomous in terms of your training site, coaching and planning than the Army. The Army WCAP started out well, but with each quadrennium (four year period between each Olympics)that passes they seem to micro-manage their athletes more and more. In the Army WCAP you would never have your athletic training interrupted for any actual military training, but they are always requiring their athletes to attend "dog and pony shows" at Ft. Carson. They waste a lot of time and money doing things the AF just doesn't care about. You would have much more freedom in the AF. For instance,the Army is always freaking out about any prize money or stipends an athlete might earn at an event. They will cite all these regs that are supposedly DOD (applied to all the branches). Yet the AF could care less about the same exact issue. There have been AF athletes who have had shoe contracts while also competing for the WCAP. The Army would have a shit-fit over this, but the AF actually encouraged and supported it for a while because they figure it saved them from having to spend money on shoes and travel.The Air Force just seems to have a lot more common sense about things than the Army (at least at the WCAP level). I don't know about All-Army/Air Force teams and National Guard and post level teams. Being familiar with how stupid the Army can be, I can't imagine that the AF doesn't do things better at this level too.
Red B. wrote:
You also don't have to be stationed around Colorado Springs, they let you choose your location in the US which you feel would best suit your training needs in most cases.
Eric Mack ran for AF WCAP a little while back.