NTN MAKES A BIG CHANGE - ADDS A NY RACE

What IS Nike trying to accomplish?

Thst is what I would like to know. Does Nike have an issue with the East coast? Coaches and/or athletes from New York, the Northeast and the Southeast have to make a decision to run for a team championship or an individual one.

I think most of us (including Nike) know what the choice will be. I wonder how they would feel if it were their child being put in this position.

If the Boston Red Sox win will we change the number of games from 7 to 9?

Quit whining! Yeah, it's tough that kids are going to have to choose, but that's life... time to get over it and move on. XC has always been about individuals AND teams. Foot Locker had an opportunity to become an equal partner in putting on a national high school cross country championships for teams and individuals, but they wanted to stick with their unique event (and that's their right, they've done a terrific job for 25+ years), but if you want to blame someone, why not point at a finger at FL for not agreeing to a team and individual event?

To all the critics, do you really think Nike intentially waited until this week to announce their decision? Maybe I'm missing the obvious, but I'm guessing they were given the impression that they could make selection based on the Federation meet and now that's not the case. Assuming this is true, what do you expect Nike to do? Last year the NY folks were complaining about the selection process and now you have your own region AND a qualifying system in place and you're still whining.

Again, for the sake of argument, let's assume that Nike cannot select teams from NY for NTN based on rankings/federation results -- what do you think they should do so that they can include the top NY teams in NTN?

Let's also remember that both of these events are extras. All of these teams and individuals should still be focusing on their respective state meet first and foremost. I don't see it being the end of the world that a few kids may have to choose between FL or NTN.

You raise a fair point that people would be unhappy if it was another tactic, but why not go back to a ranking for NY teams as opposed to another race a week later even if its just for another year? Granted that might piss other people off but the pure expense involved with planning another trip (and for schools like say...East Aurora far away from the site) strikes me as extremely unfair and problematic, especially this late in the game.

I, too, understand your points about it being less than ideal, especially at this point in this season. The problem is that we are all speculating on why this has happened. My assumptions that Nike had no other options for NY other than implementing a qualfying race could be off base, but I guess I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt since they had originally thought selecting teams from NY was an appropriate solution. I don't suppose we'd get anyone directly involved with NTN to comment on this board?

I was there - it was a blizzard and it started way before the race was to go off. It was the only x-c race I ever ran without running the course before hand because the windchill was judged too severe to spend the aggregate time of both jogging the course and then racing it. The "uniform rule" was obviously waived - So it was also the only race our team ever ran in full gear, tights, hats, socks on our hands, rainsuits - the whole shooting match. There were some teams from NY City who had no idea or a really dumb coach (or both) who sent them to the line in singlets and shorts - if they were lucky, gloves and hats. When the gym looked like a field hosptial from the frostbite victems and the ambulances were running out they decided not to run the girls race.

Surprisingly, I and many others had a really good time - this was because since we couldn't see we were all just following the leader and the leader(s) had no F-ing idea where the course went, and with the whiteout conditions missed a decent chunk of the course. We figured we "raced" between 2.2 and 2.5 miles.

Ah, the memories . . . . .

This revolutionary thinking by NTN can only be attributed to the foresight of the Taylor Brothers. Without them pushing the envelope, it never would have tooken place.

I wasn't on the varsity team that year (Centereach), but believe our team had a decent shot. I remember being home listening to the stories about the blizzard upstate. I don't think our team did that well. I think St. Anthony won that year?

I honestly don't know if they bothered to do results to tell you the truth. Obviously if it was a home course for any teams they could have known the course well enough to actually run it - but they would have had their butts kicked by those of us who unknowingly ran the abreviated version. Because of conditions there were no sentries or officials out on the course so the whole field or 95% or whatever it was that didn't actually run the measured course weren't DQ'ed. Lockport was my team.

Another misconception. I know for a fact that Nike wanted to implement regionals from the beginning of NTN. I don't know for certain, but I think it was put on the back burner because of the potential conflicts with FL. I wouldn't be surprised if the Taylor's attempt at their own national championship with regionals, along with the controversy behind selecting teams, forced the issue, but it wasn't their idea to begin with.

Another wrote:

I wasn't on the varsity team that year (Centereach)...

it's also too bad that NTN's weren't around when we won the feds in '95...

I think the take home message is this: you are either good enough to not taper for your league/suburban meet and perhaps not even for your sectional meet - then you probably don't have a realistic shot at going to Nike Team Nationals anyway. It would be very unusual, but not unheard of to have two of the top 8 x-c teams in the state in the same section and class - but it would be a really rare bird indeed to have two out of the best 8 in the same league. 8 is my arbitrary number that says essentially, if some people on some of those teams run out of their heads, and some others get sick/hurt your two champions come out of about the top eight on any given race day.

Peaking can not be extended for that long a period for most runners, so the coach needs to pick what they are aiming for and hope they gamble correctly. i.e. you don't want to aim for NTN and have your team upset at the sectional meet.

Do you really think Nike's goal is to alienate everyone in NY? It's obvious they have no choice but to do this and it's obvious they are not going to bad-mouth the officials of NY to explain why they have to run this race. Think it through! They have no choice but to run the regional. And yes, NJ also has to run all those weeks in a row. PA and the New England teams will get a week off before. But at least NY teams have the choice of not running Feds. NJ has to run their Meet of Champions or be penalized. For the 2nd straight year it's poor NY, whoah is me. Deal with it and move on like everyone else does.

Well in the Suburban Council we have

-Burnt Hills US#3 Class A#1 who just got beat 25-30 in a dual meet by Saratoga

-Saratoga US#23 but beat US#2,11,13, & 15 when they finished 2nd to US#1 FM (also in NY state) at Manhattan this past weekend. They are Class AA #2 (behind FM)

-Shenendehowa also beat US#2 and #13 to finish 5th at Manhattan they are Class AA #3 and will only be able to advance to the state meet if they win their sectionals race and beat Saratoga

-Guilderland Class AA #8

-Colonie divisional winner at Manhattan they are Class AA #9

-Niskayuna Class AA #17

-Shaker Class AA #23

Only 12 teams in this league and 7 are in the state top 25

Also in Section 2 (but not the Suburban Council)

-Holy Names Class A #2

-Queensbury Class A #3

-Scotia Class A #16

-Greenwich US #20 Class C #1

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finally, some sanity on this board....this was the last thing anyone wanted, but compliance with State rules and regs is paramount.

Actually, I think his point had already been made on this thread by more than one person.