Foot Locker Watered Down This Year

Geographer wrote:

its mfing nike wrote:

Plus a tour of the nike factory, possibly with your best buds

I thought the race was in Portland? Is the trip to China after the race?

LMAO. POTW.

On a side note- most states limit what the kids at NXN can receive and stay eligible. It’s usually very meager. A pair of shoes, a shirt and jacket, something similar.

I see it’s time for the NXN trolls are back. I remember when NXN started they said footlocker would be nonexistent by now. How’d that work out for you?

And talk about watered down. NXN is awful.

I'm just confused why FLN and NXN can't just work together and move some dates so that the top people can compete at both or have FLN just extend wild card invitations to the top NXN only athletes

Having had a daughter that qualified for both NXN and Foot Locker Nationals, the gear at Foot Locker is far superior both in quantity and quality. The “care and feeding”of the athletes at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego is first rate. That being said, the two races are significantly different. While there are certainly individuals at NXN, the focus is almost purely on the team aspect. Foot Locker is focused on the individual. My only concern with the two races is that it can be difficult to take two cross country trips and compete at high level two consecutive weeks. Not impossible, but difficult.

Nike Employee? wrote:

I see it’s time for the NXN trolls are back. I remember when NXN started they said footlocker would be nonexistent by now. How’d that work out for you?

And talk about watered down. NXN is awful.

Nailed it, NXN is also pushed by the many slow team 5th 6th and 7th runners that wouldn't otherwise come even remotely close to tasting a national meet and troll so they feel good about there National qualifying.

Additionallly, NXN is pushed by coaches of the monster sized schools that have tons of runners and the coaches can push high milleage, see who survizes, and then prop themselves up as great coaches because they make the National meet ahead of the smaller schools.

Footlocker is much, much more exclusive and as such doesn't have as many vocal proponents, that said being a "footlocker qualifier" actually means something that most competetive runners of all ages respect and understand. Over the years there have been very very few poor runners sneak into FLN.

Much, much harder to make it into NXN as an individua (running unattached)l qualifier than FL. so I'm not so sure about the above logic. I would say that the top level runners are equal to or above FL qualifiers. In many areas of the country where you have to choose which one to do the top runners are choosing NXN by the vast majority.

You aren't really living up to your name when trying to compare non-qualifying individuals (re: team's #5/6/7 runners) at NXN to individual qualifiers at FLN. Nor when talking about how coaches that send their runners to NXN tend to train harder or are from bigger schools means that somehow FLN is where the better runners go - that suggests the opposite, that the runners at NXN are typically faster at that stage because they are doing more in training, and because they are drawing from a larger population.

I'm sure there are plenty of FLN qualifiers that push themselves pretty hard in training as well, that's not an NXN phenomenon.

Also, I find it ironic that only people who consider NXN similar to FLN are "trolls", while people who think FLN is simply superior in every way are not. There are very good athletes at both meets, and that has always been the case.

Who the hell wants to race 40 people in cross country?

NXN, thanks to the team aspect, at least looks like a proper cross country race at the start. Plus it's not on some SoCal golf course.

Balance of Power wrote:

I was just perusing the foot locker qualifiers on milesplit and I realized I didn't know any of the regional winners so far, boys or girls. What is going on here. Are all the stars going to NXN now? Is foot locker losing is luster? Is this a weak time for high school, I guess it's kind of hard to beat last years seniors.

Or am I just out of touch with who is good now?

Discus.

One, if you don't know the regional winners you don't follow the sport, especially the south's Rebecca Story, 3rd at nationals last year...

All the stars are not going to nxn only

No footlocker is not losing its luster

No highschool is it weak, miss Story for example just went sub 10 for 2miles the other week for one...

Yes you are out of touch

Also every HS runner in the country wants to be steve prefontaine and go to oregon and nike a

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Since I've been in a position to talk to a few rated HS runners they don't talk about the above ^ trust me.

Top runners generally talk about what all HS students talk about about. College campus, academics, costs, student body, comfortability in general. As for the team: its coaching staff, team chemistry, facilities, conference, schedule.

From what I hear most runners prefer FL but their coaches are pressured into trying to qualify for NXN.

Hmmm.... wrote:

Much, much harder to make it into NXN as an individua (running unattached)l qualifier than FL. so I'm not so sure about the above logic. L

You clearly don't know what the hell youre talking about, 8 regions 5 individuals =40

Footlocker 4 regions 10 individuals =40

Southeast easily could have the top 4-5 runners in the race qualify on teams for example as well, so there's people not even top 10 in the race making it

It's simple- every great team has a great runner- they will go to NXN. The individuals who want to race against the best will follow them.

Hmmm.... wrote:

Much, much harder to make it into NXN as an individua (running unattached)l qualifier than FL. so I'm not so sure about the above logic. I would say that the top level runners are equal to or above FL qualifiers. In many areas of the country where you have to choose which one to do the top runners are choosing NXN by the vast majority.

This guy is insane. One regional champion at NXR barely squeezed into the FL finals. Another NXR finalist failed to make the cut at FL. FL has stronger ladies. Sorry but just look at the facts and the placement of the girls that ran both. Easier to make NXR.

NXN > FLN wrote:

Who the hell wants to race 40 people in cross country?

NXN, thanks to the team aspect, at least looks like a proper cross country race at the start. Plus it's not on some SoCal golf course.

Could not disagree more. 40 makes it tough to get there. I finished 10th when they only took 8, but I can appreciate the exclusiveness.

In North East someone tell me if this is true.. easier for an individual to qualify at NXN because New York has its own regional where as in Footlocker they are included w New England

TJH wrote:

In North East someone tell me if this is true.. easier for an individual to qualify at NXN because New York has its own regional where as in Footlocker they are included w New England

Theoretically, yes.

NXN Gear wrote:

Warmup jacket

Warmup sweatpants

Singlet

Shorts/half tights

Arm sleeves

Socks

Spikes

Trainers

Backpack

Not sure of the individual prices for each item, but it comes out to about $600 for everything, not the $800+ the other guy was saying.

Footlocker definitely supplies at least as much gear as this, probably even more. My guess is if you're saying the gear is what is making the difference for athletes choosing NXN>FLN, you're not looking very closely at the gear. Or maybe you're comparing FLN gear from years past when they were with Asics. The gear package athletes got from NB last year was unbelievable.

northeasterner wrote:

TJH wrote:

In North East someone tell me if this is true.. easier for an individual to qualify at NXN because New York has its own regional where as in Footlocker they are included w New England

Theoretically, yes.

Theoretically. I had a kid finish way out of it in NY one year and he would have made it in Northeast (not New England).

It depends on the year but NY is a tough region.

A couple of the top runners will go to FL- usually because it's easier to make- most of the top NYers are in Nike because of the team race.

It's sad because FL was there first.

I was told by a NE director that Nike approached them with the team concept but they turned it down.

Nike then went on their own.

I wish we had one National Championship- there will always be debate over which is more legit.

For me, I like the team concept and I feel that most of the best individuals go with their team.

NXN > FLN wrote:

Who the hell wants to race 40 people in cross country?

NXN, thanks to the team aspect, at least looks like a proper cross country race at the start. Plus it's not on some SoCal golf course.

Most of the top runners in the country run in races where it feels like there is no one in the race, since they typically dominate from the gun.

The San Diego course is far from an easy golf course.

Please educate yourself a little before spouting off!