There are still only 27 automatic qualifiers to the state meet in each event. The rest come from athletes outside of the automatic qualifying positions who run the at-large time at their section final. The difference now is that they move 12 to the final instead of 9.
This is exactly what I was thinking, if there'll be no more than 27 athletes total that will compete in the semifinals, then what the hell is the point of 12 finalists? 27 is dividable by 9 while 12 is not.
You could easily just have 3 heats, 9 runners per heat, making 27 total. Top two from each of the three heats qualify, making 6 finalists. Then, add the next 3 fastest times to make 9. Boom.
Could honestly work for any event 100-800, including hurdles tbh.
or they could just have 9 qualifiers for each event and streamline the whole thing.
Not talking about world class 800. People are complaining about the start of a HS 800. The point is that 20 guys line up in world class races where they all go out in 56. But when 16 high school guys line up to race an event where a few go out that fast, people complain. Just trying to bring some perspective to the discussion.
This has always been a pet peeve of mine. Why is the 800 ran in a waterfall?? They used to do it in lanes, but until around 2012 or 2013, they randomly switched to waterfall as if it were a 1600/3200
I think it's quite dumb. The 800 is too quick of a race to have so many competitors in. If you throw 12 or more people in one race, the ones on the inside are at a proven disadvantage and are bound to get boxed in, spiked, or worse once they merge at the 300 mark.
Starting off in your lane, however, gives each runner their own space and time to get settled in before merging safely
Bring back lane starts for Cali. Please. Save the shins of these poor kids
World class mile and 1500 races use waterfall starts with the guys going through 800 split in 1:52. How fast are these high school guys who are too fast for waterfall?
Two responses
1) 1500m starts on a straight; there is not a mad rush for lane 1, like you see on a waterfall before a curve
2) 1500m runners who split 1:52 are very much in control of their bodies at at 56 second pace early in a race. That same pace is more all out and much less controlled for a HS 800m runner.
Lane the 800m, you can put.more than one guy in a lane for slower heats.
This has always been a pet peeve of mine. Why is the 800 ran in a waterfall?? They used to do it in lanes, but until around 2012 or 2013, they randomly switched to waterfall as if it were a 1600/3200
I think it's quite dumb. The 800 is too quick of a race to have so many competitors in. If you throw 12 or more people in one race, the ones on the inside are at a proven disadvantage and are bound to get boxed in, spiked, or worse once they merge at the 300 mark.
Starting off in your lane, however, gives each runner their own space and time to get settled in before merging safely
Bring back lane starts for Cali. Please. Save the shins of these poor kids
Not talking about world class 800. People are complaining about the start of a HS 800. The point is that 20 guys line up in world class races where they all go out in 56. But when 16 high school guys line up to race an event where a few go out that fast, people complain. Just trying to bring some perspective to the discussion.
The difference is these world-class 1500M guys are running low 1:50's at an easy and relaxed pace.
High schooler's run low 1:50's as a winning state time. Paces and speed are entirely different.
You cannot compare the two.
Not only that, but you don't even start the 1500m on a curved waterfall. You start on a nice and easy straightaway backstretch, where you don't need to worry about rushing into lane 1 like you do the 800 in a waterfall.
World class mile and 1500 races use waterfall starts with the guys going through 800 split in 1:52. How fast are these high school guys who are too fast for waterfall?
Very few elite 1500 races are @ 3:44 mile pace but some races involving Jakob are.
And the 1500 is start on the back straight away but the curve. Big difference.
Still, a good 800 racer should be able to quickly position him or herself in a variety of different start scenarios. ...Very few Championship races are waterfall starts but even Diamond League 800s sometimes have starts in lanes with two people sharing some lanes.
Not talking about world class 800. People are complaining about the start of a HS 800. The point is that 20 guys line up in world class races where they all go out in 56. But when 16 high school guys line up to race an event where a few go out that fast, people complain. Just trying to bring some perspective to the discussion.
Decisions on how to run a race at the pro level should be based on what is best for the fans. Decisions on how to run a race at the high school level should be based on what is best for the kids.
Not talking about world class 800. People are complaining about the start of a HS 800. The point is that 20 guys line up in world class races where they all go out in 56. But when 16 high school guys line up to race an event where a few go out that fast, people complain. Just trying to bring some perspective to the discussion.
Decisions on how to run a race at the pro level should be based on what is best for the fans. Decisions on how to run a race at the high school level should be based on what is best for the kids.
Worst logic. I think what's best for the fans is lighting them on fire and that would be more exciting. Or maybe having them run naked.
Not just CA. Most meets I see in HS are waterfall 800 starts.
Amusingly, I've been to usatf meets occasionally where they got little kids running in lanes. To be fair, the 800 does suffer by far the most pileups and other mishaps at the start. Lanes does avoid that.
Decisions on how to run a race at the pro level should be based on what is best for the fans. Decisions on how to run a race at the high school level should be based on what is best for the kids.
Worst logic. I think what's best for the fans is lighting them on fire and that would be more exciting. Or maybe having them run naked.
That is a poor judgement of what most fans would want to see on a regular basis. I'd prefer to see Jakob race Kerr with clothes on than naked, or alternatively some randos racing naked. I don't think either Jacob or Kerr would run a race if they had to run naked. Though I'm sure there is some naked racing out there somewhere in the world that you can spectate to fulfill your personal interests.
Going back to the 1970's I guess our HS had a nice cinder track. There was a 200yd
straight away. The 200 was run straight and finished where a normal finish line would be.
So the 880 yd started at the 200yd start line also. This made for 200 yards before the first turn. Three turns in total. The 880yd would finish end the end of the back straight. Not a bad way to run this race. I guess most facilities are not designed for this configuration.