It is going to be moved to the weekend very soon.
It is going to be moved to the weekend very soon.
beer and heckling
A standard handicap start. Take the top time of each person from the entire season (regardless of course) and the faster it is, the further back they start. This makes the entire season more challenging - you want to run a fast time, but not too fast as it will be a disadvantage at NCAA's.
Or make it into one gigantic relay. Like a 5 x 10K XC. That keeps the event going on longer and provides continual excitement.
I think the fixes are pretty simple.
1) Hold the race on the weekend.
2) Hold the race somewhere with a local running community and is easy to get to.
3) Narrow the course after a few miles so fans can watch from close to the runners. (So many of these races just look like people running around an empty field)
4) Have a looped course where fans can watch most of the race from one or two locations.
5) Have some kind of obstacle (hay bales, mud, etc) that will break up the pace. There's a reason that everyone hangs out by the water during the steeplechase.
A few ideas wrote:
Tie a single bear on a reasonably long rope in the start area right near where the course narrows down. This would bring an interesting element of strategy into the start. Taking off in a sprint from the start would be suicide because you'd get to the bear with no one else around to distract it. You'd need to decide on a team strategy to get all of your runners through without losing any. Maybe you could substitute a wild cat or dog of some sort for the bear. This could add a cool kind of local feel to the race because you could use animals from the area.
you are insane and I love you.
I just sprayed gatorade all over my keyboard, twice.
I think XC could be a decent sport for TV if
1. You had a TV camera friendly course. Rather than putting a camera on a lead cart and watching a solo time trial, have the course set up so that camera could be set up to easily follow packs of runners for longer periods of time.
2. More timing split mats. Rather than the 3 splits given at nationals right now (3K, 5K, 8K), put one at every K and give constantly updated team scores. This would make the race way more exciting knowing where each team stands at all times rather than guessing. Seriously, in how many other sports do you not know who won the moment the contest ends?
The current system is unfair, as proven by the fact that there are a lot of schools that NEVER make it to the championship meet. We should cut the number of teams that qualify through the regional system in half. Use a lottery system to select the half of the field that is no longer selected via the regional system. Schools will still get a chance to qualify through regionals, but schools that don't get a chance under the current system would also have a chance to compete on occasion.
Not that I can digest all of your ideas this fast Not An Expert, but I think 2) is too restrictive to ever come into play.
level the playing field wrote:
The current system is unfair, as proven by the fact that there are a lot of schools that NEVER make it to the championship meet. We should cut the number of teams that qualify through the regional system in half. Use a lottery system to select the half of the field that is no longer selected via the regional system. Schools will still get a chance to qualify through regionals, but schools that don't get a chance under the current system would also have a chance to compete on occasion.
And the wussification of America continues...
"I wasnt fast enough to earn a spot at NCAA's, but I really really want to run there. Gimme Gimme Gimme"
They could also hand out All-American status and gold medals to everyone in the race too. We wouldn't want people to to feel left out.
herd wrote:
And the wussification of America continues...
"I wasnt fast enough to earn a spot at NCAA's, but I really really want to run there. Gimme Gimme Gimme"
They could also hand out All-American status and gold medals to everyone in the race too. We wouldn't want people to to feel left out.
All professional sports do something to level the playing field because they know it makes the sport better. The NFL, for example, gives the highest draft pick to the worst team.