Suggestions / Complaints
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The DQ & Lap Counter Boards - placed too far from the
finish, placed where spectators and volunteers stood in front of
them, were too hard to read, the lap counter marks did not help, had
a hard time finding my number, etc.. Separate the DQ & Lap counter
boards. The DQ board should only have bib numbers that have red
cards.
Response - we will entirely rework the DQ & Lap Counting
situation for next year.
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Why didn't you use the Sheraton Hotel next to the course?
Response - it opened after people had started reserving
rooms at our event hotel. We'll probably use it next year.
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Awards:
Why couldn't you announce any of the age-group records?
I thought the awards for the USA 15km would be 6 deep not 3
deep.
How come you didn't announce the age-group records?
Response - We got "dazed" when we got the results, and
forgot to check against the list of records that we had at the race.
We will build a check list of things to do with the results before
announcing. It will catch this and any mal-functioning or missing
ChampionChips. Awards that we forgot to hand out will be mailed. I
apologize for not announcing them at the event and letting you hear
the response of your peers.
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The lemonade at dinner was STRONG.
Response - we'll have someone besides Bruce blend the
lemonade next year. He actually likes the stuff that strong, and is
still drinking the leftovers.
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The Turnarounds:
The paved surface at the outside of the
turns was very narrow
There was gravel on the outside of the turn.
The turns were very
sharp.
Just relax with the tight turn, put a single cone out there.
Response - we will look for a carpet covering that we can
"nail" down to remove the hazard of the gravel. If we use a large
enough piece, and "nail" the edge next to the path down well enough,
we should be able to remove the hazard of the gravel without adding
a trip hazard with the edge of the carpet. Not much we can do about
the sharpness of the corners - as the 1.9m radius is the biggest
that will fit, given the constraints the park district has placed on
us. The single cone idea would work fine for an event that did not
have very many people approaching the turnaround at once. Athletes
could pick their line through the turnaround without worrying too
much about what anyone else was doing. With the crowds we had
approaching the turnaround during the early part of the race, it
seems more reasonable to control things a little more.
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Can you get the judges
to move away from the turnarounds?
Response - we recognize that the 180 degree turn is, at
best, a hard part of the course for a high-speed walker (check out
the lean in the pictures), and at worst, a flaw in the course. We
are looking for a venue that would allow a course with 4, equally
spaced, 90 degree corners, but have not found one yet. The Chief
Race Walk Judge decides where to place the judges, and gives
instructions on what they should concentrate on. As a judge, I've
been asked to pay special attention to water stops, feeding zones,
port-a-potties, downhills and turnarounds. As athletes, you have to
adapt to what the judges are paying attention to. If they don't
watch the turnarounds, some will start running them. This way,
everyone knew the judges were hovering at the turnarounds, so people
were more careful. Two master's level judges worked the turnarounds
this year, so we had our most experienced judges handling this
difficult part of the course.
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How about a post-race
meal & awards ceremony?
Response - an interesting suggestion. With next year's
event hotel being adjacent to the course, it would be reasonable to
schedule a 10:30am brunch with the awards in the event hotel, and
that would give time to get a shower, break down the course, and
validate results before brunch, and still not go too late into the
day for plane flights home. We'll consider it!
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