How many people have said this, what is the point of a ban, when it is UNENFORCEABLE.
How many people have said this, what is the point of a ban, when it is UNENFORCEABLE.
Like Ba Ba said leave it to the RO.
When we study the facts only a very few have any concerns. Top 5/6 in a local race and top dozen in a championship event.
I ran 12 years with a Garmin but never once had pre loaded data. It was only used for collection of data for me.
Should people be penalized who are towards the steadier end of a race?
Leaving it to the ROs will split the sport in two, and create mistrust. Will those who have used their watch legally to navigate in some races comply and not use it in the same way in others? And when somebody does really well in clag in a race where navigational GPS use is banned will they be trusted? The FRA needs to decide - accept or ban GPS navigational use. If after some time it is felt the decision was wrong then it can be changed.
There is a ban on running using another competitor’s number in all disciplines. Without asking people for ID when they collect their number, this is unenforceable (the only race I’ve been required to produce ID for is London Marathon). I’m not suggesting that fell race organisers should ask all runners to show ID when collecting numbers as this would be wholly impractical given the reliance on a small number of volunteers in ratio to runners. However, the ban on swapping numbers is upheld in spirit - there have been instances of DQ & penalties against clubs in road & XC races I’ve known of.
Similarly, a ban on GPS for nav can still be upheld, even if it appears unenforceable (without someone speaking up against those they see using it). Appealing to the good nature of runners is part of our sport - just as much as asking them not to climb that wall/cross that field etc. is.
I’m with Nic - leave it to the RO. Plenty of us don’t have a watch with nav functions, so I cannot see it splitting the sport.
I’d also add that, by way of having a ban on GPS nav (at discretion of RO), those new to the sport are given an insight into the spirit of it. (After all, some may turn up on the start line with, quite innocently, a pre-loaded track on their watch. By having a ban at ROs discretion, aspirants are at least encouraged to have a good look at a map, or even recce.)
Question.…… / story GPS not allowed at the following race
Like many a fell runner Johnny likes to tuck in behind the person in front. Mist is down, and he and whoever it is in front have a blinder, hitting all of the lines perfectly. Johnny was really grateful that the person in front was such a good navigator / knew every inch of the course so well. Person in front used a GPS, Johnny has no idea that he did.
Person in front has broken the rules, and not fessed up, so we don't like him.
What about Johnny?
He is OK.
Becasue in a fell race, deciciding to follow somebody is a perfectly legal tactic, because you run the risk of following somebody that does not know where they are going and ends up leading the people behind him in the wrong direction. That has happened numerous times.
Where Johnny had a suspicion that the bloke in front had a GPS, is purely down to honesty then.
It really is nonsense, what is one meant to do if you see somebody in front checking a watch? You know what you are doing and can easily get around the course yourself, but you end up following him becasue it is easier, should you be disqualfied? How do you "unsee" him checking it.