Why should Track and Field be key to most juniors?
Our nearest decent track is in Lancaster, over an hour away. Our kids do not run on the track (except grass tracks at school). Fell is easier for our kids to do, as is the case for many fellrunning clubs (a point I made to UKA last year).
If you "jack in" the County T&F Champs in favour of the Fell Champs won't that disadvantage some of your athletes that want to run T&F? Perhaps some kids could do one thing on the day, whilst others do something else?
And I think Lauren was implying that the comment about "It needs better planning than that" has just reinforced HER intention of stepping down as Champs organiser next year and that there is a vacancy for that post. Duncan is still JC, at present.
Lecky
My coaching blog
It is my belief that we should encourage young athletes to have wider experiences. You don't need to train on the track to experience track and field as an event and many clubs up in Cumbria, despite the lack of local facilities are involved.
I travel far and wide with my athletes to give them a more rounded endurance experience.
I want my athletes to do the County Champs on Track and Field and I would like them to do the FRA Champs.
Until the last year we haven't had a problem.
Last year the Uphill Champs clashed with the County Schools Track and Field. When this was raised, it was too late to find an alternative, but at that time certainly Duncan saw it as a significant clash he would rather not have and tried at least to avoid it.
So I'm astonished that this year, having tried to move the Uphill Champs last year, there is a potential clash again and not only that we have a clash with the County AA Champs.
The Champs are supposed to be about the best athletes. Many of the best FRA junior athletes that I've seen in recent years have a mixed background of cross country, track and fell.
Had this happened 4 - 5 years ago athletes like my Beckie, laura Riches, Hannah Bateson, becky Lambson, Bronwen Owen... girls - that's because I have coached the girls group and so know that side better.
If the FRA Junior side wants to reach out to a wider audience, which is also something I understood to be the case, then it will not encourage athletes from backgrounds away from fell to get involved by giving them a 4 from 6 series when 2 of the 6 races are non-starters to start with.
A barrier is being created to new entrants to the series and a lack of consideration being shown to many clubs and athletes that have supported the series in recent times.
Nice to see Coiners back in there, a good venue and well organised, and our kids like it !
Good to see new races and venues in Holmfirth and Kettlewell, good venues, should be good courses.
3 from 5 is an interesting idea although for us 4 from 5 is better, plus a separate uphill champs.
Cheers Lefty much appreciated. Had to change things around a bit though as the descent through the woods is a non starter these days and with having to change when we went metric all routes are different to the last time it was in the series. Still good honest open moorland boggy routes and hopefully still well organised. Happy to lead a few reccies for anyone interested certainly nearer the time we will be running them regularly with CVFR juniors.
Full details can be found on cvfr website
Last edited by Clash City Rocker; 10-10-2013 at 03:49 PM.
"Moors are a stage for the performance of heaven"
Provisional Plan
Junior Champs 2014 4 from 6
April 5/6 Pendle (details TBA)
April 19 Anni Wa!
May 5 (BH) Coiners
May 24 Organised by Holmfirth
June 28 Clougha
July 13 At Bingley's TTT
Uphill Champs
June 8 Turner Hall Farm, Seathwaite
This is not a permanent decision to remove the uphill from the series, but we are trying to avoid too many date clashes with other significant events.