Apparently....so when rubbed, off it came. They had map bags but didn't even seal them ! Absolute Muppets!! This long was just tough and scrappy. Not fun.
Tough is good, but where micro route choices won the race, you've got to be able to see the detail. More arena passages too! The middle especially suffered from this. I'm trying - and struggling - to think of any races that have been enhanced by an arena passage. There are so many races that would have been much more fun without one though (Balmoral RtC being the obvious example). From a spectators perspective, is it really that much more exciting seeing people running across a field in front of you 1k before the finish? Good use of GPS / big screens should hopefully make the arena passage obsolete.
Swedes generally don't seal map bags which created the situation at a team leaders meeting many years ago where all the other teams wanted map cases sealed, the Swedish organisers refused, it was pointed out that a Swede had suffered from map disintegration the previous year and when it went to a vote even the Swedish TM was in favour of sealed bags. The organisers caved in to common sense and sealed them.
races that have been enhanced by an arena passage
I have to go back 16 years, which rather proves your point, but I submit...
British Middle 2000 ?
Bibbly bobbly round Granish, 500m hard run through the arena into the hardest part of Loch Vaa, leaving heads exploding in a carnage of broken concentration and oxygen-debt.
I'm slightly surprised the maps didn't have to be offset litho printed for WOC ....
As for the arena passage, it rarely enhances a race, and having an arena start for the WOC long didn't look like a particularly good idea either.
It is also worth looking at the amazing use of form lines on the long map, there are lots of them, and quite a few places with several form lines between adjacent contours (1.7m contour interval?)
Add me to the list of people who thinks that an arena start and arena passage are rendered largely redundant if there is TV coverage from the forest and big screens in the arena. An arena passage is still nice to have if it can be done without compromising the courses too badly, but such arena passages rarely exist.
Typical example of "one size fits all" attitude - force races to have arena starts and passages even when it massively compromises the quality of the course. Maybe the IOF event adviser should be hauled over the coals for this...?!
BigJon:
No need for coals, Jorn will take responsibility. It's what he does - he told me so himself.
DaveR: I think your eyes are failing you in your old age...
ISOM 103 Form line
Form lines are used where more information can be given about the shape of the ground. Only one form line may be used between neighbouring contours.
Never mind, if there was a problem Jorn would have taken responsibility, it's ... oh, wait.
Jorn the Magnificent...
or is it Jorn the Malignant?
I still have that BEOC middle somewhere. We should run it again sometime. I bet it hasn't changed much in the intervening years - always a sign of good quality terrain.
A proper offset litho printed map in a bag is indeed a thing of beauty. It's one of the main advantages of running world ranking events - you are supposed to get a proper map. Not sealing a bag is a bit disastrous, but I have used it to my advantage before. I was having an appalling run in Sweden once, really bad, when I came across a patch of forest gold - chanterelles. So I stopped, filled my map bag and ran on. The map disintegrated a few controls later.
Form lines I don't really mind if they show something on the ground.
Athletes want to train hard for great courses, great maps, a decent start interval etc. This should not be compromised for anything or anyone because it is the world champs. Someone should let the IOF know.
Form lines: I don't have a problem with occasionally breaking a "rule" to make thing clearer, but I struggle to see how some of these examples help:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BJP36WhjQ9N/
However as far as I can see IOF never admit to getting anything wrong, so it must be just me and my failing eyes :-)
Re BEOC Middle 2000 - I think someone's dug a gravel pit where the first loop went, so you may find a few changes there...
This discussion thread is closed.