Ohmygosh! Oshkosh wins 2009 masters outdoor nationals
USATF Masters T&F chair Gary Snyder made it official (or at least public) about 20 minutes ago: “The USATF Masters Track and Field Executive Committee is pleased to announce that the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh has been selected to host the 2009 USA Masters Outdoor Track and Field Championships on July 9-12, 2009. Aerial photographs of the facility can be viewed here. Additional details will follow as they become available.” Well, well. This is out of the blue. This is probably Wisconsin’s first masters nationals. Here is city info. Meet director will be Al Ackerman, the UW-Oshkosh athletic director, who writes that details on lodging and travel may be available by the end of next week. He’ll have help from Jason Fast.
One of the committee members reports:
University of Wisconsin Oshkosh held the NCAA Division 3 Championships last year. Our games committee has investigated the facility and it is top flight to say the least. You can fly into Appleton WI on United from LA or Orange County for example for $ 356.50 & $ 373.00 Appleton is 20 minutes from the sight.
The meet will provide free shuttles from the Appleton airport-or you can fly into Milwaukee which is 40 miles away. Plenty of hotels within 3 miles of the site. The last time the meet was in the Midwest was 2004 (Decatur, Illinois.) This was a no brainer.
The folks that will say they will Bid for 2011 are Spokane, Cleveland and Orono and possibly Miami, but no one seems to want to go to Florida in the summer. So that bid against Bidders who have hosted the Nationals before won’t stand much of a chance.
I am sad that Cleveland was unable to get the dates at Baldwin Wallace for 2009. They have a better track than we have ever had for a Masters Nationals — the best Mondo surface available and only one year old. California will bid for 2012 providing Eugene doesn’t bid for that year.
Another source reports:
There was consideration of Miami (no formal bid, so not really ready), and Spokane (they were happy to re-have the meet), but to spread it around the vote was unanimous for Oshkosh.
40 Responses
http://www.titans.uwosh.edu/WOutdoorTrack/JJKellerField.html
Was scrolling down below and missed this. Great news. Can’t wait now…
Mr. Taylor, Weather Reporter Extraordinaire- info on weather there in mid-July?? (I guess I could find it myself but you probably have already done the leg work)
Average July temps in August are 82 high, 62 low
285 miles from Minneapolis
87 miles from Milwaukee
50 miles from Green Bay
175 miles from Chicago
Was going to suggest this one (Oshkosh) to Gary Snyder but I am sure I forgot. Key criterion for me is that they have hosted NCAA Division III championships in track and field. Second key criterion is that the weather should be pretty good. This is very similar (at first glance)to Decatur in 2004 (smaller university, Midwest, small airport, etc.).
Will try to get cost of direct flight from Washington Dulles to Oshkosh, which should give some insight into fares for others. Again, the key factor for me is that Oshkosh has already held national championships in track and field, and thus they have been screened by others before we came along.
Only negative, of course, is that Oshkosh is 87 miles from Milwaukee, not what I would wish (would wish for 15 miles or less). Again, this has Decatur written all over it, but the weather in Oshkosh, one assumes, is somewhat better (i.e., cooler) than what one finds in Decatur. I am a bit concerned about faraway people like Liz Palmer, Simpdog, KWilliams, and all the other contributors to this blog as well as the many others who are not. How, for example, does one fly from Houston to Oshkosh? I am assuming one flies directly to either Chicago O’Hare or Milwaukee and then takes the “puddle jumper” to Oshkosh. Again, this is the big issue, getting there.
I’m guessing, though, that at least it’s easier for a lot of people to get to than it was to get to Spokane. More in terms of cost than anything. Particularly if you fly to Milwaukee or Chicago and rent a car with some other athletes.
I like to fly Southwest. Fly into Chicago, drive 3 hours, see a part of the country I haven’t before. Not bad! Roundtrip from Albuerque is $278. I am so excited and looking forward to this! We actually get a warm-up track, the “tracks” (as in plural, I can’t get over this) are along side a lake!
I think I will fly into Milwaukee and rent a car. Why? I just searched Expedia.com for flights from Boston, Baltimore-Washington International, Washington Dulles, and Houston (all airports) to Oshkosh and came up empty every time. No flights. What’s the story?
Green Bay looks like the closest airport.
Try flying into Appleton, WI. just a short drive to Oshkosh
Track looks European style, 80m straights, nice 120m curves. Love the warm-up track too.
Having been to this area many times, it is beautiful, good Bratwurst, Linenkugals (sp?) beer and perhaps a mosquito or two to contend with. Overall – thumbs up!!
Round-trip (including fees) from Baltimore-Washington International to Appleton on Northwest is only $274.00. Yes!!! Should have bothered to read the content of Ken’s message. Appleton Airport is the key.
BTW, I think that those are the longest curves I have ever seen. I love the fact that there’s a warmup track; how many times have we had that? Wow.
This looks great! I priced flights from Austin,TX to Appleton,WI, and there are many available for $320 total. The facility looks much better than Decatur. Well done, MTF Committee.
Nice Track. I am so excited to run on a world class venue. It may not be Mondo, but the facility has a warm up track etc… This is a great choice and I am excited to visit the host city.
Hopefully we will have some wind to the back and if not maybe they will change the direction of the events, so that we can run with the wind and not against it for the less than 200 distances.
is the early July dates a harbringer of things to come?
I remember an earlier message board debate over dates….personally I like August as an “end of the season” final meet- in the past, for example, the “East Regional” was in July, my state championship games are at the end of July- now I have “Nationals” and then go to championship of the east and my state championship…..
This is the best solution
we can wish for – on this short notice.
The facility is great, I have been there with my college Div.III team.
Pete Taylor and Co, already discussed the transportation options, and I am sure by the Reno conventions we will know a whole lot more.
Gary and the Games comittee
will do their best to give us a good meet.
Also, the dates are manageable for those athletes who plan on Finland.
Y es, Palo Alto for the 50 plus people presents a problem. I have heard of athletes who plan on all 3 events, good luck.
Stay tuned and look forward
to OSH.
TO: peter van aken
The July date was due to conflict with the Senior Nationals and Masters Worlds all around the end of July, and the beginning of August . . . hence the Masters Outdoor National Championships were moved to early July to eliminate three meets in a 2 or 3 week window.
-Jeff
If the people putting on the Region meets are smart they will back up their meet dates to late June and Association Champs in early June.
I am very excited to see the meet is being held at Oshkosh. This is a great facility and was the host of the NCAA DIII meet a couple years ago. UW-Oshkosh has a great track and field tradition and they will do an excellent job of running the meet. The Green Bay-Appleton-Oshkosh area is a nice part of Wisconsin to visit (if you can put up with all of the Packer fans). This will be just my second season competing as a master, and I am really looking forward to running at my first national meet.
I am very excited to see the meet is being held at Oshkosh. This is a great facility and was the host of the NCAA DIII meet a couple years ago. UW-Oshkosh has a great track and field tradition and they will do an excellent job of running the meet. The Green Bay-Appleton-Oshkosh area is a nice part of Wisconsin to visit (if you can put up with all of the Packer fans). This will be just my second season competing as a master, and I am really looking forward to running at my first national meet.
I was NOT going to Clermont for sure if Nationals had stayed there. Now I think I’m going to try to make the trip next July.
Love this selection! I can fly from tampa to milwaukee rt for $199-$240 depending on whether I go non-stop or connect. For the first time in my experience w/masters meets there will be a warm up track sufficient for hurdlers to actually be ready to race! It also looks like there is a possibility of college dorm space for budget travelers! Yahoo..Good Job!
Leinenkugal Beer from Chipewa Falls, WI
Free flowing at the meet for certain.
Beautiful facility and nice weather patterns. I especially like their experience with big meets. Bubba
PS – as a former SoCal resident for 24 years, I understand the desire to have central locations for meets. I really enjoyed Spokane. In Texas now, almost everything is pretty easy for us.
“If the people putting on the Region meets are smart they will back up their meet dates to late June and Association Champs in early June.”
Agree completely, Mark. And with a lack of masters meets to run in in a lot of ares, those meets would provide great training/tune-ups for nationals as they should. Unless you compete at Worlds, Outdoor Nationals is the meet you’re trying to peak for…since I’m in that boat, it will be my last track meet for the season.
Also, UW-Oshkosh hosted the DIII outdoor championship meet just this past spring (2008) so they certainly have recent experience putting on a big meet.
Not too thrilled with the javelin facility. It appears to be rather far away from the track out in a soccer field. It’s much nicer when the javelin is in the infield…then you feel more like you’re a part of the meet.
We may end up skipping this meet anyway, as we’re planning to go to the worlds in Finland, and the timing of the two meets is a little tight.
Saw the facility at D3 nats. Great mondo track with wide turns. Best part is the 400=meter warmup track. This is a great choice. Central location is perfect as is the likely weather.
Wisconin-never been there-seems like a cool place to visit for a desert dweller.
Good choice! Facilities appear quite good.
From Phoenix it seems the best fare for a non-stop is into Milwuakee at about 314.00 That means a 90 minute drive to Oshkosh but thats OK. I agree that Florida was a no-go, but Wisco is a go!
Really liking the way this is lining up:
2009- Oshkosh
2010- Sacto
2011- Cleveland, Orono, or Spokane
2012- Eugene! or California (assuming that’s Mt. SAC)- I’m guessing no on Eugene, though, since they’ll be hosting the Olympic Trials again that summer
For years that are yet to be decided, listed them in order of preference. Can’t say I ever thought I’d put Cleveland on the top of a list of most desired sites but seriously, that Mondo track sounds like a great track and I’ve heard great things about the area.
I hope that Oshkosh 2009 will go down as a model meet. What’s that? I think it’s one where people (athletes, officials, spectators/friends) leave on the final day and say, “What a nice meet. I will really look back on this meet with pleasure.”
With this goal in mind, I wonder what improvements our contributors would like to see for 2009. Personally, I like to see meets that are very strong in personal comforts, which to me extends to things like ample restrooms, shade, plenty of refreshment stands, water for the athletes, and a place for athletes to stand or sit in the last 10 minutes before their track event that is both (a) shaded and (b) very close to the starting line.
I would like to see awards ceremonies that are nicely handled and have their own sound system, but one that does not go throughout the stadium.
I would appreciate more coverage for the discus, javelin, hammer, shotput, high jump, long jump, pole vault, and triple jump. I mean a dedicated announcer for those events. This was tried with some success at Charlotte (2006) in the person of Andy Boyajian.
In 2007 (Orono) there was an intent to have a field events announcer, but that fell through. In 2008 (Spokane) there was someone assigned to the field events, but his mike seemed to lose power a lot, and no doubt many people thought we had no field events announcer for that meet.
I would like to see dorms rented to the athletes at a modest price and would love to have a cafeteria that opens at 6:00 a.m. for those who are in early events. Orono fell through on that for 2007 but did the right thing in earlier versions of the meet (both 1998 and 2002, as I recall). There is nothing like a cafeteria within 1500 meters of the stadium that opens at 6:00 a.m.
But enough of my thoughts, I wonder what people want for Oshkosh 2009. I have heard that there will be a shuttle from the Appleton airport to Oshkosh, and that is a good sign. I am absolutely sure that Al Ackerman (meet director) and Jason Fast (assistant meet director) want to put on a memorable meet, but what do we want? Remember, we are in November, and the meet starts in July, just 8 months away.
My biggest pet peeve, as a hurdler, was not being able to warm up over hurdles on the track. I know it doesn’t mean much to many of you but could you imagine doing a field event without doing warmups in the ring or approaches on the runway? Hurdlers are sometimes asked to do just that, warm up on a grass field, go onto the track and race a minute later. I’m just happy that Oshkosk, and Sac State (2010) have warm up tracks so that shouldn’t be a problem.
Wow…I’m actually at a loss for words. Hat’s off to Gary Snyder and the committee that got Oshkosh as the site for the 2009 USATF meet. I now have to reconsider my plans for the summer of 2009. If my training goes well, I’ll skip the NSGA meet, and go to Oshkosh instead.
Pete just about summed it all up in his post regarding amenities for the athletes. My good friend Andy Boyajian did a great job in Charlotte with the field events. Can we get him back?
How about split sessions on Thur-Sat.? I noticed there were lights at the main stadium. One of the unplanned benefits of the first day at Charlotte, was being able to complete the days events in the evening under the lights. While the weather will hopefully be good in July in WI., it still would be nice to have events under the lights. How nice it would be, to have trials in the morning, between 8am-noon, and finals at night between 6pm-10pm. I think it wil make the finals more exciting, and allow more people to watch them.
I remember having a discussion shortly after the DIII Nationals last year (hosted by Oshkosh) with a friend of mine that served as a starter at the meet. He couldn’t say enough good things about the venue. He is a VERY experienced starter and said that it puts many DI schools to shame. For some reason many of the other small schools in Wisconsin have surprisingly high quality facilities. Hmm…
I wanted to know what people want when they attend the Oshkosh meet because there is a chance (can’t say it’s more than a chance) that I will be selected as the track announcer for the event. If I am selected I will tell the meet director (Mr. Ackerman) and the assistant director (Mr. Fast) some of what I know in terms of athletes’ preferences. If I am not selected there would be no reason for me to say anything.
You’d better be the announcer, PT, or I’ll boycott on that basis alone!
In all seriousness, can’t imagine it without you there.
I think Ted Irvine’s idea of split sessions is a GREAT one.
Would love to run the steeple under the lights.
So, PT, WHEN you are selected to announce the meet, please pass along Ted’s idea about the split sessions.
The only drawbacks at Oshkosh are minimal…
1. Dorms are not convenient to the track.
2. Parking is limited in the immediate track area.
3. A bit of a drive from major airports but that’s about the same everywhere we go.
4. If you run at night, you might run faster because the mosquitoes will be chasing you.
The Appleton airport is only 20 minutes away and the meet is going to provide shuttle service- you can’t get much better than that. There are several hotels within 3 miles of the track and we are told the rates will be reasonable. This town puts on a very large air show and is a college town so I’m quite sure that all the amenities will be there.I have heard from people in Florida and the Northeast that they can get very reasonable air fares into Appleton-You can fly from Southern California for about $ 378.00–sorry that the one guy does not like the position of the javelin run way -we are not going to please every single person- but I think we have a terrific situation overall with quality of facility affordability and I am sure with the Athletic Director serving as the meet director they will want to shine–it has the makings of one of the best Nationals ever– I have gone to the last 20 Outdoor Champs in a row so, I am aware of the good and the bad.
I live in Appleton and have competed on the UW Oshkosh track numerous times. Jason Fast has done a great job the last two years with assisting with the D3 national track meet. Strong turnout for local volunteers and they also hosted the Wisconsin state games (Badger State) this past summer. Very organized. Finding shade from the sun or protection from the rain will be an issue — only place to take cover is under the bleachers. This will be my first national meet and I look forward to competing and helping where I can.
We are very excited here in Oshkosh to host this event. I have read over your comments and while we are just beginning the planing phases let me address some of your concerns and some ideas we have to make this year one of the best ever.
1. Flights: I would recommend flying into Appleton (ATW). It is the closest airport to our track (25 miles) aside from Whittman Airport in Oshkosh, but Whittman does not have commercial flights. Appleton airport receives flights from Detroit, Atlanta, Chicago, Minneapolis, Las Vegas and Milwaukee. They have the most connecting flights coming from Chicago O’Hare and Minneapolis. Milwaukee’s airport probably has more connecting flights but it is a 90 minute drive from Milwaukee to Oshkosh.
2. Facility: We feature a 9 lane mondo super x track. With a synthetic turf infield. The track has 48 inch lanes (Olympic specs). The wide smooth turns make for very fast times. As for finding shade. There will be areas underneath the stadium that will be available to athletes that are air conditioned as well as locker rooms to shower in as well. We will also have a 120′ x 80′ tent set up for athletes on the infield of the practice track with plenty of chairs and space to stretch. Our practice track will also have a full set of blocks,hurdles, and steeple barriers for those who wish to warm up there. The practice track has a sprayed rubber surface that was just resurfaced 2 years ago. For those of you who saw our facility at NCAA DIII Nationals it is very different now that all of the construction is completed. With the new space available underneath the stadium this meet promises to be great for the athletes.
3. Campus: Our dorms are only 1 mile (taking the shortest route) to our track. One of the dorms that will hopefully be available will be air conditioned and the dorms are also very reasonably priced (price to be determined) And there has been talk of having a shuttle bus that runs from campus to the stadium at various points during the day. At this point that is only an idea. If we have enough athletes staying on campus and would also utilize that service then we would give it more consideration. We did shuttle buses the first year we hosted DIII NCAA’s and they were not utilized at all.
Hopefully you find some of this information helpful, as I said we are only in the beginnings of the planning process and I will keep you all updated as much as possible. If you have any additional comments or concerns please post them on this blog as I read it frequently because I am interested to see what you all have to say and I will address them if possible as we begin to have more plans set in stone. Thank you for all of the positive comments so far and myself, Al and the city of Oshkosh look forward to hosting this meet.
good luck and good training!
I can see already that this is going to be a great meet. How many times have we had the meet director/assistant meet director (in this case Jason Fast) respond to our concerns within the first 6 months of being awarded the meet? Jason did it within the first week. Wow. This is going to be a sensational meet. I especially like the idea of the huge tent in the infield of the practice track. Mellow Johnny, your comments?
I am planning on competing at my first championship meet in Oshkosh, Wisconsin and I was thinking back to state meets and junior olympics and a question popped into my head. The meet starts on July 9, 2009 but I plan on being there probably the 7th. As far as practicing while in Oshkosh (or nearby) what do you (I) do or plan to do? I’m not going to be having full blown practices but I would want a ring to go through and be able to do some releases while I’m up there before the meet starts. I know as a coach and athlete we always found a nearby high school sometimes but I have been places where they open up the competition site for practice when not in use by the meet. I am curious just so I know what to expect and plan for next year. Thanks in advance for your input.
I couldn’t agree with Peter Taylor any more.
I’m very impressed, Jason, by you taking the time to read our comments, provide advice for where to fly into, and explain what steps are being taken to eliminate any concerns people might have. You’re clearly a class guy who is taking hosting this meet seriously, taking masters track seriously, and not just hosting this meet as a way to get a few extra bucks for the Oshkosh community. Great to hear the warm-up track will have barriers to practice on- THANK YOU!
I’ve had several comments on this thread but to hit on a couple that are important for me:
1) If you have anything to do with selecting the announcer, Jason, please have Peter Taylor fill that role. Last year was my first masters nationals and I’d heard a lot of talk about him and wondered what the big deal was. Now I know- he knows masters track like no other and works very hard to do a great job.
2) Again, if it’s up to you, Jason, having split sessions is a great idea that I know several athletes would appreciate. I personally would be in favor of the steeplechase being held at night (first choice) or in the morning as opposed to the traditional middle of the day time slot (in the middle of summer). But I realize you may have nothing to do with the meet schedule.
Everything else I would say are things that you clearly would know about in terms of running a quality meet having held D3 nationals. As a former D3 runner, I know that isn’t just some rinkdy dink meet.
My how things have changed, huh? Total 180 from the prospects Clermont held for us. Simply can’t wait for July now.
Peter, you hit the nail on the head: “this is going to be a sensational meet.”
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