Update: Chuck McMahon meet canceled for 2009, will return
Seven hours earlier today, I posted this note: “Oy vey. Folks in the San Diego-Imperial USATF Association apparently got my note about the mystery meet (open to officials but not athletes). They have now set the Chuck McMahon Memorial / San Diego USATF Association Masters Championships for Saturday, July 11. (See the schedule here.) But apparently they didn’t get the memo that July 11 is Day 3 of the USATF National Masters Outdoor Championships in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Still can’t find an entry form anywhere on the SDUSATF site. So you can plan for a CSU San Marcos meet that day, but forget about actually entering it. Nobody in the San Diego USATF has written me with an explanation for the change. Sigh.” Not long after posting this, I got official word: The McMahon meet has been canceled this year. How come? “Due to work constrictions, the meet director had to resign,” I was told. And time didn’t allow someone else to pick up the baton.
Furthermore, in a separate note, Nancy Morris, president of the host San Diego Track Club wrote me:
Several emails have been exchanged which all point to the fact that it is too late to properly market and organize the Meet. Therefore, I have decided that the most intelligent approach is to cancel for this year and, if someone from SDTC is willing to accept responsibility, it can be picked up next year with organization beginning in January. I will endeavor to find a meet organizer over the next 6 months.
The meet director who resigned, Paul Baum, has been a solid majordomo in the past, so it must have been something serious to lead him to drop out.
But I’ve written Paul and others about the Chuck McMahon bequest.
A former thrower, Chuck left money in his will for this annual masters meet in San Diego County. And I worry that if the meet is canceled, the money might cease.
How sad. Stay tuned.
4 Responses
Come on guys, why are meets cancelled? Because they can’t get someone to be head honcho or any hellpers to help out. The SDTC has the money in their hands but they don’t want to put on the meet so they farm it out to the senior Olympics crowd. After a decade with struggling to put on the meet they are now burned out. hence, no meet.
How many of you naggers, bitchers and complainers have ever put on a meet? Have you ever tried to balance a budget, find a place to put on the meet that doesn’t cost 6-10 grand a day, rounded up the officials and helpers? I’ll bet none of you have but are quick to complain when things don’t go right. Get out and do it yourself a few times and see how much work is involved. Why is masters track not going anywhere? Not enough indians, too many chiefs!
Hey easy ED. easy for you to say! I have ran meets in the past and it doesn’t cost 6-10k a day to rent a track. more likely 600-2000 a day. SDTC is greedy and need to change the name to SD road runners. They don’t do anything track anymore! Hopefully this meet will continue!
Okay I have competed in this meet but for the last couple of years and I found it was well run and served the purposes we all seek but it has been bumping into SW regionals & nationals for years. It actually would be a great early season meet as we have great weather here, say April. A great void time and a great season opener tune-up.
I also run Seniors. It just got back up after a year off September at Point Loma. Hopefully it will continue. It was well run and well attended.
The point about continuing is a good one. We must get SDTC to continue this event…somehow!
Jason,
I agree with your comment-‘SDTC is greedy and need to change the name to SD road runners. They don’t do anything track anymore! Hopefully this meet will continue!
It’s sad that a city the size of San Diego, hosting the Olympic Training Center, with world class Track athletes living here, can’t put on a couple of Track Meets a year!!
Years ago *(20?), when SDTC actually promoted TnF, they held 10 meets in the summer spread around the county. Now we’re lucky to see 1 meet a year, if they don’t get canceled.
We should get one of the Race management companies- Elite Racing, In Motion, Kathy Loper Events, Kinane Events, Klein Clark Sports, Koz Enterprises, Tagg Running, Sun Strides, etc. to put on the meets?
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