Masters exhibition races at open nationals: women’s 60, men’s 60H
Not yet official, but the word from Virginia Beach is that an M40-plus 60-meter (39-inch) hurdles and women’s 60-meter dash will be the masters exhibition races at USA open indoor nationals. The meet is Feb. 26-27, 2011, at Albuquerque, New Mexico. That’s where USATF Masters Indoor Nationals will be a week later. So this favors folks living in the region—or who can afford a long stay in New Mexico. Mark Cleary, invitational program coordinator, will eventually post qualifying standards and deadlines. It’s the first time these events have been showcased indoors. (Hurdles have been contested at outdoor open nationals.) So progress is being made.
44 Responses
Would it be picky of me to say that a masters indoor 60 was contested at open nationals in 2008? The winner was Tim McCrossen (7.19), followed by Jeff Gold (7.34).
Ouch! That’s the same day as the Fresno Indoor meet, which is featuring the Elite, Open and Masters divisions this year. I’m torn, as I’m a Fresno State Alum…
I meant to say the first women’s 60 and first men’s 60 hurdles contested at open nationals.
With the 40+ postings that the announcement of the Olathe Outdoor Nationals generated (complaints about the lack of family tourism opportunities, a lot of driving required, etc.), what do folks think of Albuquerque as the site for 2011 Indoor Nationals?
Seems like a winner to me. The venue is close to a major airport. Lots of hotels nearby and also plenty to see in New Mexico before and after the meet.
Maybe the “complete package” that Albuquerque represents should be used a model for future site selections.
New Mexico is a great state to visit (or so I have heard). Will it be a good site for masters? That depends on what you value.
1. First-class facility? I believe this will indeed be described as a first-class facility by our masters on March 7, 2011 (meet ends on March 6, and on March 7 there should be a lot of postings on this site as to how people liked the facility).
2. Nice visit for the money? I think people will answer in the affirmative.
3. Good turnout? Unofficially, only two states have ever broken 800 competitors in our indoors: Massachusetts (Boston, many times) and Maryland (Landover). Maryland was the only one to break 900. If that is a primary goal it will likely be a struggle.
I will report on this on December 30. That will be 2 months and 5 days from opening day of the meet, and I have notes on how Landover (2009) was doing 2 months and 5 days before that meet opened. At that point they had exactly 133 entrants. Thus, if Albuquerque has more than 115 when I report on Dec 30 (3 weeks from tomorrow) I will say it is going to have good attendance.
If it has 99 or fewer on December 30 I will predict a disappointing total.
As far as filling the 60 dash for women (exhibition, open nationals), that could be difficult, as the Eastern sprinters may pass.
hay thats not brett Farve,the best x-o would be a M50 x-o hurldes,also sence the shuddle hurdles at PENNrelays are only 2 teams in the open b nice to have a masters shuddle hurdles at pennrelays. im just dreaming.
Peter, you forgot to mention Albuquerque’s altitude. For sprinters and jumpers, this should be a darn good place! I predict you’ll see numerous new WRs in this mile-high setting. Have we ever had a U.S. indoor nationals at this altitude?
BTW, I tried to enter the meet online today. They rejected my 2010 USATF number. If this continues, don’t be surprised if your Dec. 30th number is a poor predictor as members wait for their 2011 number and password to be issued.
Thank you, Steve, I will be watching this one very closely. I have worked only 3 indoor sites as an announcer, as you probably know: Greensboro (1996), Boston (1997-2004; 2006-2008; 2010), and Landover (2009). As you indicate, this one will be different.
Why? It will be at altitude. I believe that Reggie Lewis Center (Boston) is about 2 feet above sea level, and I think that Landover is perhaps 5 feet above sea level. This will indeed be a change. Let me put you on hold while I check Reno’s altitude.
OK: I got 4500 ft for Reno and 5311/5312 ft for Albuquerque. So…Reno came close but did not make it, presuming the numbers are right. Sprinters and long jumpers, as you indicate, should do well.
As far as prediction, I see that I have 175 entrants for 13 days later (in 2009). Thus, I will now wait until January 12, 2011, to see how close Albuquerque can get to that number of 175.
1511m says Google Earth. 4957 feet I suppose.
I wnder, how much higher do you jump at such an altitude? My home track is at 1m, my last record was 3m below sea level, my highest jump has been in Sindelfingen, 443m.
Why on earth did they schedule the “Run for the Dream” meet, the only actual indoor meet left in California, on the same weekend as Indoor Nationals? That meet got its name from being on Martin Luther King’s birthday, towards the end of January. Has track fallen so far out of favor that they had to wait until Fresno State was out of the NCAA season before they let them have the arena?
For Weia: Most of us are old enough to recall back to 1968, when the Olympics were held at a much higher altitude in Mexico City, the high level of competition and high altitude drastically affected the world record list. Altitude records continued to dominate sprint and jump world records for the next 20 years. Of course, the high jump was revolutionized that same year for a different reason–Dick Fosbury and the flop.
To bad they do not offer any stipends to assist guys who want to come. We could assemble a great hurdle field, but I know it will be difficult to do two trips to ABQ.
This would be a great time to use some USATF funds to get a fast quality field.
I predict a 7.91 to the winner of this race with a competitive field.
Albuquerque has a lot to offer visitors. You can go to three or four Indian casinos if you like to gamble. I recommend the Sandia Casino and a trip to the top floor bar for a fantastic view of Albuquerque and the surrounding mountains, along with Mount Taylor 70 miles to the west. Vistas are wide and sunsets are beautiful.
Old Town is a neat place with a decent Mexican restaurant, art galleries and many shops around a plaza that sell Indian jewelery.
There’s a good museum detailing how the Atomic bomb was developed in New Mexico in l945.
There’s a rail line to Santa Fe (60 miles NE) if you wish to visit a Capital City with many great museums, art galleries, and Indian jewelery sold from blankets on the sidewalk in front of the Palace of the Governors.
New Mexico is a very old part of the United States, with Santa Fe being founded 120 years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock.
You really need to rent a car if you want to see Albuquerque because its spread out like most western cities, but two freeways intersect near downtown, and its relatively easy to get around.
DO NOT enter intersections after the yellow light because there are cameras.
There may be Indian Dances held at some of the surrounding reservations during the time of the Nationals.
Mexican restaurants abound and my favorite is El Pinto, located on fourth street in the far north of the city, very near the Sandia Casino. Food can be spicy, but just ask for the mild green chile. If its too hot, put some honey on the sopapilla provided, take a bite, and it will put the fire out.
There’s a tramway going to the top of the Sandia Mountains which is well worth going on.
At that time of year, there may be very high winds,
40-50 MPH, with gusts into the 60’s is not uncommon.
There can be sandstorms, too.
New Mexico is a Big state and many of its attractions are a long drive from Albuquerque.
Good post, Mickey! Didn’t know you were with the
Chamber of Commerce.. I do hope the turnout
will be good. It IS a great place to visit –
everyone should allow an extra day or two.
Steve Robbins (post no. 7) has alerted us to a potentially important problem: he tried to enter but could not. I was wondering why the number of entrants has not changed at all in quite awhile, maybe even a week.
Even though our masters nationals do not start until March 4, you have to enter extremely early (by February 7) if you don’t want to pay a penalty. Thus, the good possibility that there is something wrong with the entry system at this point is discouraging.
Agree with Don Drummond (post no. 12) on the issue of traveling to Albuquerque for the regular nationals, competing in the 60 dash (women) or 60 hurdles (men), flying back home, and then turning around a few days later to fly back to Albuquerque for the masters nationals. Oh, well.
Anybody still sitting on the fence about whether to go to Albuquerque Nationals need only to read Mickey’s post (#13) above. Great info.
And for those who find the logistical details (excessive driving distances, limited number of hotels) of places like Oshkosh, Orono and Olathe a pain in the butt, I did a little Mapquest research.
The Albuquerque Convention Center where the meet will be held is 4.7 miles from the airport, there are a dozen hotels within walking distance of the venue, and Old Town Albuquerque with a bunch of restaurants and shops is within walking distance too. So you don’t even need to rent a car, if you don’t want to.
Plus 30 shuttles a day go from the Albuquerque to Santa Fe, one of the great places in America.
So somebody needs to fix the registration system on the Nationals website because it seems like Albuquerque has the potential of being a great meet and a great destination for some cool tourist stuff too.
Albuquerque will be a nice place to visit- I agree – and I may go mostly for that reason. As a middle distance competitor – running the mile and 3k at altitude will NOT be nice. In fact it is highly unlikely that I will run the 3k. At my age I am getting slow enough without having to deal with altitude issues. I live at sea level -competing at nearly 5000 ft altitude may be the deal breaker for me.
Post 7 Quote – “BTW, I tried to enter the meet online today. They rejected my 2010 USATF number.”
Post 16 Quote -“So somebody needs to fix the registration system on the Nationals website”
The problem is not the system. The meet is in 2011; one needs to have their 2011 USATF membership – not the 2010 number – to enter.
Renewals online at usatf.org
Steve
The qualifying standards will be 15.75 for 110 Hurdles ( I will post a 60m Hurle time standard also if the ranking get restored on-line in the next week- the rankings for the 2010 Indoor season are not showing on the website, not sure why they are not still up on the site.The Women’s 60m will have a 100m standard of 14.00- I am hoping to also have a 60m standard if the ranking and back on the site.Andy Martin will have the online entry page live in a week or two- Please spread the word-Thanks
Thanks, Steve, for that clarification. I went to the Web site, and the requirement for a 2011 USATF membership is the 2nd bulleted item under entry information. My bad. And wouldn’t you know it, today (after a prolonged dry spell) we got our 12th entrant. Only 788 to go if we want a good-sized meet (800 athletes).
From Mickey Miller (post no. 13) and Rob D’Avellar (post no. 16) I see that the Albuquerque site has a lot to recommend it We will see what happens (regular deadline is Feb 7, as noted).
Not sure why I could not pull up the 2010 Indoor rankings the first time I tried- I was able to on my second attempt. It appears we will set the standard for the Masters Men’s 60m Hurdles at 9.25 and the women’s 60m at 8.75. If we have a Male that does not have a 60m Hurdle or a female 60m time from last season I will look at the 100m for the women and the 110 Hurdles for the Men.
Mark, I entered the Outdoor Nationals Invitational 100m and that was eventually cancelled for insufficient entries. I never recieved my refund even though the entry information says that competitors who are not selected would be given a portion of their entry fees back. So the question is, do you get some or all of your entry fee back if the event is cancelled as it was done this past summer.
Can’t wait to be so lucky to toe the line with fellow competitors. Altitude could be 20,000 feet and the race between people for one of those shiny medals would not matter. What it’s all about.
KP
Thanks, bf (#16) While I’m not with the Albuquerque chamber of commerce I lived in Santa Fe for 17 years and visited Albuquerque often.
For those of you concerned about the facilities, I’ll try & put your mind at “semi-rest”. The Track itself is fantastic. 200 meters, synthetic and the bank must be adequate as I saw a guy run under 46 seconds in the 400 meters at last years USATF Nationals, along with a slew of other fast races.
I did hear a “dead spot” in the long jump runway about 10 meters from takeoff board, but I don’t think it bothered the competitors much.
The problelm I had was in getting in to the meet. There were only 2 windows selling tickets, and one of them was the will call window. I ordered early so I wouldn’t have to stand in line, and I still had too. Being kind of an obnoxious guy, I complained to everyone I could find about the problem, and was assured the problem would be fixed at the next track meet. It’s fun to piss off USATF stuffed shirts!
For Spectators, there are individual, cushioned seats, and the best row is # 17. Its the last one and has an aisle in front so you have plenty of leg room. There are backless bleachers on the other side of the track where the long and triple jump and pole vault are contested.
If anyone has any questions, email me at cb750fnm@yahoo.com and I’ll try to answer them.
Re: post 18. Not everyone renews online. I sent in my money for 2011 and received my temporary “receipt” and 2011 membership number. I tried to enter off this but it wasn’t accepted because I didn’t have my 2011 password. I won’t have that until I get my actual card. Why can’t the system take the 2011 number with the 2010 password? How hard would that have been to program? With the entry deadline being in early February, the window for entering seems narrow. And depending on when the actual 2011 cards and passwords are mailed and how many renew by mail, some who would have entered in December will have to wait until January. What I’ve learned from this is that, in the future, I’ll renew online!
Air pressure in Albuquerque is about 15% lower compared to sea level, the sprints and horizontal jumps will benefit from that! I tried to figure out what height does with the high jump. Air pressure is of no concern, but g-forces are. Unfortunately the difference between Albuquerque and my record jump below sea level is only 0.2%. When jumping height correlates with g-force it is a meager difference of 3 mm. But I fear it correlates with the height my c.g rises and then only 1 mm remains. Albuquerque is nothing special for high jumpers…
Weia, I disagree. You need to look at it from a different perspective, not only scientific. See, you need to spend a few days in Taos prior to the games. You will soak up spiritual powers at the pueblo helping you soar like an eagle. And maybe you can study the affect of the Taos hum (otoacoustic emissions) on fast twitch muscles of high jumpers. I feel strongly that a prior visit to Taos will add 10 centimeters to your jumping height.
Than anyone would think that I took drugs…
Mark please include me in the mens 60 hh for so cal t.c ,it will be great preperation for my short game ,and my goal to break the m45 american and world records ,those are lofty goals coach cleary,but im very motivated this year and very fit,the worlds in sac so close. thank you and blessings to all this is going to be a great year.
Stephen – Your password should be the same no matter what year it is. You should contact the USATF National Office if it’s not working.
To David,(post 29): Man, please make a copy of that 2003 WMA relay we ran together. I have nothing but fading memories but a vhs will correct that. Good luck at Nationals! Email pr1066@aol.com
Cornell ,my wife is looking in the archives and we will have the tape of the world championship you helped the usa win and what a great moment one i know i will never forget. ps we have the winnig moment we will get it to you.god bless dave ashford go team usa…
Lisa, I will contact Andy Martin he would be the person to answer that question. I know that you should get the partial refund for certain and I would have to agree, when an event is cancelled that you should get the full refund.If you want to enter the Women’s 60m I can talk to him about just waiving this year’s fee and you would get credit in that way.
David, every athlete must enter themselves in the Invitational races.Please make sure that you renew your USATF membership online so that you can represent our club at the exhibition event( last year you had two memberships) call me and I can walk you thru the process. I don’t have a current working phone number for you. Please e-mail it to me at runnermark@cox.net Thanks
Mark ,consider it done and your dedication to usa track and feild speaks for itself ps,. running saturday at the ted haydon classic will get usatf card,and hope you can help me ,coach i will be at all nationals indoor and outdoor and of course wearing the red white and blue ,the masters world championships.thanks coach, dave your hurdler.
David, please go online to get the card so that I don’t have to jump thru hoops to get you back on the SoCal roster( whatever you do please do not buy your 2011 USATF membership at the meet)This will cause a lot of extra work–Thanks David
@Mark
Do you have the date/time in which the exhibition race will be run. Checking on Airline tickets now.
Thanks!
They have not given me the date and time yet-if you get a great airfare I suggest that you stay the weekend -that way you will be there for the Invitational race and you can also catch the Open Athletes as well–Mark
I have heard from Derek Pye,Don Drummond, Mike Godbout & David Ashford who all want to run. If we can get Rod Jett, Willie Gault,Henry Andrade,Richard Holmes, Dexter McCloud and Peter Grimes interested we would have an amazing field.
We need to get the ladies in the 60m fired up so we can really shine in 2011.
Mark I’m interested as well. Should be fun! Anyone coming to Mt. SAC this year?
I’m interested as well and physically preparing for indoor. The achilles is totaly heald so I should be good. I’ve yet to hear from Mt. Sac, but generally hear from them after the New Year. But I think it will be a go, again.
Emailed Willie Gault and Roger Kingdom to embrace us with thier participation. Also have a new m40(Charles Johnson) who has ran 13.6 a few years back who may be making a guest appearance. He still competes on the open scene, so it will be a very fast field.
Looks like it will be a push for a New Indoor World American and World Record.
How many lanes need to be filled for the race and what is the protocol to assure that a hurdler is actually in? It would be unfortunate if an athlete purchased a plane ticket, only to discover they’re not in (per earlier post above).
TO Don Drummond,I would like to see willie gault run hurdles agian last time i ran with hem was when he was in collage,he got me that day
Leave a Reply