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Date: 30 Sep 2006 11:42:12
From: LSmith
Subject: Tripped /Logic in a Start?
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Raced today, 5th Ave. 1 Mile race, NYC. Big race, lots of fanfare and
all that crap. Hundreds of races under my belt, never fell till today,
I got tripped at the start, trying to re-trace how it happend & why
they had this "different" kind of start.
There were two lines, the "Line Up Line" and the "Starting Line".
Historically this event never had a "line up line". This year for some
reason they had a "line up line". In most races I've been in with 2
lines like this, the "line up" line is about 30' or so before the
starting line. In sum, all runners are behind that line until about 1
minute before the starting signal. With about 1 minute before the
start runners are walked up to the actual starting line by race
officials and the race is officially started with a signal (gun or
horn).
Today's race as a straight road 1 mile down 5th Ave. adjacent to
Central Park. The race is comprised of separate intervals (groups)
running every 15 minutes. I was with the group of men aged 40-49.
I'm pretty cautious at the starts of races as I am used to the sardine
can compression right out the "box". I lined up, I was the 2nd row
deep you might say behind the guys right on the line up line. 3
minutes prior to the start we were instructed that we were to walk up
to the starting line, from the line up line 9 seconds before the start.
Race officals were heavily policing being behind the line up line.
Get this, the "starting line" was about 6' further ahead of the "line
up line". With 1 minute left race officials left the course and from a
mic & loud speakers by race officials from the side said 60
seconds....45 seconds....30 seconds....15 seconds....."Move
Forward"...runners seemd to keep their alignment/positioning but
everyone kind of got into their personal short race stance (which is a
lot more intense than the stance for a 1/2Marathon for example). As
with all starts, I just wanted to get out safe. The foot I lead with
thrust and pushes away at the start and is lifted with the first
striking of the foot that follows (at the start). Well I thrusted but
before I could lift it up it was stepped on, I tripped and momentarily
fell, noticed a "parting of the seas" you might say of runners going to
my side...I got up and my first thought was to get off the course.
Why? I wanted to take a personal inventory of my condition...you
know...to make sure all is okay.
When this happens, it takes you a couple of seconds to adjust and
simply realize what is indeed happening. Well I got up, and my
bearings and seemingly recovered and finished the race. I have not
checked, probably ran a 5:30-5:35 or so. Questions:
1). Why do races have these "line up lines" and then "starting lines"?
This race has never been started in this fashion and what do you
accomplish with a difference of 6' between the line up line and
starting line? This seemed to me to "prime the pump" and increase
anticipation, etc. Why 9 seconds? This race had an announced
incremental countdown every 15 seconds only with walk up instructions 9
seconds before the start. Everybody knew the gun would signal 9
seconds after we were told to walk up 6'. This produced a concentrated
field of runners sardine canned up and in this quick race stance with
everybody in their own separate and unique 9 count in their brain.
9 seconds is simply not sufficient time to allow a field of runners to
settle in their starting stance. Guys are ready to jump...touching and
bracing on the shoulders of guys in front, etc. These runners were
eager to jump out and guys were leaning and bracing up on others to
hedge off their jump starts.
I was 2 deep and when you line up this close, I feel I have a
responsibility to get out the start quick with shorter quick strike
steps to allow the runner behind me to have a place to strike. I've
never had this happen to me however now I am re-examining this start
and wondering if it was administered well. Specificially, the 6'
distance betwen the Line Up line and Starting Line, the "walk up" to
the starting line order 9 seconds prior to the start with a silent
countdown.
An announced countdown would at least have all the runners on the same
anticipatory page. I got stepped on by a guy who jumped.
Anyone got an opinion on this stuff?
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Date: 30 Sep 2006 16:08:28
From: LSmith
Subject: Re: Tripped /Logic in a Start?
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Elflord wrote:
>no-one wants to get caught behind an overambitious plodder who jumped into the
> front row (-;
i was in the second row my friend. but good joke. for a better
understanding of the start i am talking about...check out this video
from today's race.
http://www.nyrr.org/mile/movies/fifth_avenue_mile.mov
early in the video you'll see elite women at the Line Up line.....and
then move up 6' or so to the starting line w/9 seconds to prep for the
start. In this video it looks managable...as it's only a dozen
runners. in my heat there were some 350+ runners.
total quagmire of antsy runners. oh well...i should be used to it....a
bit of a microcosm of nyc you can say.
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Date: 01 Oct 2006 22:26:35
From: Elflord
Subject: Re: Tripped /Logic in a Start?
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On 2006-09-30, LSmith <Digisend@gmail.com > wrote:
> total quagmire of antsy runners. oh well...i should be used to it....a
> bit of a microcosm of nyc you can say.
Two of my team mates have lost shoes (with the chip! so they had to find their shoe
in the stampede) in crowded starts before. It's a bit freaky but certainly not
unheard of. And yeah, I think lining up a big pack for a mile race is a recipe
for disaster. As I said, even indoor track is pretty bad -- as soon as you get
people fighting for space in a race where 2 seconds count, it's a bit of a
mess.
The elite road miles are OK because there is an abundance of space, but in elite
mile races on track, people get tripped and spiked all the time (Webb in
Athens or maybe it was world champs, Mottram at the commonwealth games, and I
think El G at one of the olympics)
Cheers,
--
Elflord
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Date: 30 Sep 2006 14:08:43
From: LSmith
Subject: Re: Tripped /Logic in a Start?
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> How deep and wide was the group you were running with? How many people in
> your heat?
4 Car Lanes wide (road running on 5th ave) and 350 runners in my
field/heat.
>Not having a
> countdown or at least a "on your mark..set..<bang>" seems kind of bush
> league.
I agree. We usually have "on your mark.........<loud horn >". This
race had a firing gun with no verbal cues or countdown, just the
instruction to move up to the starting line 9 seconds before the gun
(as it was instructed it would be).
it was like they lit a 9 second fuse and it was anybody's guess when
precisely the gun would fire.....and antsy runners were guessing
(jumping).
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Date: 30 Sep 2006 20:07:46
From: Dan Stumpus
Subject: Re: Tripped /Logic in a Start?
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"LSmith" <Digisend@gmail.com > wrote
> An announced countdown would at least have all the runners on the same
> anticipatory page. I got stepped on by a guy who jumped.
How deep and wide was the group you were running with? How many people in
your heat?
Off the top of my head, the probability of that sort of thing happening at a
fast race would increase with the depth and tightness at the start.
I would limit each heat to maybe 2-3' deep across the width of the start
line, and caution the runners to be very careful during the first 10 yards.
I'd also have an official at the start counting down. Not having a
countdown or at least a "on your mark..set..<bang >" seems kind of bush
league.
Anyway, 5:20+ seems pretty good under the conditions. At least you didn't
get trampled!
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Date: 30 Sep 2006 19:48:25
From: Elflord
Subject: Re: Tripped /Logic in a Start?
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On 2006-09-30, LSmith <Digisend@gmail.com > wrote:
> An announced countdown would at least have all the runners on the same
> anticipatory page. I got stepped on by a guy who jumped.
>
> Anyone got an opinion on this stuff?
This happens a lot in the mile and 800. It has nothing to do with starting procedures.
In the indoor meets, there were some pileups in the start of the 800 that were big
enough to force a restart.
Everyone's jumpy and wants to get out of the blocks quickly. Doubly so in a road mile
where no-one wants to get caught behind an overambitious plodder who jumped into the
front row (-; Not a whole lot they can do about it, it's part of the game in short stuff.
Cheers,
--
Elflord
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