Discussion: Western Mass 5 Day update

Seven weeks to go, pretty soon I'm going to have to get out in the woods and figure out where the A meet courses are going. And Alex (and maybe Ed?) has to remap the UMass campus because they are singlehandedly trying to boost the economy with their multitude of construction projects. And Ali has to figure out the courses at Cemetery Hill. And Phil, well, he is still fine-tuning the Mt. Tom map for his courses.

Situation totally under control, in other words.... :-)

And as for everyone else, if you want to get the best deal on entry fees, and it is a very good deal, do it by April 20. That's a week from Friday. Online entry only. Meet info is here. Direct link to online entry.

And while I'm thinking about it, getting in my entry for West Point too.

What courses are F21s picking for the Sat PM and Sun AM sprints, and the mass start courses?

Choices are 2km ish and 3km ish for the sprints, and 4, 6, or 8km for the mass starts. Was just about to enter but it would be good to have a vague consensus first!

I suspect you want more input, but so far:
Registration list

The only F21 so far is Pam James, who registered for all long courses. Good for her!

Long, long, long! A denser representation on long, long, long will ensure better competition.

God Ian, where's your self-esteem?

Ian is still trying to become faster than the nemesis-memory of a 14-yr-old girl who haunts his every move. Self-esteem is immaterial.

A reminder -- if you want to get the best deal on entry fees, the super special early-bird rate, and it is a very good deal, do it by April 20. That's this Friday. Online entry only. Meet info is here. Direct link to online entry.

Deadline is tomorrow (Friday) for the really cheap rates. Though of course it is OK to wait if you want to make a larger donation to the ski-O team.

Though be forewarned that for the 2 A meet events there are already three strikes against the organizers -- the mapper is not European, the mapper is not professional, and the mapper and the course setter are one and the same. So it is probably best to assume things will be really screwed up.... :-)

Can we file a protest now? And then enter? Or must we wait till we enter?

Oh, definitely file now. First three that do will be selected for the jury.

Walk can file the protest, and I will handle the grievance. Or, perhaps more correctly, I will handle those who grieve. :)

but the mapper has a long history of perfectly fine maps and impeccable course setting...

That notwithstanding, the mapper is getting worried, as is the course setter, that incompetence will be forever linked to his name (along with the up to now unknown pejorative "petitioner").

Fortunately there is a little-known rule that allows especially low standards when the mapper, or the course setter, or especially both, are eligible for Medicare, and have been for some time.

just signed up. it's for a good cause so even if the courses are screwed up and the map stinks I will walk away happy to have contributed to our ski-o team.

I won't be there but would like to be able to bitch and moan about it remotely. Where should I post my complaints? Here, or on the logs of the people responsible? Maybe I should tweet about it?

Context is everything. PG talks about being "eligible for Medicare," and Joe follows saying, "Just signed up.". My first thought from this is , "Damn, now I have to deal its Joe in M65?".

Oh, I see. Joe just signed up for the meet, not for Medicare. Good move. Still safe for me to sign up in M65.

I won't be there but would like to be able to bitch and moan about it remotely. Where should I post my complaints? Here, or on the logs of the people responsible? Maybe I should tweet about it?

Hard to believe the correct answer isn't "all of the above." Though I'm sure a little imagination can suggest many more possibilities, including one that used to be popular but I can almost guarantee won't be used now -- snail mail.

Even though having just posted the above, I see this, just to prove me wrong.

More evidence, not that it is needed, that we are going to screw up.

... and I see that the rental cost of e-punches is zero, a first in the A-meets I've attended. Definitely low-cost ("No shirts, no awards, no banquet, no fancy bulletins"). Signed up. Looking forward to getting screwed up.

btw, a question for the locals: will Puffer's Pond be open? spent lots of time there decades ago...

I would assume Puffer's will be open. Not that it matters, people seem to swim there whether it is legally open or not. This is a college community after all....

From what I read on xkcd this week, the latest new thing, and presumably where you should register your dissatisfaction, is tumblr. Whatever that is.

So far so good as far as entries.

Having it as a fundraiser for our fabulous ski-O team, I should point out that it's success as such depends on two factors, getting more people to come (i.e. more income) and keeping a lid on expenses. With regard to the latter, one of the major expenses usually is the map. In this case the baseman cost $300 (which was donated by Eddie to the Senior Foot-O Team!), and the field-checking (non-professional and non-European!) and cartography (very professional by JJ, but also non-European!) are both being done pro-bono. So I hope we can make a really nice donation.

I should also give a thanks to NEOC who is the hosting club (and getting none of the proceeds), plus NEOC is also holding a club event May 20 at Breakhart Reservation to benefit the Senior Team. Cool.

Back to work on the courses....

Meet info is here. Direct link to online entry.

Entries at regular prices are open until May 14. After that, only if space is available.

One other point. The Western Mass 5-Day is participating in the program to encourage people to try out an A meet for the first time. I assume everyone reading this has been to (many) A meets before, but this would be a good time to talk a friend into coming. Coupon is good for the lesser of $20 or half the A meet entry fee.

And where else can you do 5 events is two days?

The coupon is here. Note that we will have copies at check-in, so you really just need to pick up a copy there, we'll sign it, then you send in it to OUSA. Pretty simple.

Well, as I see it, the only thing which possibly will save this ET double header from total disaster due to your lack of professionalism - is your East European name. Russian; right? Therefore - looking forward to another most excellent PG event.

I hate to be a stickler, but the cartography was not pro bono. I got paid a dollar, which is still taped to the wall over my desk.

Makes you a true professional, right? And the ET events even more perfect.

Another link to the rebate coupon, if PG's link doesn't work.

DVOA Jukola team is using this event as not quite like team trials, but rather team relative strength test, by all of us entering for M21+, and Long events. So I hope to see among entrants Vadim, Nate, Eddie and Wyatt, soon.

I assume that you approve of our plan to print all meet info only in Finnish, just to get you in the right frame of mind?

Will you be wanting special start windows for the 5 events, all in the 9 pm - 5 am time frame?

No darkness for me, thank you. Greg, I'm already registered.

No special request from organizers, but thank you for offer, PG. (German and Czech Languages are fine for meet notes too).

Jukola program is usually also in Swedish...

PS. The best way to support the Ski-O team would be to send some snow, wouldn´t it?

I guess I have no choice here, registered.

If Balter is already registered, none of us will be able to avoid the darkness. Ecce!

I guess its time to see what I can do in M21+. Just need to register now.

Jukola program is usually also in Swedish...

My Finnish is non-existent, so for DVOA the terrain description for events 1 and 2 will have to be in Swedish --

Skogsmark. Måttlig til stark kupering. Terrängen i sluttningen är detaljfattig och stigrik. I huvudsak god till mycket god framkomlighet, men mindre område med tät skog förekommer.

Course lengths (still subject to slight changes)

Event 1 (A meet, Earl's Trails) --
White: 1.8 km
Yellow 1.9
Orange 1.9
BrownY (women) 2.1
BrownX (men) 2.4
GreenY (women) 2.5
GreenX (men) 2.6
Red 3.3
Blue 3.9

Event 2 (A meet, Earl's Trails) --
White: 1.4 km
Yellow 1.7
Orange 2.1
BrownY (women) 2.3
BrownX (men) 2.4
GreenY (women) 2.4
GreenX (men) 3.2
Red 3.6
Blue 4.0

Event 3 (UMass campus)
Approx. 3.0 and 2.0, exact coming

Event 4 (Cemetery Hill)
Approx. 3.0 and 2.0, exact coming

Event 5 (Mt. Tom mass start)
8.2 km, 6.3 km, 3.9 km

Entry deadline is Monday, May 14. Meet info is here. Direct link to online entry.

Mycket bra; nästan perfekt! Tack för informationen. Vi ses där...

Excellent, now we need some OK Linne stars to register :)

Curious why the Brown and Green courses are labeled X for men and Y for women instead of the other way around?

Tradition, mostly. USOF doesn't consider genetics, just tradition. :-)

Men (except M-60) were on Green Y at W Pt.

West Point tradition.

We're traditional about so many other things, once in a while we feel obliged to do something truly radical... :P

The "default" setting for labeling X and Y is traditionally X is men and Y is women. Then, changes are made based on the number of people on particular courses. If M18, M50 and M55 have lots of people registered, then to "balance the courses" another age group is moved to another course. This makes the start window easier to deal with. Because there is a "tradition", any start procedure that alters from the "normal" should make sure that in multiple places, including meet notes, in the start area and on the boxes with maps, indicating which classes run which course.
It should be noted that if you run on the "wrong green course" may mean that you won't win your class but it will mean that you may still get ranking points for the green course. Last year, as a pre-runner, I was handed a green X map instead of a green Y at one meet. The solution was to have me change to M55 instead of M60. Easy change to make and very possible given that the Y course was for the older people, I still ran a course that I was eligible for M55.

Interesting. I also found this old thread . My take away is that it's generally about balancing courses. Sometimes it splits along gender lines, but not always. Anyway, didn't mean to throw this thread off on a tangent (sorry!).

Last day for entry at the regular prices is tomorrow (Monday).

Note that after Monday entry is only possible if there is space available, and I expect there may be one or more courses where space will not be available (because of short start windows). And final entry deadline in any case is Sunday, May 19.

Meet info is here. Direct link to online entry.

Just an update regarding entries. Last possible day for entries is Sunday . At this point we are tight on space for Blue, Red, and GreenX. Plenty of room for the other courses. By tight on space I mean we can take maybe a couple more on each (problem is trying to keep the start windows from getting too long). If you're interested, go ahead and enter. I regularly check the numbers and may close off the entries to those classes if needed, though I would prefer not to. Any questions -- pg@crocker.com.

Note that the last day to enter is Sunday, and that holds for all classes. No entry on the day.

Meet info is here. Direct link to online entry.

Other than that, things are progressing on schedule. Map and course notes are being added to the web site. I hope to have start times posted by Tuesday.

Start times for events 1 to 4 are posted. Event 5 has a mass start, so everyone's start time for that is noon.

If there are issues/complaints, send them to me at pg@crocker.com. As far as other requests, do as they suggest on Car Talk, write it on a $20 bill and mail it to us.... :-)

A close look at the start times will reveal the following --

-- Because events 1 and 2 are not too far apart, it didn't seem right to give one person early then late times (and a long rest), and someone else late then early (and a much shorter rest). So while the times are well shuffled, there is an attempt to keep reasonably similar breaks between events 1 and 2.
-- There is a "red group" (the stars) which starts last for each event, for the Blue, Red, both Green, and both Brown courses. Yup, there are stars on the Green and Brown courses too.
-- GreenX and BrownX courses are for men/boys. They all have even-numbered start times. GreenY and BrownY are for women/girls. They all have odd-numbered start times.

I'm looking for a ride from W Hartford CT to the meet both Sat and Sun, or one of the days. If you're travelling I-84 to I-91 and would like a passenger, I'm interested in contributing gas money. My Sat start time is 10:05; I'd prefer to be there by about 9 am. My Sun start is 9:15 and would like to be there by about 8:30. I'm staying through sprints at end of each day - not necessarily awards (can't remember whether there is such a thing).
This is my first post on attackpoint; tell me if there's a better place I should post such requests.
Thanks. Anne Billman 907-903-4779; dnabillman@alaska.net

The Emily Dickinson Museum is free on Saturday for two hours, 2:30-4:30, as part of the Amherst College alumni reunion events. In that event page, however, I don't see a session called Don't get lost on the UMass sprawling campus and don't be late to class ever again: hands-on map orienteering training.

btw, I didn't know there is a cold-war era bunker on the north side of the Holyoke Range.

It looks like events 1 and 2 start [almost] at the bunker.

Immediately to the north of it.

ken = big brother?

ken = oldest brother