Although I did not compete at Wildflower this year due to business obligations, my Expo booth was in a great location to observe the the last 25 yards of this difficult event. Regarding the Pro's, Bjorn - despite duking it out with Chris Legh - looked fresh in comparison to Becky LaVelle who had a big lead over 2nd place. It looked like she was running totally on empty. Along with the other ST'ers I was cheering for Bjorn as every update came over the PA system.
Once the AG'ers started finishing en mass, I quickly came to the conclusion that it is time for USAT/WF to crack down on the "extra" people drug across the finish line for safety reasons, if nothing else. The finishing chute is fairly long and narrow at WF and starts at the end of a long downhill so finishing speed can vary greatly depending on fitness, competitiveness, wave starts, etc. Some people are in an all out sprint while others are just shuffling to the line. In the midst of all this, people are stopping to pick up one or more children, dogs (yes, dogs!) and hand slaps from spectators. I also saw people running three abreast, stride for stride totally blocking the chute for those behind. And several young children came close to being trampled right in front of me.
I know finish line etiquette has been a topic of numerous discussions on ST regarding IM events, but, trust me, WF took it - or lack there of - to another level. Any race with wave starts - especially the 25 waves per race at WF - should not allow any outside interference period with the risk of being DQed. Otherwise, people are going to get hurt.
Dean Wilson
http://www.anaerobiczone.com
Dean Wilson
http://www.anaerobiczone.com
Bicycle Protection Indoors & Out
Once the AG'ers started finishing en mass, I quickly came to the conclusion that it is time for USAT/WF to crack down on the "extra" people drug across the finish line for safety reasons, if nothing else. The finishing chute is fairly long and narrow at WF and starts at the end of a long downhill so finishing speed can vary greatly depending on fitness, competitiveness, wave starts, etc. Some people are in an all out sprint while others are just shuffling to the line. In the midst of all this, people are stopping to pick up one or more children, dogs (yes, dogs!) and hand slaps from spectators. I also saw people running three abreast, stride for stride totally blocking the chute for those behind. And several young children came close to being trampled right in front of me.
I know finish line etiquette has been a topic of numerous discussions on ST regarding IM events, but, trust me, WF took it - or lack there of - to another level. Any race with wave starts - especially the 25 waves per race at WF - should not allow any outside interference period with the risk of being DQed. Otherwise, people are going to get hurt.
Dean Wilson
http://www.anaerobiczone.com
Dean Wilson
http://www.anaerobiczone.com
Bicycle Protection Indoors & Out
