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Post by pq on Apr 12, 2010 9:11:02 GMT -5
BTW, this means marketing our sport, maybe sexing it up a bit somehow to give it more mass appeal. If you can make poker (poker! fer chrissakes!!!) a big teevee draw, surely to gawd somebody can come up with a way of making distance running interesting to the cheetos munching and beer swilling teevee masses who pay to keep the economy plugging along. A guy I work with basically invented a sport ~ 10 years ago, and they already have big sponsor dollars. There's a small element of danger in his sport (you can watch him ply his trade here, out of competition: www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uPznTbus3g) that's lacking in basic distance running. But people will watch triathlon on TV (and that sport seems to find a way to thrive on our country), so with a bit of tweaking, someone with vision could do the same for distance running. I don't know how many board readers would be familiar with te history of the Ottawa 67s (major junior hockey team), but in the mid-90s they were drawing a couple thousand fans a game. It just took a guy with vision (and a bit of money...), Jeff Hunt, to come along and turn it into one of the most successful franchises year after year, regularly selling out, seemingly regardless of the club's success. Find a guy like him to lead the charge, our sport would have plenty of money in a few years. |
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Post by ronb on Apr 12, 2010 10:11:53 GMT -5
BTW, this means marketing our sport, maybe sexing it up a bit somehow to give it more mass appeal. If you can make poker (poker! fer chrissakes!!!) a big teevee draw, surely to gawd somebody can come up with a way of making distance running interesting to the cheetos munching and beer swilling teevee masses who pay to keep the economy plugging along. A guy I work with basically invented a sport ~ 10 years ago, and they already have big sponsor dollars. There's a small element of danger in his sport (you can watch him ply his trade here, out of competition: www.bestofyoutube.com/story.php?title=kris-holm-unicycle-insanity) that's lacking in basic distance running. But people will watch triathlon on TV (and that sport seems to find a way to thrive on our country), so with a bit of tweaking, someone with vision could do the same for distance running. I don't know how many board readers would be familiar with te history of the Ottawa 67s (major junior hockey team), but in the mid-90s they were drawing a couple thousand fans a game. It just took a guy with vision (and a bit of money...), Jeff Hunt, to come along and turn it into one of the most successful franchises year after year, regularly selling out, seemingly regardless of the club's success. Find a guy like him to lead the charge, our sport would have plenty of money in a few years. We had a guy like that in B.C. in the 1980's - his name was Ken Elmer, and his promotion of top events such as the big road races, and the International Track Meets in B.C. was epic. |
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Post by ronb on Apr 12, 2010 10:18:17 GMT -5
Ron, why does Canada need to do much more to support this sport? I'm pretty much on the same page here, wondering why CANADA should do anything more, in particular, to support our sport. The Canadian taxpayer will express a willingness to fund distance running when our distance runners start to compete directly with the Gebs and Bekeles, bringing home WC and Olympic hardware on a regular basis. I think if we want our sport to thrive, it's up to those of us who love it to grab it by the balls and make it a bigger deal. It's not a duty of the Canadian taxpayer to do so, and we shouldn't expect them to. Talking about a statement taken out of context. If you note the original context, it was myself talking up our sport (World Cross Country Champs.) to a few people in a pub. The statement about Canada and Canadians supporting this sport had no mention or thought that it should be taxpayer money, private money, or even money at all, perhaps just support in principle as in something worth doing. That is why thel initial anger, because a simple statement was taken out of context, and nitpicked to death, and the bigger themes I was hoping we could discuss in this thread have been derailed, at least temporarily. I will try to state some bigger picture principles that I believe in, because I have seen them work, and I think they can still work. DST, and the Guelph gang are living proof. |
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Post by powerboy on Apr 12, 2010 10:31:45 GMT -5
OK, I'll take another stab at this. No one disagrees with the notion that there are problems of all kinds. Some are financial. Some are philosophical. Ron asked the board to consider options to improve things. Now, if the overall sentiment is that nothing can be done or should be done, then so be it. However, many of us think something can be done. I suggested, as a reasonable option a separate trust fund with a long range goal in mind.
Before you go any further, answer (if only rhetorically) would you commit a $1000 to such a fund? Its not payable today or tomorrow, and could probably be paid in installments,but would you contribute? If the answer is an overwheming no, then we really are asking someone else to solve our problems.BTW, I certainly respect the right of anyone to say no, but that person loses some credibility in complaining about our sport.
Money is not the only answer, but it is a big part of it. Here is another concrete example. Lets say we started today and gathered up the 100k in donations, and then each year added 50k in race proceeds etc, so that we had about 400k in 2015. Then we decided to disburse 200k because it is an Olympic year and we had some reasonable prospects on the horizon. With 200k we could fund a couple of great training camps, numerous competition opportunities and pay some rents if required.
It seems to me that this would help Canadian distance running significantly, which was the initial premise.
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davidson
Full Member
"only the struggle makes it worth it, only the pain makes it sweet and only victory is the answer"
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Post by davidson on Apr 12, 2010 11:09:44 GMT -5
I'm pretty much on the same page here, wondering why CANADA should do anything more, in particular, to support our sport. The Canadian taxpayer will express a willingness to fund distance running when our distance runners start to compete directly with the Gebs and Bekeles, bringing home WC and Olympic hardware on a regular basis. I think if we want our sport to thrive, it's up to those of us who love it to grab it by the balls and make it a bigger deal. It's not a duty of the Canadian taxpayer to do so, and we shouldn't expect them to. Talking about a statement taken out of context. If you note the original context, it was myself talking up our sport (World Cross Country Champs.) to a few people in a pub. The statement about Canada and Canadians supporting this sport had no mention or thought that it should be taxpayer money, private money, or even money at all, perhaps just support in principle as in something worth doing. That is why thel initial anger, because a simple statement was taken out of context, and nitpicked to death, and the bigger themes I was hoping we could discuss in this thread have been derailed, at least temporarily. I will try to state some bigger picture principles that I believe in, because I have seen them work, and I think they can still work. DST, and the Guelph gang are living proof. Ah, but it's not just a simple statement. In the context of the original message, you used a World Championship event and one of our top athletes to promote the sport and plea your case. Is that what you consider "our sport?" Our best athletes on the world stage? Also, my initial comments also were directed at support other than monetary - we love it, so we should be the ones to support it. Perhaps that means an attempt at making more people love it, but why should anyone else help us out? I recognize that support can be many more things than money, but really, that is the bulk of it. Any support comes at a cost of something else (people only have so much time and resources) and if we want support for our sport, we need to give a good reason. Just saying we need it is insufficient. I'm sure there are lots of groups that would like support so they could do better at what they do. Furthermore, though you ask for suggestions about how to improve our sport, you have to realize that having a thriving sport can mean 20 different things to 20 different people. Is success solely measured on how well our elite athletes do? Is it measured by participation in all events (road races, track races, etc.)? This is an important point. A lot of focus on this board tends to be towards elite athletes and those who are good at various levels. Yet, what space is there for the post-collegiate or post-high school runner who doesn't even have a chance of making a national or university team and has to seriously reconsider participation in the sport because there is no profit in it and they don't have the free time? Do they not deserve as much support as a Simon Bairu? And if you're going to tell me they don't, please tell me why. Ron, I realize you care passionately about this sport, but keep in mind your vision is not necessarily the one we all want to strive towards. In fact, it would be nice to hear your ideas in a little more detail than you have given. No one really knows what you fully have in mind except a vague idea of promoting the sport. Powerboy, I personally could not afford $1000 right now, though I'm sure over my lifetime, I have already done more than a $1000 worth of unpaid work towards the sport (and I imagine the majority of the posters on this board have done much more than that). Perhaps if I ever get rich enough, I can direct some of my excess income towards the sport, though if 100% of it went to elite athletes, I'm not so sure I would be as inclined to donate money. As for the figures you're tossing around, I only ask if these are based upon anything other than wishful thinking. Yes, it is a good idea to have a plan, but what makes you so sure we can get this money? It is a rather large sum, though perhaps you know more about that than I do. |
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tb400
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Post by tb400 on Apr 12, 2010 15:41:30 GMT -5
Maybe we should take a page from the Brits as far as corporate sponsorship is concerned.
I still can't believe that UK Athletics has partnered with Canadian company McCain at the grassroots level (http://www.mccaintrackandfield.co.uk/). Aviva and Adidas also chip in corporately and they both operate in Canada.
I presume UK Sport lottery money looks after the elite level athletes. Why couldn't we do the same here in Canada?
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Post by pq on Apr 12, 2010 16:08:51 GMT -5
I presume UK Sport lottery money looks after the elite level athletes. Why couldn't we do the same here in Canada? When I was a wee rugrat and they legalized lotteries in Ontario, I could have sworn the original intent was to generate revenues to support amateur sport, among other things. Am I remembering wrong? |
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Post by wetcoast on Apr 12, 2010 16:45:07 GMT -5
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Post by BrettyBoy on Apr 12, 2010 18:38:53 GMT -5
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tb400
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Post by tb400 on Apr 12, 2010 19:16:40 GMT -5
Perhaps a media sponsor might help, too. Then AC can set up its own video channel (ACTV) on the website with clips featuring our athletes at major competitions at home and abroad. Then clips can be sent to media, with copyrights and so on...
The FISU Cross Country would have been perfect for that.
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Post by schester on Apr 12, 2010 19:54:33 GMT -5
Perhaps we're going about this the wrong way? I think it's important to keep in mind the comments of Davidson (and they certainly don't imply any correlation with disinterest in the sport!). And Ron's original post may have legitimately prompted them, although I don't think he was originally implying that we necessarily need to dissolve AC and fund the sport through different avenues or even that federal funding had anything to do with a plan to improve the state of the sport in Canada. What if we rephrase the subject of the thread? Rather than trying to come up with ways to improve md/distance running, what if we just considered what it should look like? In the event that the sport, nationally speaking, were 100% healthy, what would that look like? As mentioned, this will probably prompt twenty different viewpoints given twenty different people, but it's important to get a good cross-section of those. That, I think, is a nice starting point. Then we can figure out whether we should/possibly could reach any of those visions, what the obstructions would be, and -- after identifying all that -- how to get from here to there (if we're not there already).
Personally, I think a 100% healthy Canadian distance running scene is synonymous with a strong club system. Between reading the logs of and hearing stories of my coach's days in '80s Britain, it is clear the impact of the club system there. With hundreds of clubs spread out into different regions and dozens of runners in each club it set up a good hierarchy of goals/accomplishments. For some athletes, wearing the club's colours at a regional meet was a big accomplishment. For others, propelling the club to a regional or national title was. It's all these different levels at which one can achieve personal success (that goes deeper than just a PB) which helps sustain the depth and the lifelong interest. The sport does, I believe, have a huge team component in both xc and track. I also think that the average Canadian has a fair degree of patriotism and would absolutely be interested in the sport if there were three Canadian vests in the finals. But that same patriotism applies at a more local level, too, and if the city champs club is off to battle the rest of the province, I think there's good potential for general interest there. Anyway, that's what I think a 100% healthy Canadian distance scene would look like.
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Post by maser on Apr 12, 2010 20:13:44 GMT -5
I think for any athlete to succeed they have to be in an environment that suits them. As a matter of fact I think that applies to anyone athletes or not. I'm not sure if the NTC approach is the best idea. I've seen attempts at this in the past. One thing I've noticed if you get a lot of good runners together, with coaches they like and areas they want to live in they do well. If you create this environment you can get some pretty good results. DST at Guelph seem to have a pretty good thing going there. TOC used to have a pretty good core of runners as did several other clubs. Maybe we could look at that.
There was a really good club back in the UK called the Gateshead
Harriers they had a phenomenal kids up to elite program that produced some really good athletes. We also used to have some pretty good fields in Beacon Hill in Vic back in the day for XC. Victoria was a real hotbed of talent. When I was in the Okanagan we had some pretty phenomenal runners around like
Phil E, Ken French and some very good female runners. The atmosphere, coaching, competitive environment and the climate
had a lot to do with this.
I posted this in another thread I think both the20/20 vision thread and the carding system thread are covering a lot of the same ideas.
Good post Schester
Cheers
KM
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Post by ronb on Apr 12, 2010 21:20:06 GMT -5
Talking about a statement taken out of context. If you note the original context, it was myself talking up our sport (World Cross Country Champs.) to a few people in a pub. The statement about Canada and Canadians supporting this sport had no mention or thought that it should be taxpayer money, private money, or even money at all, perhaps just support in principle as in something worth doing. That is why thel initial anger, because a simple statement was taken out of context, and nitpicked to death, and the bigger themes I was hoping we could discuss in this thread have been derailed, at least temporarily. I will try to state some bigger picture principles that I believe in, because I have seen them work, and I think they can still work. DST, and the Guelph gang are living proof. Ah, but it's not just a simple statement. In the context of the original message, you used a World Championship event and one of our top athletes to promote the sport and plea your case. Is that what you consider "our sport?" Our best athletes on the world stage? Also, my initial comments also were directed at support other than monetary - we love it, so we should be the ones to support it. Perhaps that means an attempt at making more people love it, but why should anyone else help us out? I recognize that support can be many more things than money, but really, that is the bulk of it. Any support comes at a cost of something else (people only have so much time and resources) and if we want support for our sport, we need to give a good reason. Just saying we need it is insufficient. I'm sure there are lots of groups that would like support so they could do better at what they do. Furthermore, though you ask for suggestions about how to improve our sport, you have to realize that having a thriving sport can mean 20 different things to 20 different people. Is success solely measured on how well our elite athletes do? Is it measured by participation in all events (road races, track races, etc.)? This is an important point. A lot of focus on this board tends to be towards elite athletes and those who are good at various levels. Yet, what space is there for the post-collegiate or post-high school runner who doesn't even have a chance of making a national or university team and has to seriously reconsider participation in the sport because there is no profit in it and they don't have the free time? Do they not deserve as much support as a Simon Bairu? And if you're going to tell me they don't, please tell me why. Ron, I realize you care passionately about this sport, but keep in mind your vision is not necessarily the one we all want to strive towards. In fact, it would be nice to hear your ideas in a little more detail than you have given. No one really knows what you fully have in mind except a vague idea of promoting the sport. Powerboy, I personally could not afford $1000 right now, though I'm sure over my lifetime, I have already done more than a $1000 worth of unpaid work towards the sport (and I imagine the majority of the posters on this board have done much more than that). Perhaps if I ever get rich enough, I can direct some of my excess income towards the sport, though if 100% of it went to elite athletes, I'm not so sure I would be as inclined to donate money. As for the figures you're tossing around, I only ask if these are based upon anything other than wishful thinking. Yes, it is a good idea to have a plan, but what makes you so sure we can get this money? It is a rather large sum, though perhaps you know more about that than I do. I guess I don't have the time or energy to argue this stuff with those who just want to mass-debate. I thought my collective experience, which includes direct discussions with many/most of the top runners and their coaches from Canada/the World over the past several decades, might be worth sharing, but guys such as Davidson just leave me shaking my head, and asking why bother trying??? I could tell you what John Walker or Arthur Lydiard or Ron Clark or Grete Waitz or Harry Wilson or Peter Coe, or any large number of others, told me about distance running, but you would still want to offer your contrary, totally uninformed, and highly theoretical opinion... Again, why bother  |
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Post by coachj on Apr 12, 2010 23:02:02 GMT -5
I presume UK Sport lottery money looks after the elite level athletes. Why couldn't we do the same here in Canada? When I was a wee rugrat and they legalized lotteries in Ontario, I could have sworn the original intent was to generate revenues to support amateur sport, among other things. Am I remembering wrong? That is what Faye Dance always told us Pete while she waited for those 6 balls to drop - |
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Post by journeyman on Apr 13, 2010 13:31:04 GMT -5
With that said, I don't know if the sport can be resurrected without turning back the clock of western society. Can we revert back to a time when our kids ran around and played in the streets and city parks several hours a day now that television, video games and the internet have captured their attention? Signing are children up for a soccer league will not make up for the fitness and enjoyment that was lost when we took away communal play. I'm not sure how we can turn it around as a society. Have kids and let them play. Pretty big project, I realise, but that's how it will happen. |
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nixon
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Post by nixon on Apr 13, 2010 15:21:01 GMT -5
If we want to set some short term goals, I might have an idea. What if we were to set up a nation-wide race series called something like "The Road to 2012" and used the proceeds to help get athletes who are close to Olympic qualifying times into the meets where they would be able to get the results.
If we started it this outdoor season, we'd have about two and a half-seasons to accumulate however much money we could. We'd be able to spend it during the 2012 season on athletes who needed some help getting to high-level meets so they could hit standard. I'm sure some sponsors out there would be interested in helping out...
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Post by wetcoast on Apr 13, 2010 15:58:34 GMT -5
Nixon,
Great idea. I like to operate like that. What can we do right now? Rather than all sorts of planning and discussion. I like other people to discuss. So this series I am putting on in Victoria, is a pretty low-profile - light on the frills, fun and serious series of 8 meets.
If it makes more many than the amount I have allotted for the series bank account for next year and the Charity of Choice, already chosen - the Mustard Seed Food Bank - I will be happy to donate the balance to something legit, that is organized.
Those who have qualified will get funding...I think....like didn't AC offer up flights and accom to NACAC under the proviso a team of X number of athletes commit and the athletes did not commit, so there was no trip?
That would piss me off to no extent.
Anyway, someone have a fund idea?
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hoey
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Post by hoey on Apr 13, 2010 16:13:41 GMT -5
With that said, I don't know if the sport can be resurrected without turning back the clock of western society. Can we revert back to a time when our kids ran around and played in the streets and city parks several hours a day now that television, video games and the internet have captured their attention? Signing are children up for a soccer league will not make up for the fitness and enjoyment that was lost when we took away communal play. I'm not sure how we can turn it around as a society. Have kids and let them play. Pretty big project, I realise, but that's how it will happen. When I, hopefully, have kids someday, I fully plan to feed them properly and provide them with the freedom to actively play as children should. That has nothing to do with any ambition to raise competitive athletes ... just healthy, happy children. Likewise, I plan to not provide them with the resources to waste away on the couch. It's a different world than 20 or 40 years ago though. Will those children have a large group of neighbourhood kids to socially play with on the sidewalks and local parks after-school, or will the majority of the neighbourhood kids be inside watching TV and playing video and computer games. A select few parents sending their children outdoors to play will make much of a difference societally when the cultural norm has swung so far in the other direction (not to say parents shouldn't do what they can). ... but what can we do on a more societal level to encourage children (and parents to enable) to play actively, outdoors like they did in the mythical time in the past (1950s - 1970s, etc)? |
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Post by thinskinned on Apr 13, 2010 18:12:30 GMT -5
If we want to set some short term goals, I might have an idea. What if we were to set up a nation-wide race series called something like "The Road to 2012" and used the proceeds to help get athletes who are close to Olympic qualifying times into the meets where they would be able to get the results. If we started it this outdoor season, we'd have about two and a half-seasons to accumulate however much money we could. We'd be able to spend it during the 2012 season on athletes who needed some help getting to high-level meets so they could hit standard. I'm sure some sponsors out there would be interested in helping out... This is strictly for ronb's sake: Catchy name, maybe the track meets that are funded by this & where said athletes could chase such standards could be call...umm..."Road to the Olympics"  |
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davidson
Full Member
"only the struggle makes it worth it, only the pain makes it sweet and only victory is the answer"
Posts: 131
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Post by davidson on Apr 13, 2010 20:47:45 GMT -5
Have kids and let them play. Pretty big project, I realise, but that's how it will happen. When I, hopefully, have kids someday, I fully plan to feed them properly and provide them with the freedom to actively play as children should. That has nothing to do with any ambition to raise competitive athletes ... just healthy, happy children. Likewise, I plan to not provide them with the resources to waste away on the couch. It's a different world than 20 or 40 years ago though. Will those children have a large group of neighbourhood kids to socially play with on the sidewalks and local parks after-school, or will the majority of the neighbourhood kids be inside watching TV and playing video and computer games. A select few parents sending their children outdoors to play will make much of a difference societally when the cultural norm has swung so far in the other direction (not to say parents shouldn't do what they can). ... but what can we do on a more societal level to encourage children (and parents to enable) to play actively, outdoors like they did in the mythical time in the past (1950s - 1970s, etc)? 1) I think the attitude you have for raising kids will have a trickle up effect to be honest. Healthier kids who love to be active just for the sake of being active are more likely to participate in sports and then our organized sports will become stronger. Personally, I'd do it for the sole reason that it leads to a healthier and likely happier life than not. 2) To go back to the good ole days (and I think you can definitely extend that to the 1980's because I remember playing outside a lot), it might take a lot of change. I think there are several reasons for this all of which stem from the way our society (and economy) are organized (way too big of a topic to get into to be honest) as well as the fact that there is a larger perceived threat of danger on our streets today (though I suspect it's probably a lot safer on our streets these days). I read online somewhere that New York City was in the process of designating a lot of streets as off-limits to cars. Having this certainly would help change the perception that it could be dangerous outside (as a side note, I lived in Seoul for a year and a half and was almost blown away at the number of children that are left to play on their own outside and the young ages of some of them. Even in one of the most densely populated cities on the planet the small parks would be jammed packed with people of all ages being active in a variety of ways. Though, this is also the country where two parents are charged with negligence in the death of their child because they were busy raising an online child...). Just having your own kids go outside could potentially start a chain reaction in the neighbourhood. Even getting to know the other neighbourhood parents and children so that there was a safety net instead of just nameless people. There were also two ideas I wanted to add a bit to: 1) Someone mentioned AC could make their own videos and sell them to networks. Why not bypass the networks and stream a variety of events live online (and have the videos saved later)? This could involve a small cost and current or former athletes with the know-how could be paid to do this via a small increase in entry fees to meets (or selling of short 30 second advertising clips - running related of course). The videos previously created for the CIS championships a couple years back were pretty good and to see something like that for meets such as the National Championships, Provincial Championships, OFSAA, and other meets we participate in. It could potentially make the sport a little more accessible than it currently is. 2) I like the ideas of putting on meets to specifically raise money for a certain cause (e.g. sending athletes to London). What is the most profitable way to make the money I wonder? The best way to attract large numbers of people would be to do road races, since track races seem a bit more ominous to the general public (though I'm not saying don't do the track races, but perhaps there are others who want to have these fund raising events). Plus getting the general public involved would possibly get some more interest in potentially paying attention to the results. 3) I think it was schester who mentioned that a strong club system would make for a healthy sport. I agree. Too often, I've seen several clubs in the same city, dividing the resources and creating rivalries when it would be much more efficient to have one larger club. Large clubs that cater to all levels and abilities (and can work around both adult and children's schedules) are likely to help the sport prosper on all levels (it also provides a good source of fund raising money for the elite athletes in those clubs since they will be socially connected in many ways to all the other members of the club). I think this could create a better atmosphere to help develop young athletes who want to continue with the sport and to create a sense of enjoyment for those who might otherwise leave the sport when it becomes not fun. |
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Post by Bomba on Apr 13, 2010 22:41:04 GMT -5
..here's a thoought....
This past weekend our school took a small grp of kids down to a meet just sth of us in Bellingham. Now this isn't a Mt Sac, but simply a larger version of their normal high school meets. But the atmosphere was great. Our kids who are used to local meets and club meets were totally flabbergasted by what they saw (teams of 40-60 kids with full uni, etc....). This was just pacific northwest meet, but it made our recent club provincials, etc... look like an absolute joke....hell they even had a coaches lounge with food, coffee, etc......
I don't know how to build the sport back up and not to go back to some sort of glory days concept, but my general perception is that there is (as I've said for yrs now) no centrifigal force (ala as Ron aluded to in someone like a Ken Elmer...although i would argue that someone like kelsall is definitely on the right track, but on a lower scale). Back in the day there was the Vancouver relays in the lower mainland, and in the interior we had the okanagan relays with around 1800 participants.....
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Post by HHH on Apr 13, 2010 23:04:02 GMT -5
Have kids and let them play. Pretty big project, I realise, but that's how it will happen. When I, hopefully, have kids someday, I fully plan to feed them properly and provide them with the freedom to actively play as children should. That has nothing to do with any ambition to raise competitive athletes ... just healthy, happy children. Likewise, I plan to not provide them with the resources to waste away on the couch. It's a different world than 20 or 40 years ago though. Will those children have a large group of neighbourhood kids to socially play with on the sidewalks and local parks after-school, or will the majority of the neighbourhood kids be inside watching TV and playing video and computer games. A select few parents sending their children outdoors to play will make much of a difference societally when the cultural norm has swung so far in the other direction (not to say parents shouldn't do what they can). ... but what can we do on a more societal level to encourage children (and parents to enable) to play actively, outdoors like they did in the mythical time in the past (1950s - 1970s, etc)? When I was living in a small town south of Barcelona, I really noticed how much the kids were outside playing. In the evenings before dinner (11pm is an early supper there!) most families would head down to the local plaza and the kids would all play and the adults would sit around and watch. It was a sight to see. Lots of soccer and other active games with the parents watching over them. Then families would go home and eat together. If my own family didn't live here in Canada, I probably would have stayed. It was such a family centered culture. |
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Post by HHH on Apr 13, 2010 23:11:27 GMT -5
3) I think it was schester who mentioned that a strong club system would make for a healthy sport. I agree. Too often, I've seen several clubs in the same city, dividing the resources and creating rivalries when it would be much more efficient to have one larger club. Large clubs that cater to all levels and abilities (and can work around both adult and children's schedules) are likely to help the sport prosper on all levels (it also provides a good source of fund raising money for the elite athletes in those clubs since they will be socially connected in many ways to all the other members of the club). I think this could create a better atmosphere to help develop young athletes who want to continue with the sport and to create a sense of enjoyment for those who might otherwise leave the sport when it becomes not fun. I don't like the idea of the large 'super club' where cities would just have one club. Some friendly competition is a good thing giving people a choice of coaching philosophies or club structure etc. The other side of it is that in most areas, you only get one Casino per year and sometimes up to 18 months. If you go down to one club per city, that's just one casino every 12 months. Casinos can be very profitable so reducing the number of those done by track clubs is probably not a good thing. |
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