Alan Rowson Meet

[clipboard]

Anyone at Blackpool this Saturday?
Shame the Rochdale dentist is still missing.
Will he ever return?

[Tewson Veste]

Will Be my first visit to the North West Masters (Like Alans Meet!). Have planned to visit in previous years but injuries and PPP has prevented my attendance. I think I even entered one year and still failed to get there.
Will be leaving later today for an overnight stay, hopefully avoiding to many drinks this evening.

[Alan Rowson]

I'll be there

The dentist is recovering slowly, I believe Cheshire Sprint meet is his target return

[Tewson Veste]

Originally Posted by Tewson Veste

Will Be my first visit to the North West Masters (Like Alans Meet!). Have planned to visit in previous years but injuries and PPP has prevented my attendance. I think I even entered one year and still failed to get there.
Will be leaving later today for an overnight stay, hopefully avoiding to many drinks this evening.

It's grim up North!

Bloody roads left Gloucester at 1315, just got past Manchester. Estimated arrival time started at 1700 now saying 1830 but just stopped again. Need some good country roads like we have in Herefordshire. Not coming again, planned to be on the bar by now.

[Odmaster]

Good luck all. Can't make it this year due to other commitments 

[Tewson Veste]

Good meet, well organised and good idea re medals. Only one set per event with competition with all age groups using age adjusted points a la decathlon points.
Makes winning a medal quote special. Pity I didn't win one but good times for my 4 events. Thanks Alan

[Tewson Veste]

Originally Posted by Tewson Veste

It's grim up North!

Bloody roads left Gloucester at 1315, just got past Manchester. Estimated arrival time started at 1700 now saying 1830 but just stopped again. Need some good country roads like we have in Herefordshire. Not coming again, planned to be on the bar by now.

Only took a touch over 3 hours to get back on Saturday Evening.

[eaglesrest]

I agree, another well run NW Masters meet thoroughly enjoyed by the East Leeds crew. No PB's for me, but solid times considering 2 weeks A.I.

Another vote here for the Age Adjusted Time rankings medal awards. It has always seemed a shame that peeps get medals just for entering some events.

Maybe they could introduce something similar for the Nationals - provide medals as normal but also have a trophy for the fastest overall age adjusted time for each event. The winner could keep the trophy for a year, etch their name on, then return.

Very impressed with Neil Mackinnons 50 free. 71 years old, 30.44, 818 points and an age adjusted time of 21.70, and that's a second slower than he swam last year. Incredible!

[manic porpoise]

Originally Posted by eaglesrest

Maybe they could introduce something similar for the Nationals - provide medals as normal but also have a trophy for the fastest overall age adjusted time for each event. The winner could keep the trophy for a year, etch their name on, then return.

It's an interesting thought but I'm not sure Jane Asher could carry all the trophies home.

[Immy]

I was at Blackpool for the afternoon events: v.efficiently run, and a nice pool which gave me a pleasing 50m time (but nothing could help my 200m!)
It was interesting to have the age-adjusted rankings but I heard quite a bit of talk on poolside expressing disappointment that there was nothing for age-group results, some people had obviously missed this point even though it was in the entry info.

[Alan Rowson]

Immy I have PM'd you.

I think we are the first competition to run using age adjustment to determine medal awards.

I would be interested in any feedback and ideas about medal.

We try to run our competitions at about break even financially.

in 2011 we spent about 800 pounds on medals, so we decided this year to reduce medal costs and also to give people some competition to win medals.

Age adjusted seemed a good idea as it is used in Masters decathlon and quite a few swimmer seem interested in decathlon.

Looking at this year's entry we had 551 swims, on the old medals per age group situation 466 of these swims would qualify for a medals, i.e. 85% of swims get a medal just for turning up.

If we had used medals per age group we would have to raise the entry fee by about £10 per swimmer to cover cost of medals. In this time of recession we thought cost might be an issue for some swimmers.

At Cheshire sprint we give medals to first place. I present the medals and I get swimmers coming for silver and bronze. I explain situation and they don't seem concerned, usually an answer of I didn't realise it was only gold medals

Another issue with masters seems to be they don't read the entry pack, so takes a year or two for them to pick up the changes.

[eaglesrest]

Originally Posted by manic porpoise

It's an interesting thought but I'm not sure Jane Asher could carry all the trophies home.

Good Point

Originally Posted by Alan Rowson

I think we are the first competition to run using age adjustment to determine medal awards.

Northumberland & Durham also ran age adjusted awards, so it does seem to be catching on....

Another good alternative to medals, as used at the Gloucester meet, is to have the option of making a charitable donation instead.

Lets face it though, once the novelty of the first couple of masters meets are over, medals aren't at all important. It's the social and the times/racing that keep people coming back.