Only One Division? - Ideas for a single slalom division.

[Flyhigh3]

'Lower division paddlers in any class will race in the same event as that class for the higher division, paddling before the higher-division paddlers and in reverse bib number order'.

'The assumption is that they are there for experience'.

Just a thought and hope someone can enlighten me.... ?

Why do the higher bib numbers go first and the more experienced paddlers later?
.....if the idea is for the lower division paddlers to learn and gain experience, it seems really helpful to be watching the better paddlers do the race and to watch how they do the key moves, which isn't possible if you are going first....
Is it just convention or is there a reason for it?



thanks

[Nick Penfold]

It's a convention, but it may also give the best opportunity to watch the best. The alternative would be for them to go just after the higher division paddlers, in which case they'd be getting themselves ready and couldn't watch the best.

[Flyhigh3]

OK, thanks

...mind you, sometimes the best can do moves in ways I couldn't hope to emulate and I need to watch those a bit further down as well....!.

[Fup Duck]

I don't know whether I'd rather go early and get the pain over with allowing more time to hobble around before the next run or go late allowing my body to acclimatise to that which is about to happen and still hobble around.....I guess it's all the same

[Flyhigh3]

[quote="Fup Duck"][/quote]
would those 'one ups' even have to go before or after the higher division k1s at all..ie when there was the Prem/Open at the Washburn, those in the Open went after the C2s and C1s.... they could still watch the the k1 Prems and get experience and compare times...

anyway, I heard you were a superathlete, FupDuck!

[PeterC]

Thanks Nick for picking up and improving on the one up idea. I think it could be made to work and would be some compensation for the reduced number of Div 1's.

I would however like to give them longer before hand to enter so that they can sensibly sort out accommodation etc. Coming down from Scotland for anything south of the wall requires us to book somewhere to stay and the cheap deals need to be booked earlier are often not refundable. If the system truly led to Divisional paddlers entering at a reasonable time not getting to race because entries closed then it would clearly have to be reviewed. My personal experience as an organiser is that there will be a significant number of late entries.

As to the worst first concept perhaps we could introduce the same as operates with Skiing where the top group go in reverse order and the rest then follow in number order. This would hopefully reduce a little the number of catch ups. The top 30% go in reverse order perhaps?

[Nick Penfold]

Thanks PeterC.

I understand the booking problem, but I think "one up" is a concession and paddlers there as of right and going for points must have priority as long as they get their entries in on time. In practice, with event limits of 170 plus, a rejection should be rare.

Re sequence: ski slalom faces a quite different problem: the course cuts up, and each skier gets a nastier surface. The top 30 go first so they don't get it really grim, the rest have to take pot luck. In canoe slalom we are very clever: we have courses that repair themselves between paddlers, so things are different. And there is a well-established practice (cf British Open) that I think we should stick to.

[Fup Duck]

I'm quite thick skinned and not at all offended by a lot of things in this twisted world; but when you play fast and loose with the Queen's English by using the word super-athlete in the same breath as my pseudonym then that is surely the end of civilization as we know it.

It's gotta be up there with describing Mengele as a respected Paediatrician or any politician as altruistic.

I do however have a rather splendid example of athletes foot which could be described as super.....if anyone wants to see it just ask, or I could post a sample.