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Post by illjumper42 on Dec 18, 2006 23:40:42 GMT -5
Does anyone know why Prep Top Times is not @ the U Of I Armory this year. Wesleyan has a nice track but not enough spectator seating and the the in field area is tile so those who compete in high jump will have to start on the tile and then continue on the rubber surface if they have long marks.
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Post by ROCK on Dec 19, 2006 7:02:41 GMT -5
Actually, IWU has more seating, plus the athletes will not be on the floor, they'll have their own gym for camping out, and another for warming up.
The field event area is not on tile at all. Where did you hear that?
This years meet should be a good one.
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Post by historian on Dec 19, 2006 10:16:10 GMT -5
I agree with ROCK.
I have watched a number of indoor meets at Shirk Center - and the high jump competition area is completely on a rubber surface.
Re seating and athlete accomodations - this facility can hold more spectators at the same time the athletes will have warm up areas that will not conflict with the competition. Also, if the weather allows- the IWU track is basically adjacent to the Shirk Center - allowing athletes that option is needed. A big plus - parking is much improved over trying to find spots around the U of I Armory. (hate to admit that- I am a U of I grad.
By the way - Go ILLINI - retain those "Bragging Rights" tonight !
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Post by tc on Dec 19, 2006 17:09:35 GMT -5
Their spectators will have better viewing at the Shirk Center. They are up above the athletes. It is higher spectator seating than the armory. The different gyms will be nice. Good call ROCK. I think it will be far better than last year. Good work.
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Post by coachwagz on Dec 27, 2006 7:09:50 GMT -5
Having actually run there myself, I think it might actually be a faster track as well. . .or simply because the layout of the facility makes it feel more open, like an outdoor track. All of my best times in college came at the Shirk Center. Prep Top Times is lucky to have the opportunity to run here! Good move ROCK!
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Post by illjumper42 on Jan 26, 2007 8:07:45 GMT -5
no what i am saying is ok the highjump surface is all the rubber surface ok. and the mat is placed at 12:00 on the surface which means it is perpindicular to the curve of the track. this means that the athletes will be running from the infield to the the mat. some athletes have very long marks. i have been to this track before and i know for a facet that the infield is tile and just the runways and the high jump area are rubber. with a tile floor it would be difficult for those athletes with long approacehes. the only solution would be to place the mat at 9:00 on the surface seeing as the board that displays the times is near 3:00. the in field at Weslyan in tile, it is not all rubber track surface such as the one at the University of Illinois (champaign).
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Post by dbandre on Jan 26, 2007 11:25:03 GMT -5
The surface is not tile at IWU. It may not be a "track surface" when you get to the basketball/volleyball/tennis court areas. However, they are on an indoor all-purpose athletic surface. If you are using a super long approach indoors, that is your problem and you have to deal with facility rules if they exist on spike usage where you want to start your approach.
I have known of 7' HJers who compete indoors with flats, even know of one who did it in basketball hightops.
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Post by volsxc1 on Feb 23, 2007 22:59:29 GMT -5
Rock,
Is IWU planning on bringing in bleachers for the fans, or is standing room only? I've been at Shirk twice in the past week and walked around it wondering how that was going to work. I keep on hearing it has more seating than the U of I, but unless they bring in a lot of bleachers, I'm not seeing it. It has a great view point from the balcony, but no seats up there either. When I was in college and we ran meets there, and there was zero bleachers then either.
Now I'm not arguing that it shouldn't be there. I don't really have a problem with the facility. Sad to see it no longer at the U of I, cuz it was such an easy drive for us, but I also know how things sometimes workout not for the better at the U of I. We had a meet this past week at the U of I, and let me tell you, parking is now down to nothing. That parking lot across from the Armory is now cut in less than 1/2 of what it was. I had to park the bus 3 blocks away on the street. IWU has a great track surface and I'm sure the meet will be run off without a hitch. Also, where is the warmup facility for the athletes, I couldnt' figure that part out either. Hopefully I'll have a few kids make it in again this year and will get to enjoy the new IPTT look.
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Post by ROCK on Feb 24, 2007 1:42:51 GMT -5
Rock, Is IWU planning on bringing in bleachers for the fans, or is standing room only? I've been at Shirk twice in the past week and walked around it wondering how that was going to work. I keep on hearing it has more seating than the U of I, but unless they bring in a lot of bleachers, I'm not seeing it. It has a great view point from the balcony, but no seats up there either. When I was in college and we ran meets there, and there was zero bleachers then either. Now I'm not arguing that it shouldn't be there. I don't really have a problem with the facility. Sad to see it no longer at the U of I, cuz it was such an easy drive for us, but I also know how things sometimes workout not for the better at the U of I. We had a meet this past week at the U of I, and let me tell you, parking is now down to nothing. That parking lot across from the Armory is now cut in less than 1/2 of what it was. I had to park the bus 3 blocks away on the street. IWU has a great track surface and I'm sure the meet will be run off without a hitch. Also, where is the warmup facility for the athletes, I couldnt' figure that part out either. Hopefully I'll have a few kids make it in again this year and will get to enjoy the new IPTT look. Bleachers will be brought in, and warm ups will be in the main gym. |
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blade
Contributor
Posts: 25
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Post by blade on Apr 1, 2007 20:53:34 GMT -5
I'll bump this back up since the meet is over........
I enjoyed the seating arrangement at U of I a lot better. There were plenty of seats at IWU, but unless you actually had a seat in the balcony, you really couldn't see much. And if you could see, you were probably standing up cuz the seating was limited. The seating under the balcony i'm sure was comfortable, but what exactly could you see? If the balcony was arranged the same way, but on the opposite side, now we have something. Same thing with the seats under them. I know we can't control the architecture of the place, but their should always be seating in the side of the finish line..
As far as the surface it's the same as U of I. So I see no reason how it can be considered faster or slower. The track and facility it's self is fine, but as far as holding a meet of this size I wouldn't suggest it.
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Post by NotSoFast on Apr 1, 2007 21:27:38 GMT -5
Sightlines for fan viewing (on the floor) might be a little better at U of I, but in terms of running a good track meet you have to give it to IWU...especially in regards to timing, getting results quickly and efficiently, help provided by IWU athletes, etc. The layout of the facility would appear to lend itself to a more managable track meet. Even the parking was better. I say overall is was a great move!
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Post by dbandre on Apr 2, 2007 0:35:51 GMT -5
I'll let rock speak on the specifics, but this meet seemed to have more people at it. The armory seating was taken up mostly by athletes, I certainly hope that the ticket sales speak to this.
How many IWU athletes were actively recruiting? Many. How many IWU coaches were active in the meet? All. At Illinois you would be hard pressed to find the Illini coaches around, except Mike Turk. I know Stanford and Purdue are that weekend, but this was one of 2 times they get to see kids not from chambama. In my opinion IPTT was a thorn in the UofI's side and at the Shirk at least IWU was very accepting.
If I were rock and I am glad I am not, I would try to negotiate away concessions from IWU and take that over yourself. Still better than the Armory.
Sitelines??? You have to be kidding at least more people could see the finish at IWU than the Armory. Unless You are at the finish line or taller than everyone else, you didn't see much of the finish at the Armory.
Length of the meet and proximity of events to one another especially field events and running events that take place at the same time have to be considered.
Did I forget to mention, that backup timers were not neccesary this year.
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Post by foxvalleyparent on Apr 2, 2007 7:41:20 GMT -5
Looking at it from a parent's view.
For my child, the athlete, the move was a good one. They had a place to warm up away from the track, there was very little lag time, no clock problems, plenty of IWU volunteers on the track who were getting things done, and nice surfaces to complete on.
For the parent, when I first arrived at 10, there were no seats, and with the large pillars, very little viewing space up top. I was lucky enough to get a front row seat before my kid's second event and either peeking between or over the bars of the guard rail, as standing blocked everyones view behind us, had a great view of the track and the events on the floor. I was disappointed at the lack of enough performance boards for all the field events that were happening at the same time, and couldn't read the results board due to the light coming in through the windows.
Bottom line however, my runner enjoyed running here better.
Thank you so much for the hard work and effort in putting on this meet to all of you at IPTT. It has created life long memories for my child and I the last two years and I look forward to hopefully returning next year.
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Post by jenuine13 on Apr 2, 2007 19:14:08 GMT -5
I just wanted to say thanks for putting this meet together. I have had a great, enjoyable time running the last two years.
Having run at both locations, I personally liked IWU better. I had much more space to warmup, and I never had to worry about people crossing the track during my races. I could also here the announcements for races much better this year. The seating was tough, but at the same time, it was pretty cool to get to run in a place where the stands were packed, instead of like many meets where we run in a nearly empty stadium.
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