2) The post-race party is the best post-race party in the country, and this year did not disappoint. Cowboy Mouth headlined the concert, and Abita Amber flowed from the taps. 10,000+ people crowded into Tad Goremly Stadium and had a good time. I was one of those enjoying the beautiful weather.
3) I was very excited to post a top 150 finish, so I couldn't wait to see my official results at the website and in the New Orleans Times Picayune newspaper. Saturday night I checked the results (New Orleans race results are typically posted in a timely manner) and my name wasn't listed anywhere in the top 500! Due to a chip malfunction, my time wasn't registered. So not only was I afraid that I'd be robbed of the poster, I wouldn't get to be recognized in the newspaper or even know my official time. I forgot to stop my watch, so I only had a guess about what it was. I sent an email to the CCC10K:
I finished the CCC10K 2008 in under 40 minutes (approximately 39:45 gun time, plus or minus about two seconds), but my name was not listed as a top 500 finisher. I had a chip which was picked up at the expo. It was assigned to me at the Expo, since they had to look up my qualifying race time on the spot. My bib number was 1992. The friend who picked up my packet said that I was originally assigned another non-qualifying bib because you didn't receive my qualifying race time from the BR Mardi Gras Mambo 10K. The bib was then switched to a blue bib (1992).
I'm hoping you will take the effort to research the time file and find my time. I will spare you the full details of my story right now, but suffice to say that I trained extremely hard since last year in order to win a poster. Last year I could barely finish the course as I just started running, but I trained for a whole year with the specific goal of winning a poster. I even ran the Baton Rouge Mardi Gras Mambo injured just to qualify for a chip and a bib that would place me at the front. I was quite hurt when I didn't see my name on your web site, and my fears were confirmed that you didn't get my time when I saw the Times Picayune the next morning.
PLEASE research the data from the chip timer to see if you can find my name and official time. I know you probably handle several thousand various requests, but I can not stress enough how important this is to me.
Also, please email me to confirm you received this email so I can at least know a live person read it.
Thanks,
Jonathan Bennett
Their response (I was CC:'d on an email to the lead CCC10K person):
Good Afternoon, Chuck,
As we discussed, you are aware that there were some issues with the scoring of the race.
This morning (Monday), a number of people have indicated that they rented a chip at the Expo.
On race day, they wore it when they participated and it was given back after the race.
Seeing the list of Top 500 finishers, they realized that they should have been listed.
I've tried to let them know that you are trying to determine why they were not scored.
Please let me know when you have something we can relay to them.
My email to Chuck:
If it helps out at all, here is a link to my GPS results from my Garmin Forerunner 305. I did not stop the watch exactly when I finished, but I started it once I crossed the mat. I'd say my time was about 39:44 plus or minus about two seconds.
http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/5235832
Please keep me posted and let me know if there is anything I can do to help out. Winning a poster was a huge goal for me this year -- I could barely finish last year because I just started running. I thought about that poster on just about every training run over the past year, and I'd be quite disappointed if I didn't get one due to a timing error. I'm already upset enough that my name did not get published in the paper to show off to my friends. But not getting formal recognition of my time would be crushing, given the amount of work I had to put in to break 40 minutes. Last year's 10k was my longest run up to that point without walking.
Thanks again for the help,
Jonathan
Email to me from the timing guy:
Jonathan,
I have located your time. It should be updated on the website by this afternoon. Thanks!
John Beadles
Atomic Racing Systems, LLC
(318) 525-6629
johnbeadles@layflat.com
I just found out the "official" results, and they incorrectly posted my time as 40:04 gun time and 40:10 chip time. I emailed the chip timing guy to explain that my time was associated with spot number 127 which is blank, instead of spot number 141. That would put my official time at 39:45 gun, 39:40 chip.
Even later update -- what I think is my official time was finally posted . . . 39:45 gun time, 39:40 chip time.
FYI -- I found out my results on on 3/27/08, so I'm cheating a bit by using 3/23/06 as the publishing date of this blog entry. I'm just keeping it close to the race entry for continuity purposes.
3 comments:
Karma? I looked several times at the list in the Sunday paper to try to find our name and to no avail. I am very glad they were able to work it out and you get recognized for all of your hard work. Congraduations on your time. I too PR'd at 46:47.
The Karma comment? I refer you back to a couple of your blogs about timing and results of Louisiana races.
You wouldn't have had that problem if they would have scored the race by hand like they do at all of the rest of the Louisiana races.
Maybe next time you'll follow the instructions on the race entry form and provide proof about your finishing time.
BTW, When I run a race, the official time is whatever time I have on my watch.
Dave
Nice thoughts. Karma may have had something to do with it. I feel bad for the 72 other people in the top 500 who suffered the same problem. The CCC10K timing group thought it would be funny not to include anyone's time who got a chip a the expo.
As for providing a qualifying time, the Baton Rouge Mardi Gras Mambo still has not posted results of the race, so I have no record of my qualifying time to submit. Now maybe if I drank beer with the CCC10K guys then they would have taken care of the situation without repeated prodding. That's the Louisiana way.
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