There was some confusion when the 4 x 1500m relay teams were being assembled, as to what the rules were for team composition as far as both ACT and national records were concerned.
National records are relevant because the national 4x1500 records are very achievable by ACT teams, and an Australian record certificate is something special! And because national 4x800 records are mostly non-existent and therefore up for grabs!
With the 4x800s coming up on 15 December we need to know who we can select in the teams going for records.
But first, and this is important, it was never intended to restrict the relays to eligible teams! Everyone who would have run had it been a normal scratch race, is supposed to participate! The more teams the better, composite teams of any kind are welcome.
Also very important is that anyone "left over" and not in a team may run in the first leg, starting when the gun fires, but must not join in later. A team was disqualified because of pacing last time. It seems obvious; but these things apparently need stating.
And now the rules. The same rules apply nationally as to the ACT. To be eligible for ACT and Australian records (1) ALL runners in the relay must be current registered members of ACTVAC, and (2) The four runners must either be in the same age group, or ONE or TWO may be from the next age group up.
For example, a W40 team may either consist of four women in the W40 age group, or it may consist of three W40s and one W45, or it may consist of two W40s and two W45s. No other combination is eligible for records.
I prefer to see runners compete in their own age group when at all possible and only move down one when a team is not available in their own group. Teams should be encouraged NOT to pinch the best runners one age group up if it means taking them from another team! I suppose exceptions could be made on specific occasions when there is a particularly fast record we want to break. But that's not the case at the moment; records are achievable without doing that.
Finally, there are relays every week, often a 4x100, 4x200, or 4x400, and for these relays the same rules, spelt out above, apply.
National records are relevant because the national 4x1500 records are very achievable by ACT teams, and an Australian record certificate is something special! And because national 4x800 records are mostly non-existent and therefore up for grabs!
With the 4x800s coming up on 15 December we need to know who we can select in the teams going for records.
But first, and this is important, it was never intended to restrict the relays to eligible teams! Everyone who would have run had it been a normal scratch race, is supposed to participate! The more teams the better, composite teams of any kind are welcome.
Also very important is that anyone "left over" and not in a team may run in the first leg, starting when the gun fires, but must not join in later. A team was disqualified because of pacing last time. It seems obvious; but these things apparently need stating.
And now the rules. The same rules apply nationally as to the ACT. To be eligible for ACT and Australian records (1) ALL runners in the relay must be current registered members of ACTVAC, and (2) The four runners must either be in the same age group, or ONE or TWO may be from the next age group up.
For example, a W40 team may either consist of four women in the W40 age group, or it may consist of three W40s and one W45, or it may consist of two W40s and two W45s. No other combination is eligible for records.
I prefer to see runners compete in their own age group when at all possible and only move down one when a team is not available in their own group. Teams should be encouraged NOT to pinch the best runners one age group up if it means taking them from another team! I suppose exceptions could be made on specific occasions when there is a particularly fast record we want to break. But that's not the case at the moment; records are achievable without doing that.
Finally, there are relays every week, often a 4x100, 4x200, or 4x400, and for these relays the same rules, spelt out above, apply.
