Tri State
It IS what you wear, after all
Md. high school runners can’t wear school uniforms in open competitions
By Kevin Spradlin
TriStateRunnur.com
MARYLAND, Oct. 8 – TriStateRunnur.com’s approach to covering races had to be modified last weekend when nearly a dozen students from at least two Maryland high schools participated in non-sanctioned races while wearing school running uniforms – singlets and shorts.
Md. high school runners can’t wear school uniforms in open competitions
By Kevin Spradlin
TriStateRunnur.com
MARYLAND, Oct. 8 – TriStateRunnur.com’s approach to covering races had to be modified last weekend when nearly a dozen students from at least two Maryland high schools participated in non-sanctioned races while wearing school running uniforms – singlets and shorts.
|
This website’s coverage always includes photographs – it’s at the center of what the site operator Darrell Cavey, myself and a handful of valuable volunteers provide to visitors at TriStateRunnur.com. Video takes a little longer to cut and edit, but it’s offered as often as possible. And newspaper-length results-oriented and feature articles are becoming more and more common.
But the heart of what we do is photography. At any given event, our photographers could take and post online a couple of thousand photos just from a high school cross country race or open road race. Each scene is a memory – for a brief moment in time, that runner’s left foot was on the ground and the right was being pushed forward; an underdog is passing a favorite, whether the lead is temporary in nature or not; a winner crosses the finish line.
But the heart of what we do is photography. At any given event, our photographers could take and post online a couple of thousand photos just from a high school cross country race or open road race. Each scene is a memory – for a brief moment in time, that runner’s left foot was on the ground and the right was being pushed forward; an underdog is passing a favorite, whether the lead is temporary in nature or not; a winner crosses the finish line.
It’s all a series of snapshots; of local running history. But history was forever changed, in a small part, at two events this past weekend. The names and locations of those races, two of among the nearly dozen races for which results were posted on TriStateRunnur.com, are being withheld so officials can not come close to identifying those who might have broken a rule. This article is not a “get in trouble” story but a “how to stay out of trouble” effort.
In both contests, current Maryland high school runners donned their complete, current high school team uniform. The act is a violation of rules established by the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA), the governing body for public high school sports in the state.
Runners rarely match; these people did. The observation makes their photos stick out and easy to see among the hundreds and thousands taken. And in one race, hundreds of fellow runners and spectators saw the mistake. If one knows, the secret’s out. If a spectator sees and knows of the rule, the secret’s out.
If a visitor to TriStateRunnur.com - or any of the social networks to which photos from TriStateRunnur.com are often posted - sees one, the secret’s out. This web site is not seeking to get a high school kid in trouble; it’s very possible
Coaches, be warned. Please counsel your runners to wear something other than school singlets and shorts. The consequences could change how the rest of your season plays out.
Contact Kevin at run@mountainMDmarathon.org.