There is still no official word about when the US Relay Champs will be held. The "rumor" that NEOC has put in a proposal to have the relays on April 15/16 has been pretty well confirmed. The latest I've heard, however, is that the USOF BOD is debating whether or not to allow NEOC to host the relay champs on this weekend. Apparently the concern is that it is not proper to have a USOF championship on the same weekend as SLOC hosts the North American Rogaine Champs (although I'm pretty sure the rogaine "champs" is not actually a USOF sanctioned event).

Another interesting tid-bit is that the Bay Area Orienteering Club apparently had a training event this weekend with discussion about how to prepare for a relay event. Magnus was at the event and said that BAOCers were stunned to learn that OK has been preparing since at least last August.

-- Spike (meglin@juno.com), December 20, 1999

Answers

Apparently the concern is that it is not proper to have a USOF championship on the same weekend as SLOC hosts the North American Rogaine Champs.

I suppose there are a few similarities between orienteering and rogaining but certainly rogaines are not orienteering! It is laughable that the BOD would even think of the rogaine when making decisions that affect all of us... Or maybe it is more disgusting than anything else!

What if every championship were subject to the same? What if some 80-year-old woman in Shady Acres Florida named Betsy Mae Simpkins decided to hold a quilting bee on the evening of the night-o chumps. Would it have to be rescheduled?

I don't doubt that BAOC will come back with a good team this year. They are obviously smarting after their embarrasing showing last year. They will probably be one of 6 or 8 teams vying for the silver.

-- Mook (everett@psi.edu), December 20, 1999.

Regarding the "conflict" between the relays and the rogaine....It seems to me that it might actually HELP the rogaine if the NEOC event was a relay. For some reason that I don't understand, there is a certain segment of orienteers who don't like relays. If the NEOC event is a relay rather than a traditional individual O' race, some of these folks won't attend the NEOC event and might just decide to go to the rogaine!

I imagine the change from the normal individual event to a relay event will decrease total attendance at the NEOC meet.

-- Michael (mike_eglinski@kcmo.org), December 20, 1999.

Speaking of problems in USOF administration... I looked at the USOF web site to see who the BOD was and it wasn't at all clear who would be making the important decisions. There is a list of USOF officers. Some have titles that suggest they are responsible for things like competition, or are responsible period (like the president). I don't think all of the officers will be on the BOD, or the part of the BOD that makes decisions about A-meets. Some officers have titles that suggest they are lawyers or some such nonsense. There is also a list of "regional representatives to the BOD". Perhaps these people are actually the BOD? Or perhaps they make up the BOD together with the "officers". It will be important to know who to contact to make sure things go smoothly, or, in a worse case scenario, who to blame if things don't. And yes, there will be hell to pay if things don't go smoothly!

I heard another rumor from Peggy about an earlier "bid" for the relays. I don't know if it was really a bid or something more informal. Anyway, there was some discussion that the relays be held by the ski-o team during the week between the US chumps (classic?) and North American chumps. According to Pegs this was apparently "shot down by juniors and parents of juniors". If that doesn't sound fishy to you, where have you been? What do the (ski-o?) juniors have to do with deciding where (or when) the relays are? They aren't on the BOD obviously and I don't imagine their parents are either. If their parents are on the BOD and are merely puppets of their children, then something needs to be done. This whole situation sounds awfully weird!

Who's running the ship anyway?

-- Mook (everett@psi.edu), December 20, 1999.

It will be important to know who to contact to make sure things go smoothly, or, in a worse case scenario, who to blame if things don't. And yes, there will be hell to pay if things don't go smoothly!

The Heartland regional rep is Gale Teschendorf. His email address is: gdt@megsinet.net. I think Dick N. is the back-up rep.

-- Spike (mike_eglinski@kcmo.org), December 20, 1999.

Dick N. sent me (and a bunch of other Heartland regional club folks) the following:

Al Smith wrote on December 19, 1999:

From: Alan T Smith To: rneuburger@worldnet.att.net ; Gale Teschendorff Subject: Lack of Heartland Participation in the US Relay Champs Sanctioning Discussion Date: Sunday, December 19, 1999 5:07 PM

Dear Dick and Gale,

I am really disappointed at the failure of you both to participate in any significant way in the current discussion regarding NEOC's last minute bid to host the Relay Champs on the same weekend as the North American Rogaine Champs being hosted by a club in your region. Gale has copped out citing some kind of conflict of interest and Dick has made no input whatsoever.

You were elected to represent the clubs in your region. If you won't do that, then I think you never should have volunteered for the position, should resign, and find someone who will vigorously represent the people who elected them.

Have either of you made any attempt to contact the St Louis club and get their feelings and what their response will be if The USOF BOD votes to sanction NEOC's bid?

Al Smith, St Louis Club Member

*********************************************

Dear Al,

Regarding your call for my resignation: I will be happy to resign my position as Alternate for the Heartland Representative to the USOF Board of Directors, IF you or anyone else will step forward to fill the position. (There were no volunteers when I reluctantly agreed to stay on as Alternate before the last election.)

Regarding who votes on this matter: Gale has indicated that he, in fact, is not abstaining, so I have no vote.

Regarding contact with the St. Louis Orienteering Club: No, I have not contacted SLOC, but the email from Eric Bone that started this discussion made it clear that SLOC opposes the bid from NEOC to host the 2000 US Relay Championships.

For the record, I vote NO on the bid from NEOC.

Sincerely yours,

Dick Neuburger Heartland Region Alternate to USOF Board of Directors

-- Spike (mike_eglinski@kcmo.org), December 21, 1999.

I hope all this conflict does not in any way make the Bullar turn out badly. Keep up the good baking Mook.

-- Dan (daniel.meenehan@umb.com), December 21, 1999.

You think Mook can make bullar? Mook?? Bullar???

-- Swampfox (mikell@sprynet.com), December 22, 1999.

I am just so very spitting mad I don't think I can coherently discuss the bid for the relay chumps or bullar for that matter. I couldn't make bullar with this state of mind - what if I left some vital ingredient out? It disgusts me that something so vile would rear its ugly head on the eve of Dan's headlamp debut - a time that should have all of OK and really all of the orienteering world celebrating.

And it's a pitty since I spent a lot of time and money having fresh myggor wings flown in from Sweden yesterday. I guess they will go to waste.

Hopefully I will return to a state in which I can seriously discuss the relays. If I can't do that before the actual relays then I suggest Gene to take my place on the 4pt team.

-- Mook (everett@psi.edu), December 22, 1999.

How could anyone in good conscience vote against a proposal that would be of great benefit to OK?

-- Mook (everett@psi.edu), December 22, 1999.

Unfortunately with the timing of this event being April 15th and all....... I really don't want to piss off too many people, but I hope everyone in OK will understand when I tell them and this will have repercussions all over the orienteering world, I know the wrath I may feel as a result of this announcement, but feel I need to go ahead and do this... Please scroll down to read the official announcement

News Release:

Dan Meenehan will not be attending.................

The North American Rogaine Champs

Please don't tell Al.

-- Dan (daniel.meenehan@umb.com), December 23, 1999.

The latest official words seem to indicate that NEOC will host the relays on April 16th, but...

It still isn't entirely clear exactly what the status of NEOC's bid is. Perhaps there is still something going on behind the scenes. By that I mean maybe politics will once again rear its ugly head.

Is there a web page by NEOC for the relays? NEOC's main web site has a link to their "Troll Cup" on the purported weekend of the relays. It still describes it as a 2-day A meet and no mention of the relays is made.

The best way I could explain this is that some sort of back-door motion is being made, and I don't think that one has to stretch ones imagination too far to figure out who might have an interest in doing something like that! Too bad it has come to this!

A slight chance is that there is an internal rift in NEOC with rival factions who either want or don't want (?!?) the relays.

The only other possibility I see right now is that the person who is in charge of NEOC's web site(s) is... how should one say?... well, let's just say that the person in charge of NEOC's web site hasn't been quite as actively maintaining the web site as one might hope.

-- Mook (everett@psi.edu), January 10, 2000.