Cross country goes hi-tech

Being a part of the state cross country meet is sort of like being a member of the French army -- a lot goes wrong and just about everyone loses.
For the sake of brevity, I've narrowed my complaints to three things: it's not runner-friendly, it's not coach-friendly and it's not fan-friendly.
I'm not going to blame the Ohio High School Athletic Association for all the problems. Just some of them. (And it should be noted that the OHSAA normally does a great job with the state tournaments.)
Scioto Downs host
The meet is run in Columbus at Scioto Downs -- which may be a great place for watching horse racing, but it's lousy for watching runners. The fans sit too far away and the atmosphere stinks. Problem is, the OHSAA needs a venue large enough to hold thousands of fans and they need to make money. And until they find a better place, Scioto will have to do.
The biggest complaint from coaches and runners is about the finish line. Watching the end of a race is sort of like watching angry ranchers throw cattle into chutes. Runners get out of order, results get messed up and there are usually a couple appeals after every race.
"Most of the officials on the crews have not worked together all year and many of them don't work finish lines," said Jim Fox, tournament director for the regional meet at Boardman. "I've always thought it would be better to send down a crew from one of the regional tournaments. That way, you get a team that has experience running a finish line."
New scoring system
Saturday's meet might be different. For the first time, runners will wear computer chips on their shoes, allowing officials to record times and places. It's the same technology used in the NCAA's national meet.
"It will be a significant improvement," Fox said. "It's the best system out there. It's too expensive for us to use here, or else I would use it."
It costs about $1.25 per runner to lease the chips, Fox said. Runners must return the chips, or the schools will be charged about $50 per athlete. The OHSAA will also use a backup system just in case something goes wrong.
Blair Irvin, an assistant commissioner for the OHSAA, said the technology was added because of a recommendation by coaches, not because of complaints about the old system. Which tells me that either Irvin wears cotton in his ears or someone else was hearing the complaints. McDonald coach Chris Rupe, whose Blue Devils won last year's Division III boys state title, made sure not to criticize the old system (at least to reporters), but said he hoped the new technology would be an improvement.
"I'll put it this way -- we're very spoiled around here," said Rupe, whose brother Ted coaches at Maplewood. "There have been some problems in the chute [at state] as far as moving people through.
"I want to see how the chips work before I decide if it's better, but I think it's a good move."
Costly to Rockets
The finish line problems may have cost Maplewood a state title in 1998. The Rockets finished second to East Canton by two points, 104-106. They were originally down by four points, but Ted Rupe appealed one of the finishes and it was narrowed to two points.
He was later told that if the officials had checked again he might have won. "This isn't about sour grapes," Ted Rupe, whose Rockets won the state title in 1997, said. "But sometimes we weren't even sure what to appeal. I like the new technology. I have some minor concerns, but I think it will all work out."
The system won't be perfect, but it should be an improvement. And maybe this chip technology will catch on. We could even use it on some of the crabby officials at the state meet. But instead of computer chips, we'll stuff their mouths with potato chips.
Maybe that will keep them from yelling so much.
XJoe Scalzo is a sportswriter for The Vindicator. Write him at scalzo@vindy.com.