FasterSkier

Tag: Al Pokorny

  • Hop on Board; Technical Delegates Needed

    Technical delegate Eileen Carey (left) talking with race volunteers at an event at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah, in 2013.

     

    This article comes from Alan Watson, a certified TD and head of the cross-country section of the Pacific Northwest Ski Association (PNSA).


    Here’s the straight and simple request: U.S. Ski and Snowboard needs Technical Delegates (TD). Before we go any further, let’s give a brief rundown of what that means.  

    U.S. Ski and Snowboard rules require each sanctioned race to have a jury which ensures that the race is fair, safe and conducted according to the rules. (Sanctioned races are also referred to as “NRL races”, which stands for National Ranking List because those races are used to calculate USSA points). The jury does much more than decide cases of discipline or other disputes. They review all aspects of the race before, during, and after, trying to make sure that everything will go as smoothly and properly as possible.

    For most NRL races the jury consists of three officials: the Technical Delegate (TD), an assistant Technical Delegate (TDA), and the Chief of Competition, and for bigger races like a SuperTour or National Championships the jury normally includes two additional members. That means each race needs at least two, and sometimes four for bigger races, trained technical delegates to serve on the jury. Of course, it doesn’t hurt when the Chief of Competition is a trained and certified TD as well.

    Jury member, Level 2 certified TD, and U.S. Ski and Snowboard Cross-Country Sport Development Manager Bryan Fish. (Photo: Courtesy of Al Pokorny)

    The TD and the TDA are appointed by and represent U.S. Ski and Snowboard. The idea is that they will be independent of the race organization, and will represent U.S. Ski and Snowboard in overseeing the race. In cases where the race organization might be tempted to ignore the rules, either from naivety or from thinking they have a better way, the jury is responsible for keeping things on track. The jury may suspend or modify certain rules if necessary for safety or to make a better race, as long as the intent of the rules is honored.

    The jury’s work begins well before the race date. Shortly after being assigned to a race in the fall, the TD contacts the TDA and the race organizers and begins an ongoing dialogue. In most cases the relationship between the TD and the race organization is cooperative and supportive, with the TD providing advice, answering questions, and interpreting the rules. The TD inquires about and verifies all aspects of the race, including the schedule, the course and stadium, grooming, timing, medical plans, and results. Although this list is not comprehensive, it provides a general idea of the TD’s responsibilities.

    On arrival at the race venue, the TD inspects the course before official training and helps decide the placement of tracks and technique zones as well as safety precautions. During the race, the TD typically monitors the stadium area while the TDA monitors the rest of the course.

    When all goes well the TD can be proud of being part of a job well done. The happy faces of racers after an event are a reward well worth the time and effort involved. But sometimes awkward or difficult situations can arise which the jury has to address. Perhaps one racer changed lanes improperly and obstructed another racer, or a racer broke a pole in a race and publicly expressed his frustration in unseemly language, or the timer failed to promptly resolve close finishes at the end of each heat. When these things occur the jury’s reward is knowing that they confronted the issue thoroughly and reasonably.

    Both the TD and TDA are required to be trained and certified by U.S. Ski and Snowboard. The process normally begins with a two-day training session. After passing a written exam, a candidate becomes a Level 1 TD which allows him or her to be appointed as a TDA. After serving as a TDA in at least two races, and being recommended by the TD of each, a Level 1 TD can advance to Level 2.

    A Level 2 TD is allowed to be appointed TD or TDA at any NRL race. A similar but more involved process allows a Level 2 TD to advance to Level 3, which allows him or her to serve as TD or TDA at FIS races in addition to NRLs.

    In the western US, we typically have a TD and Race Organizer conference every other year. This serves as the initial training for TD candidates and as continuing education for certified TDs, as well as training for race organizers. The most recent conference was held in West Yellowstone in late November 2018. About 25 of people attended, with eight different attendees and two outside speakers leading the discussions on various aspects of race organization and officiating.

    Dr. Al Pokorny, a certified Technical Delegate at a local Spokane, Washington race. The headgear is not official TD attire. (Photo: Courtesy Al Pokorny.

    Normally the TD comes from a locale different from the race location, and if possible the TDA is local. TDs and TDAs receive travel, lodging, and food expenses plus a small per diem, so it is in the financial interest of the host club to recruit a local to become certified and act as the TDA.

    Senior TDs serve as TD assignors. It can be difficult for an assignor to find enough available TDs to cover all the races on a given weekend. If a TD cannot be found for a race, entrants will not get points for that race. A few years ago all the certified TDs in the Intermountain Division had retired, partly because a whole cohort that got involved before the 2002 Olympics at Soldier Hollow began to age out at the same time. So it is important to recruit new blood into the pipeline and to encourage their development.

    If you are interested in helping our sport by getting into the TD world, contact your division’s assignor:

    Alaska Matt Pauli nordicmatt@gmail.com

    Far West Megan Seifert meganseifert@gmail.com

    Great Lakes Scott Wilson wilson@cresthillresort.com

    High Plains Al Pokorny apokorny@spokaneent.com

    Intermountain Al Pokorny apokorny@spokaneent.com

    Mid Atlantic Jim Rodrigues jimrodrigues3@gmail.com

    Midwest Scott Wilson wilson@cresthillresort.com

    New England Jim Rodrigues jimrodrigues3@gmail.com

    Rocky Quincee Cotton qcotton@comcast.net

    PNSA Al Pokorny apokorny@spokaneent.com

    USA Overall Allan Serrano allanjserrano@gmail.com

     

  • Timing Snafus Slow SuperTour Results, But Officials Say Accuracy Uncompromised

    Timing Snafus Slow SuperTour Results, But Officials Say Accuracy Uncompromised

    Two of the photo beams used to record times in Thursday's races in West Yellowstone.

    Thursday’s weather in West Yellowstone was a big improvement from earlier this week, but race timers still found themselves in a perfect storm during the season opening SuperTour races.

    Coaches and athletes were in the dark all afternoon Thursday, when results from the double sprint qualifier were delayed for hours due to timing snafus. Two different finish lines, a skeleton crew of volunteers due to the holiday, a tight racing schedule, and an overambitious timer all were ingredients in a recipe for problems, if not disaster.

    Ultimately, according to Technical Delegate Al Pokorny, “it worked.” And results did come through, thanks to a volunteer who diligently recorded finishers with a hand plunger with impressive accuracy. But race timer Ernie Page still said that he could “write a book” on what he would do differently.

    “Today was not my best day,” he said.

    The problems on Thursday started with the cold. With highs in the single digits, race organizers wanted no more than an hour separating the start of the classic and freestyle qualifiers.

    “We talked about actually extending it out ten more minutes,” Pokorny said. “It was really an athlete safety issue…we felt that having them out any longer than an hour would not be in their best interest.”

    When organizers originally made their plans, there were some 180 athletes signed up for the two races—making for roughly 45 minutes of racing. That left a 15-minute window for Page and volunteers to move equipment between separate finish lines for the classic and skate courses.

    “That obviously would have been more than enough time,” Pokorny said.

    But at the last minute, another batch of entries came in, cutting the time between races down to some six minutes. For many timers, that margin would be a deal-breaker. But Page said that he relishes a challenge.

    “They weren’t pressuring me to do it faster…It was my optimism that was the problem,” he said. “The six minutes was tantalizing—we almost made it.”

    As the last female finishers trickled across the line in the classic sprint, Page had already begun digging holes in the snow at the end of the skate course, to set up a pair of photo beams that automatically record finishers. A few minutes later, volunteers began moving the timing equipment.

    When the first men’s starter, CXC’s Garrott Kuzzy, flew past on his way into the final 500-meter finishing loop, things got frantic. Officials were overheard shouting expletives, and one volunteer even cried, “where’s the finish line?!”

    As the first six men crossed, Page’s photo beams were not quite in place. But he had backup in the form of Jeff Fereday and Mark Pastore: two volunteers with hand plungers, who recorded each athlete’s finish time with the press of a button.

    In the end, organizers used Pastore’s times, since his plunges were never more than a tenth of a second off when cross-referenced with the times that did get recorded by the photo beam, Page said. Both Pastore and Fereday, Page added, were “close to perfect.”

    The man with the closest finish among the top six starters was the University of Alaska-Fairbanks’s David Norris, who was ninth, .12 seconds behind Central Cross-Country’s Brian Gregg. The winner, Drew Goldsack, the third man to cross the line, was nearly seven seconds ahead of second place, Alaska Pacific University’s Lars Flora.

    ““I’m confident in the hand plunges,” Page said, though he added that he’s “gratified as hell that there wasn’t a really close finish for first, second, third.”

    Page engineers his own timing systems, and he said that he designs them “to work on a bad day”—which is clearly what happened Thursday.

    If he times the races next year, Page said he would bring another set of photo beams—and a Leatherman, which he could have used Thursday to loosen a screw that wouldn’t budge.

    But according to Pokorny, the technical delegate, the systems still did their job in the end.

    “It was probably not ideal, but it wasn’t a disaster, either,” he said. “That’s why you have backup.”