Friday, April 21, 2006
SPLITS
There isn't a lot of jargon in track but there is some. As I get time I will try to post some definitions for parents who are new to the sport. I know that the kids will roll their eyes at my descriptions but it's not for them.
Split times are very important to the runners, especially right after their event. Why is right away important? Because splits are as close as you can get to instant replay and analysis in running. They answer the question " how did you do?" The coaches do record these but they are not always available right away. It helps if you as a parent are also timing the event and writing down splits.
Armed with your data, after the race you can run up to your daughter and say " That was great, you went out in (whatever) for the first 200 and then held even until the last kick at the finish." To which your daughter will say " Really? I felt like I totally slowed down on the third lap" and you can say " Well, your first half of that lap was maybe 2 seconds slower but overall the lap was right on pace" etc..." See how much smarter and well informed you look by having the splits? And you don't just look smarter, you are smarter. If you don't have a watch that can record multiple split times go buy one. They are about 10 dollars at Stuff-mart.
Read more!
"Splits" count as any whole lap or meaningful fraction of a lap. I.E. in the mile you would want to note each lap time but it is also valuable to note each half lap or 200m. The coaches will have the lap time but not the 200m. You can scale up or down depending on the event. ( even in the 100m dash, good runners will want to know their first 50).
Split times are very important to the runners, especially right after their event. Why is right away important? Because splits are as close as you can get to instant replay and analysis in running. They answer the question " how did you do?" The coaches do record these but they are not always available right away. It helps if you as a parent are also timing the event and writing down splits.
Armed with your data, after the race you can run up to your daughter and say " That was great, you went out in (whatever) for the first 200 and then held even until the last kick at the finish." To which your daughter will say " Really? I felt like I totally slowed down on the third lap" and you can say " Well, your first half of that lap was maybe 2 seconds slower but overall the lap was right on pace" etc..." See how much smarter and well informed you look by having the splits? And you don't just look smarter, you are smarter. If you don't have a watch that can record multiple split times go buy one. They are about 10 dollars at Stuff-mart.
Read more!
