Putting On A Meet

I've worked with several major local and national meets throughout the past few years and I can tell you that it is amazing how much organization and time is required to put together a quality competition.  Especially in a sport like track where there are over a dozen and a half different events that require different equipment, plus the necessary area to actually compete in those events.  Even in cross country you find that several hundred kids may be running and you have to make sure the meet runs well. It certainly isn't for the faint of heart, but putting together a good crew of coaches and volunteers will do a great service to you and your event and will help you put on quality events that people will return to in the future.

Here is a short list of ideas/considerations for when you are putting a meet together:

1) Have each team volunteer a coach or athlete to help you work an event.  This speeds up the meet and allows for athletes to more easily move from event to event if necessary.

2) Enlist help from the parents of your athletes.  It may be simple work like handing out medals but it will really help you to focus on the other scores of tasks on your plate.

3) Don't do more than you need to.  Rarely will a cross country meet need FAT (Fully Automatic Timing), and you don't need to announce the names of every individual that competes in each heat during track.  Sure all of that adds to the depth of your event, but if you don't have the money and manpower, focus rather on doing everything else well.  If the meet is successful, more people will come, and that will allow you to add more amenities down the road.

4) Look for sponsors!  Many stores may give you t-shirts or other items as awards, or businesses that your athletes parents work at may donate food, drinks, or money.  Since most cross country meets don't make much money, that is a wonderful blessing.

5) Finally, don't forget to budget in medical or police staff if you need it.  Many states require one or the other or both, or at least for liability reasons you may want to have them.  See if you can get discount rates through your school or local