Official Iowa HS XC 2023 Thread

Make your picks for top 3 / Individual Champion (4a boys)

There is also this regarding Fort Dodge. For sure the last two times the bid process came up, they were the ONLY city/site that submitted to host.

For any other place to host the event, except perhaps Marshalltown, you will need to erect snow fence around the entire perimeter and have a few select entry points for spectators. But, Marshalltown is one of the least spectator friendly courses in the state.

That's what they do at Fort Dodge.

It is silly to mention how far Sioux City woukd have to drive to Marshalltown. No teams from the western side qualified. But from the Eastern side, we have PV boys, PV girls, Senior girls, Hempstead boys, Hempstead girls. That's 5 teams who leave school at 10 AM Thursday for a Friday meet in Fort Dodge. It is ridiculous not to acknowledge how much less driving would take place by centering the meet. That's gas wasted and more accidents and school missed. I heard that Marshalltown and SEP will bid next time.

It does not go around the entire perimeter; just the stretch adjacent to the paved road.

Again, Marshalltown is very unfriendly for spectators. SE Polk is also poor for spectators, more so than Marshalltown, and the course isn't suitable for championship racing. No one finishes at SEP and says "Boy, I wish state was here"

Untrue. They fenced it all off putting the farmers out of business.

I'm sorry but you are mistaken. The SW and NW corners and the entire west and north edges of the course most definitely are not fenced off. I do not believe the south edge extends the whole stretch either, just enough to stop/discourage farm access.

Also, be prepared for fort dodge to get the next bid. This year's ticket price includes a $3/person upcharge specifically so fort dodge can "make improvements" to the site. It's the only sport I know of that adds a surcharge for the host.

As an east sider I'd much rather go to Fort Dodge than Marshalltown. The Marshalltown course might be great for the runners, but it would not be spectator friendly. I haven't been to SEP so I can't comment on that. Part of what makes the state meet so special is the ability of fans to run everywhere around the golf course cheering like crazy. I also appreciate the tradition of going to Fort Dodge at the end of October. I'm 25+ years out from high school and it's fun to have kids running the same course as way back when.

I run around also to see start, 4 spots, and finish. Marshalltown easily permits start, 3 spots, and finish with much less distance to cover. Many parents aren't as mobile as you and me. But 2 days away from school doesn't make it worthwhile for you to see another few seconds of the race.

And when those are the only spots that 95% of all spectators can get to, then you have a problem. Most people's spots to maximize viewing will: the start; the 1-mile, when they return to the 1-mile after the oval loop, when they return again to the 1-mile after the pond loop, and the finish. There isn't room for everyone to be at the same (only readily accessible) spot.

At Fort Dodge, entire fairways get lined 3 people deep. Outside of the start/finish, there is no such stretch at Marshalltown that can support that volume of spectators. The U-turn at the mile is already heavily congested with people at the Bobcat Invite; I can't imagine the impact of quadrupling spectators in the vicinity of that 4-way intersection.

Additionally, in most cases, the only way to access any non-high traffic point on the Marshalltown course is to run on the course itself. The pond and the prairie grasses make any other option unfeasible. The likelihood of a spectator/athlete disruption is greatly amplified compared to Fort Dodge where cutting across a finished section to jump to the next section is as easy as crossing another fairway. SEP would suffer from similar problems.

Finally, over half the course at M'town is raced over twice (one section 3x), whereas no stretch at Fort Dodge is raced on twice in the same race. That further prevents the field of spectators from spreading out and look out when there is a wet year. Some of those high impact stretches are destroyed for hundreds of meters straight.

Remember when ft dodge used to run all the way out to the back 40? It was pretty quiet out there and coaches had to race the kids back to have a chance to see the finish. Glad they looped it back to the current course. Very spectator friendly as long as spectators dont interfere. Which they do on occassion.

You hit the nail on the head about M'town. You'd have 95% of spectators wanting to go to one spot and most of them wouldn't be able to get anywhere close to the action. It was hard enough to do so at a relatively small meet like the SQM.

There are more courses than Marshalltown. How about Wartburg? Much better than Fort Dodge.

There are significantly more runners at Bobcat than state. There may be close to 1000 runners at Bobcat spread across the races while state now has only 250 in each mini meet.

State is the only golf course that most teams run on all year. I don't like the location. I don't even like the layout of the course. It could be changed to nice loops to eliminate all of the silly sharp turns. The turn going away from the hill at 1.75 miles is stupid. I remember Bose falling there. There is an entire course to work with and they pick a place to turn where the hill works against the runners.

Boys 4A predictions

1. Dowling Catholic

2. Cedar Falls

3. Ankeny

4. Cedar Rapids Kennedy

Same (see post #453)

Girls 4A I think this is Verde and Johnston’s year.

- You can’t determine the state meet location based on the assumption that the west side of the state is gonna suck—besides, you’re only considering 4A teams.

- What’s ridiculous is acting like Dubuque teams have to board a boat in order to reach Fort Dodge. Dubuque to Marshalltown: 2hr. 24 Dubuque to Fort Dodge: 2hr. 56 Council Bluffs to Waverly: 3hr. 59.