We wanted to know your reaction to the PIAA's selection of Hershey
as the site for the XC State Championships for the next three years.
(Boy, did we hear from you!)

On April 6, 2002, the PIAA awarded the Hershey Entertainment and Sports Complex (HERCO) the opportunity to host the state XC Championships for another three years. (Read the News RELEASE). The course received mixed reviews in 2001, so PennTrackXC asked for your reaction. And did we get reaction! Two for. Bunches against. Below are those responses. We hope to bring you the PIAA's reasoning behind the selection of Hershey over Lehigh (which hosted an NCAA meet) and Slippery Rock (which also hosted an NCAA event).Just in case you've never been to Hershey, here are COURSE PHOTOS taken by PennTrackXC in 2001. Note the stones in the first photo, and the sidehill running on the ridge, referred to in the emails.

FIRST, THE FAVORABLE REPLYS.

"Hi! My reaction to hearing that State for XC will be in Hershey next year was "Aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!," screaming and jumping up and down in front of Mrs. Barry's gym class. I'm pretty excited about it. Last year was my first good State XC race, and it was at Hershey, so that course has special memories for me. I'll also be able to mentally picture the whole course. So that's my opinion of Hershey!" - Jesi Christiansen, 2001 AA State XC Champion

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"I am glad that you have decided to run the next three years of the XC Championships at Hershey. My team won the AAA Championship on that course and that's what we're training for now. I am a Freshman and and I'm looking forward to the next three years of defending my teams victory." - Anonymous


(Received 5/17/02-
Permission to publish received 6/29/02)
I am amazed that your web site would print but a few favorable comments about the xc course at Hershey. The number of negative comments is telling. Did you deliberately solicit negative comments? It sure seems so. I have viewed a number of District 3 xc championship races on the Hershey course. I have spoken at length with runners who have run the course on more than one occasion. I have spoken with coaches whose athletes have competed on the course in question. I've even trained (running and mountain biked) on the course. Never have I been exposed to the number of negative comments as I have seen on your web site.

The comments from the individual from Richmond, VA, are especially
hilarious. He viewed the course from across the street. Give me a break. Why not hire an airplane and fly above it? How can he state with any amount of certainty that this course is unsafe? How can he provide any credible evaluation of the course without actually stepping on it?

And his comment about runners running on uneven surfaces is especially hilarious. Perhaps he should keep himself to the level surfaces of the track. Cross-country is run on uneven surfaces. That is part of the sport. So is dirt and a variety of surfaces. Only the weak avoid xc; the rest of us tough it out.

In my years as a competitive runner, spectator and coach, I have had the occasion to be on and at xc courses that are significantly worse than what Hershey offers. Franklin Park (Boston) and Van Cortland Park (NYC) in particular come to mind. Both offer challenges and "unsafe" areas that render insignificant anything noted as unlikeable by your Richmond "expert." It is my distinct impression that the Hershey course is as safe and challenging as anything offered by other courses in this state. I suspect the vast majority of the athletes who have competed on the course in District 3 and duel meet competition like it. In addition, the central location of Hershey means that some team will not have to travel 6 or 7 hours to get to a meet on either end of the state.

Let's get rid of the sour grapes. If there are legitimate concerns about the course, let's bring those concerns to the attention of the PIAA. Encourage your readers to email the concerns to me. I am willing to personally push for necessary changes to the course. Cobblestones? I will volunteer my time to move them out of the way. Uneven starting surfaces? I will volunteer my rake and elbow grease to make them more equal. Complaints? You wont see me submitting anonymous complaints. I will put my name and face towards an effort to make the choice workable. Sure, Hershey isnt a golf course. Should it be? As a runner, I sure hope not.
Ralph Duquette Ass't Coach, Mid and Long Distances, Central Dauphin High School


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THEN, THE LESS-THAN-FAVORABLE REPLYS


"I can't believe it's going back to Hershey for the next three years! There are plenty of beautiful courses around the state-Penn State's course, the one at Bucknell U from two years ago was great and challenging, and so many others. The course at Hershey is not a course, just some fields and stuff cobbled together at the 5k distance. It is just plain ugly. Aside from course looks, the meet at Hershey last year was not as well-run as from the year before at Bucknell. The Hershey setup has some kind of commercialized, sold-out feeling to it. Just because the rest of the state goes there for their Championships doesn't mean we have to. The whole idea of Cross Country is change-in scenery, in hills, in surface, etc. Now we have to spend the next three years there?!! If I keep qualifying for the state meet I will have run here three times in a row- and finish my career not on a cross country course, but on an old airstrip, some baseball fields, one tiny, tiny, patch of woods, and a school yard. Yuck." - Anonymous

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"If it is Hershey, then Hershey it is! I believe that Penn State or Lehigh is a better xc course (or even Bucknell) Did the state survey coaches (an easy thing to do in the age of technology)...and the PIAA often wonders why they fall prey to criticism!................By this Nov....Jess Cickay will feel that Hershey is her home course..........." - Anonymous (PA HS Coach)

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"Don, I'm disgusted that Hershey is hosting the PIAA XC championships for the next three years. I was unable to attend last fall's race, but the following day, I spoke to Casey Depasquale, a junior at Mt. Lebanon and their #3 runner. She had just returned from the hospital, unsure most of the night whether her ankle was broken. She had fallen about 400 meters into the race, after stepping on a large cobblestone. In addition, Lebo's top runner, Jessie Winschel, also was forced out of the race due to injury. I was out of school for the fall while I looked for somewhere I wanted to go, so I had some time on my hands, and I needed a project to work on. I talked to my high school coach, about the travesty of a race the PIAA held. He told me that the PIAA was seeking a 3 year commitment with Hershey for states. He provided me with a videotape he shot of the course, and I picked apart the multitude of problems. I wrote this letter, and it was distributed to coaches in the TSTCA and PTFCA."

Dr. Robert Lombardi
Associate Executive Director
Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association
550 Gettysburg Rd
PO Box 2008
Mechanicsburg, PA 17055-0708

Dear Dr. Lombardi

I am writing in regards to the PIAA Cross Country Championships. I feel that the course at Hershey poses a danger to athletes and should not be used for a state championship race.

Unlike most sports, such as Football and Track, the playing field for Cross Country varies with location, and cannot be uniform, and so the quality of the course has almost as much affect on the race as the runners. I viewed the course across the street from Hershey Park, and I found it to be sub-standard in terms of safety of the athletes. Holding the race at Hershey would violate Article II, Section I of the PIAA constitution: To organize, develop, and direct an interscholastic athletic program which will promote, protect and conserve the health and physical welfare of all participants.

The start of the race took place on a variety of surfaces: grass, gravel and a macadam airstrip. To my knowledge, no other major cross country course in Pennsylvania starts on macadam. The runners starting out of the far right blocks have to run a good part of a quarter mile on this airstrip, and it is very hard on a runners knees and shins. The varied terrain at the starting line gives a distinct advantage to runners who start out of the blocks on grass. Shortly after the start, some runners pass over an area of large cobblestones, and I know of at least one runner who suffered a sprained ankle on this patch, and had to drop out of the race because of the severity of her injury.

A good part of the course is run on the faces of hills, with one leg lower than the other. This is a dangerous way to run, very conducive to knee and back injuries and falling. Many times, the runners pass over large gravel paths, which are very bad footing. Many of the turns are sharp, at 90 degrees. After the mile mark, the runners descend a dirt hill. As the pack moves, dust is kicked up, and a cloud overwhelms the runners. This affects both the visibility in the area, as well as the respiratory systems of the runners.

With 800 meters left, the runners descend a steep hill and make a sharp right hand turn shortly after reaching the base of the hill. On the PCN coverage of the 2001 meet, I saw a large pack of runners flung about by their forward momentum upon finishing the downhill, some winding up in the parking lot a few feet from the course. If a runner should trip after descending this hill, the injury would most likely take him out of the race.

The race finishes along a road, where exhaust fumes will affect fatigued runners' breathing, and the potential danger of a car accident, while slim, is too great a risk for student-athletes to run.

All of these problems would be compounded by any precipitation, which is likely in early November. A steep descent of a hill in the rain or snow would be catastrophic for a large pack of runners.

Many of these footing problems contribute to a major hazard: athletes falling and being trampled by the mass of runners in a state championship meet. With over 250 runners in each race, a fallen competitor is at the mercy of runners who might not see them; other runners can trip over the fallen runner, or they can inadvertently kick or spike him as they try to avoid him. While athletes will trip on any course, the Hershey course's poor footing creates a hotbed for tripping problems and subsequent complications.

The course is not very visible or centralized, and if a runner is injured on a distant part of the course, it could take a long time for a trainer to be notified of the injury, let alone reach him.

(A central PA coach) wrote to the PIAA in 2000, requesting that the District 3 course be changed, because the course at Hershey posed a danger to the athletes. If a coach whose team runs the course every year feels that a course is inappropriate for a District race, it goes without saying that it should not host the state championship race.

Continuing to hold the state championships at Hershey would be irresponsible to the safety of the athletes, and would compromise PIAA objectives to hold a safe competition. Please consider the safety of the athletes when you make your decision on the future sites for the PIAA Cross Country Championships. High School athletes compete for fun, and while a challenging course is welcomed, a dangerous one is not.

Sincerely, Charlie Ban University of Richmond

"I wanted to do something for the runners in Pennsylvania. No high schooler should work hard for four years and then have to run his or her final race on such a course. This letter may not make a lot of sense, because I was very involved in his effort, and this news from the PIAA has me very emotional. I already lost a day's worth of revision and addition to my term paper in history due to a disk error, and this news has just made this an absolutely horrible day for me, but I feel worse for the youth of Pennsylvania." -Charlie Ban

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"Is this the same course as 2001? Worst championship course I've ever seen. Rocks for brains PIAA (ex football coaches?) don't have any brains left since they deposited all the rocks just past the first turn. I feel sorry for the kids." - J Bonner

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"What do i think about Hershey for the next three years? Two reasons why it's bad: 1.) It is District 3's course. They run it a lot and are more used to it than other schools. It would be like holding states at Slippery Rock University. District 7 would have a major advantage, which in turn is not fair. 2.) The beginning of the race was horrible. Every runner has to converge to this small point and then all 300 people are trying to fit between this pole and this fence by the baseball field. It's very difficult and I saw many runners get taken out by either the pole or other runners. It was dangerous. Finding a neutral course would make the most sense." - Anonymous

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"Hi, I ran at Hershey for States this year and I hated it. It was worse than any course I had run on that entire year. Even the dual meet courses I ran on were better than Hershey. If it wasn't for the huge starting line the course wouldn't be at all suitable for a Meet of such calibuer. I was pushed in to steel poles, and tripped onto the dirt and rock paths twice. I couldn't stand it. The only thing that kept me content was the promise I recieved from my coach that we would not run there ever again. All the course does is aid runners with bigger builds who can push through people and muscle around the course. Reconsider!!" - Anonymous

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"That course was awful. It is not a fair test of true XC. You begin in a "parking lot" for God's sake!! Then go up a 400-600 meter hill within the first 1200 meters of the race! I found the course to be inane at best. The kids ran a championship level STATE MEET by looping around baseball outfields. It's silly and an embarrassment to the state and our sport. When I told friends from another state what the course was like they, laughed and asked why nothing else was available. The Lehigh course is a true XC course that was created for that specific purpose. It was good enough for the NCAA's a few years ago it probably would be fine for a high school meet. (That was sarcasm there). PSU's course is the next best one and even the Bucknell course was challenging but fair. The 400+ meter finish chute at Hershey I guess makes great drama, but it was interminable to any XC purist. Please say it ain't so... Maybe some of the people from the western part of the state would say hills are a part of the sport... I agree, but at least put them into a course that makes sense and has a true sense of the sport. I assumed that the only reason we were at Hershey was due to other courses not being available and that we would return to a real course next year. I thought that people who understood XC racing at a championship level made these decisions. Boy, was I naive!!" - Larry Rechtin Pottsgrove HS XC

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"The next 3 PIAA Championships being held at Hershey are criminal. That was easily the hardest course my team has ever seen or ever will see. I believe that a challenging course is one thing but that course is just punishing for young men and women. I would like to see the PIAA officials try to go out and run a competitive race on that course. I realize that people complain that the Penn State course is too narrow for the size field.But what about the teams from Northwestern PA? I was standing in line at the 2001 championships, when I overheard a coach from some school that ended up being near Northern Philly - he was not happy about traveling 4 hours or something to that effect - he thought the meet should be kept at Lehigh - I pointed out to him that teams from Northwestern PA - District 10 had to travel all day just to get to Lehigh and three-fourths of a day to get to Hershey or Bucknell. The State of Pennsylvania is huge, I cannot understand why the PIAA cannot spend the money (like they did to build up the Shippensburg track and field site) and make a competitive course that can accommodate the field and not be brutal on our young athletes." - Anonymous (PA HS coach)

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"Having run last year's (2001) state meet, I can safely say it is one of the worst championship courses I've ever run... and no it's not that it's too hilly. As an easterner I've been accused of complaining just because I'm not used to hills... 1st off... I ran at VA state championships twice at Great Meadows... that is a state championship course... hilly and challenging... the Hershey course starts on the worst rocky "runway" in the world, leading to stumbles and ankle injuries, the immediate turn after the 1st hill is extremely tight ruining the possiblity of ACTUAL TALENT prevailing, simply lucky positioning can place you 30 places higher.....after the insane turns we get to the spectators, granted nothing in the world spurs us on like cheering fans but when you are confined to a narrow alley such as the one atop the hill by the school, that's ridiculous. The end isn't as bad but it is far from perfect, the course as a whole is extremely rocky and an unwary runner can lose 3 months of running due to a misplaced step. I'm only grateful that this is my senior year and I will never deal with that goat trail of a course again." - James O'Kane

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(deleted first sentence to keep identity anonymous) "I cannot believe that our young men and women will once more have to run on such a dangerous course. Once again the PIAA is putting the welfare of our student athletes behind their own needs." - Anonmyous (PA HS Coach)

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"Hershey is fine for an individual championship but this is a team sport. Hershey is just plain not fair to all teams with that starting line and narrow course with tight turns. Lehigh is the only true fair course. Besides collage coaches know that course, they run on it and therefore it gives our athletes an advantage in selecting a college. We all know Hershey will be the sight of all PIAA championships in the future in all sports." - William Ruth

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"It's not a bad course but I truly hope someone puts some work into the place! The asphalt on the course must go and the huge gravel also needs to be removed or at least covered with dirt and turf. Also needs more trees and a true look and feel of a cross country course. Better course markings would also be a great help. I'm amazed that in such a "wilderness rich" state like Pennsylvania, we can't find the perfect location and build the perfect cross country venue for our high school athletes. After all, cross country was the first sport humans engaged in!" - Sincerely, Swad Swadlo

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"I believe that the decision to hold PA XC States at Hershey in any year, let alone 4 years in a row (including 2001) is a bad decision. Those who made the decision do not know what is in the best interests of cross country. The course is pathetic. It begins on an airplane runway and gets worse with every 90-degree turn from there. The location isn't any better than the proposals from Lehigh and Slippery Rock. It takes too long to get to the course because of traffic. There is not enough parking. I am quite disappointed with the decision. I have talked to several coaches in our area and haven't found any who like the Hershey course." - Matt Tavani, Wyalusing Valley High School

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"I saw the headline saying that the PIAA wants the state XC meet to be held at Hershey in the coming years. My name is Joel Thomas, and I finished 10th at the state meet this past year, and I must say that Hershey is the worst course I have ever run. The only positive quality of Hershey is the fact that it is located centrally in the state of Pennsylvania. Outside of that fact, it has no redeeming qualities (except perhaps the smell of chocolate in the air). The course does not have a good start for a state meet. Also, half of the course runs alongside of the mountain, which was not the least bit enjoyable for my legs. Runners could seriously be injured at Hershey, but the PIAA is too slow to realize this, because they do not know what it is like to actually run a race on the course. Moreover, the course does not lend itself to fans. My family and friends told me that it was difficult to get from checkpoint to checkpoint. Remember, this is states we are talking about -- possibly the most important race in a young athlete's career. I plead the PIAA to consider that a couple extra hours of driving is a price I am more than willing to pay in order to hold the PIAA XC State Championships at a quality course. And there are such courses out there. For example, why not run at Lehigh again??????? I think it is possibly the best course in the state. For heaven's sake, the NCAA national meet was held there once! Please consider these sentiments for the sake of every XC athlete. As I am a senior, I will not be around next year; however, I feel strongly enough about how bad Hershey's course was, that I feel every runner deserves better. - Thank you for your time. "Joel Thomas

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"It was not a spectator friendly course if it is the same course as 2001." - Richard Torbik

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"I don't think it's a good idea at all. It is not a championship style course. I have run or been part of numerous championship events and have never seen a course as unfair as Hershey's. The hills are too much, it does not show who truly is the best all around cross country runner. It is not very spectator friendly as well." - Anonymous

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"l though my daughter, Lauren Wood actually likes the course, as an ex-college xc runner and an avid spectator as a father I think the Hershey course is terrible. It chewed up a pair of $100.00 spikes and almost killed half the spectators that attempted to see the race. Slippery Rock is good enough to host the NCCA's but I guess it's asking too much for the eastern people to come out west and run on a great course that the runners appreciate. Furthermore, at Slippery Rock, the spectators can easily see 95% of the race without risking injury sprinting in the fields and woods." - James K. Wood

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THIS SPACE RESERVED FOR THE PIAA RESPONSE!