Earn your Stripes

NSC Season 3 Event 2 just finished up. I was at work so all I got were placements and significant events that happened but I ask myself where did everyone go?

Let me start with the endurance athletes because I enjoy that group of skaters and the contrasts between them.
-The Dominate-for-years Cheex. Been around for a while winning endurance races in the sport forever it seems like.
-Then you have Stelly, although not skating up to his usual standards he is still Stelly. The guy that does everything no one else would think to do. Wants to win but wants to put on a show, which one comes first? Only he knows.
-Jake one of the coming-into-prime-aged skaters that is starting to skate and earn the results that everyone thought he would while watching him grow through divisions.
-Jarrett a skater that is coming into his prime a little later then most but has a lot of talent. The one that catches all the crap for being to safe or being content with the second or third place finish.

If you had to pick four skater types is there any other way to go? The Dominate Star, Showboater, Up and Comer, and the Something to prove guy? After that who is the first endurance athlete to come to mind? It's probably someone you know personally or have a good relationship with, not someone who deserves the next spot. I like Jeremy as my fifth guy, only problem is can you imagine sprints without him? Wow. But what about the Past-prime-proving-age-doesn't-matter-guy with those four? What if you tossed in a highly talented but even bigger ego skater? Say Harry Vogel. What if you add season 1's Endurance champion, Mantia to the mix. Now you have a group that makes you itch a little bit until the next event. I don't want to see a great race and somewhere out in the galaxy there be this idea, what would that race have looked like with Vogel or Anderson? Would Mantia still beat these guys?

Who out of the next tier is going to man-up, put in the work, and add their name to the mix? I'll be sitting here waiting for it.

What if you had to earn your colors in the National SpeedSkating Circuit? Let's be honest, the people I named everyone knows therefore they should have their colors, but the next tier of skaters.. why give them the same privilege as the best? Why not give them all the same neutral color uniform/skinsuit and when they managed to finish top 3 in TWO different races (can be at the same event or different) they earn that colored skin everyone covets?

I want to see the last qualifiier, the 16th endurance guy on the roster grow a pair and try something different. Sitting behind the best and hoping that you magically became faster then everyone else is a terrible plan. Why not use strategy? Why not think about going all out before everyone else, maybe you blow up and don't make the final or don't get top 3 but sitting there and waiting for them to make their move isn't going to get you anywhere.

I live in Salt Lake now and skate a lot of ice, watch a lot of ice. But sports are still sports. There was an event a year ago that in a semifinal was just stacked. You had an Olympian, World Cup Medalist, World Cup skater, and then three other skaters in a 1500m. One of the 'other skaters' took off from the gun, the most profound and absurd thing to do in short track speedskating. Ended up blowing up and and not qualifying for the A final BUT he effected the outcome of the race. One of the better 1500m skaters had to chase him while a quick guy with less endurance go to sit behind and just draft the whole time.

I don't want Event 3 to come around and know right now that Cheex, Jake, and Jarrett are my top three endurance athletes in some order baring falls and DQ's what is cool about that?

Sprint thoughts in the coming days..