Author Archives: dahlman2017

Old Officials I officiate cross country meets.  I also managed large cross country meets, back in the day.  We (there were a lot of us making it happen) ran a meet that was one of the top three biggest in the state of Ohio.  We also ran the absolute largest District (state qualifying meet) in Ohio. And, IContinue reading “Running at Watkins”

At the State Track meet, I had the opportunity to talk to the person who “moderates” the track and field rules meeting for the National Federation of High Schools. She asked me how, as an official, I handle the “sixty minutes” rule. I answered honestly: that if I was at a height change, with twoContinue reading “Sixty Minutes – Sort of”

In Any Language They say the Intuit language (Eskimo) has dozens of words for what in English we call snow.  That makes a lot of sense.  Snow has a prime impact on their lives, near or above the Arctic Circle.  It even has an impact here.  Better to shovel “powder” than “slush”.   But in my “side-profession” of track officiating,Continue reading “Blue Sky Rain”

NFHS – Track and Field Rule 6, Section 8, Article 15 – The competitors weight shall be at or below the manufacturer’s pole rating.  The manufacturer must include on each pole:  the pole rating that shall be a minimum of ¾ inch in a contrasting color located within or above the top hand-hold position:  a 1-inch circular band indicatingContinue reading “Pole Labels”

Pole vault coaches often think they are faced with a dilemma. They know what their vaulter weighs. They know that the vaulter can’t vault “the pole” of that flex. And many coaches make this a “binary choice”: do I let the kid vault on a pole he/she can use, and “lie” about their weight, orContinue reading “Ethics and the Pole Vault Coach”