CCBC - 2010 BC Midget Championships Technical Guidelines

The objectives of the BC Midget Championships are to (1) bring young skiers together for a memorable and enjoyable weekend of cross country ski competition and fun, (2) meet the needs of a wide range of skill levels and ski experience, (3) encourage achievement through team effort, and (4) encourage good ski technique.

Sites will be selected by Cross Country BC. Sites will be chosen based on (1) appropriate facilities, (2) the club’s ability to guarantee a well-organized event, and (3) the likelihood of the greatest number of participants.

The BC Midget Championships is an official, registered Cross Country BC event that will be published on the CCBC Competition Schedule. However, it is not sanctioned – it is not a Canada Points List race, it is not held under CCC/FIS Rules and Regulations, it does not require a ski licence of any kind, and it does not require a Technical Delegate.

Invitations/posters must be distributed (as a minimum) to all CCBC member clubs, the CCBC Office and the Competitions Chairperson a minimum of four (4) weeks in advance of the competition.

Entries must close no later than Wednesday prior to the competition. NO POST ENTRIES ARE ALLOWED. The event notice should point out that faxed entries must be confirmed with a phone call.

It is important that the event notice is complete with all necessary information that the coaches require. It should be planned carefully, and there should be NO changes after it is distributed. Please include a basic accommodation list with phone numbers.

A CCBC Club, or an Elementary School (that is not officially affiliated by membership to a CCBC Club) can register a Team in this event. Only one Team per club or school can register in the Championships.

A participant in this event must ski for one Team only, they cannot be registered under both a School Team and a Club Team.

The Tournament is open to individuals that are not affiliated with a club or school.

Skiers born in 1997, 1998 , 1999 and 2000 are eligible (equivalent of grades 7, 6, 5 & 4).

Skiers may only enter in one age category for the duration of the event. When a skier registers initially, they can move up an age category, but not down.

There is no seeding for this event, just a random draw. The draw for the Interval Start, Relays, and morning Time Trial for the Sprints should be held NO later than the Thursday night before the event. This is for the convenience of the event organizers.

It is the responsibility of the organizers to ensure that the event notice carries most of the necessary information that the coaches will need, and that start lists for the first day are available at the race site the day before. If possible, organizers should leave start lists where teams are staying - if a team is traveling a considerable distance and cannot reach the race site on the day prior to the first event. Coaches Information Meetings may be held if the organizers feel this is necessary, however the inconvenience to coaches that are traveling and preparing athletes for the competition should be taken into consideration before making this decision.

The competition courses must be properly groomed and marked for inspection by the skiers/coaches the afternoon prior to the first event. Many participants will arrive in time to familiarize themselves with the course and they should find course markings for the first day of competition clearly marked out. It is very important that the courses are marked correctly. A course map displayed in the stadium area is not sufficient.

Classic tracks must be set on the side of the course for the Free Technique events because of the skill level of some of the competitors.

A recognized electronic timing system must be used. Clubs may have access to this equipment either through ownership or by borrowing from other sport groups in their community. If that is not possible, a set of equipment can be rented from the CCBC Office.

Zone 4 software must be used for both the Interval Start race and the Sprint, and it is preferable that it is used for the Relays as well. In addition to full results postings on Zone 4, the top four race results, the technique awards and the aggregate team points should be posted on your club web site as soon as possible after each day’s events. That will allow CCBC to access the information and broadcast all the results highlights throughout the ski community during the weekend.

NOTE: Results distribution to the local media is also the responsibility of the event organizers.

Awards will be provided to the top four finishers in each age category for the ‘individual start’ and ‘sprint’ competitions, as well as each member of the top three teams in the ‘relay’ competition. Awards for the interval start and sprint races are the official "BC Midget Championship" medals. Awards for relays are determined by the organizers.

Note: event organizers purchase the official BC Midget Championship medals from the CCBC Office. All awards are the financial responsibility of the host club.

Prizes will be provided to five skiers with excellent classic technique, and to five skiers with excellent skating technique. Evaluation will take place during the classic interval start and free technique sprint competitions. A minimum of two CCBC-approved coaches, working as a team, are appointed as judges for this award (minimum NCCP Level 3 (old system) or equivalent new system training).

Other special awards are encouraged as well. These awards are the responsibility of the host club.

Each participating Team accumulates points towards the Team Aggregate Trophy. Team points are earned by:

                                                                                     Points
1. No. of participants in an interval start race                      1 point per participant
2. Each particpant on an official relay team                         1 point per particpant
3. Each participant on an unofficial relay team                   1 point per participant
4. No. of participants in a sprint race                                    1 point per participant
5. Top 4 placings in an interval start race                             5, 4, 3, 2, points
     (this is in addition to points earned for participation)
6. Top 4 placings in a sprint race                                          5, 4, 3, 2, points
     (this is in addition to points earned for participation)
7. Top 4 Team placings in an interval start race                 5, 4, 3, 2, points
     (based on total time of the best four times)
8. Top 4 Team placings in a relay event                              10, 8, 6, 4 points
9. Top 5, best classic technique                                            5 points each
10.Top 5, best skating technique                                          5 points each

Points for top 4 Relay placings are calculated for official Relay Teams only.

The Team with the most overall points wins the Team Aggregate Trophy.

A banner will be provided to the winning Team, as well as a certificate to each member of the Team. It is Cross Country BC’s responsibility to provide the banner, and it is the host clubs responsibility to provide the certificates.

The Midget Championship Team Trophy is provided by Cross Country BC. This trophy will be displayed at the CCBC Office between Championship events, and Cross Country BC will be responsible for engraving plaques with the name of the winning Team.

Interval Start, classic technique. 15 second interval starts should be used. Eight categories offered: born in 2000 (boy and girl categories), born in 1999 (boy and girl categories), born in 1998 (boy and girl categories) and born in 1997 (boy and girl categories).

Individual Sprint, free technique. 15 second interval starts for the Qualification Round. A "Kings Court" format is preferred so that every participant has the opportunity to ski in the same number of events. However this format requires a high level of race management skill to execute in a timely manner and should only be used if the event organizers feel comfortable about doing so. Recommendation: one minute spacing between heats. If the traditional sprint format is used, then all participants must be offered the opportunity to compete in the Qualification Round and a minimum of one heat. Eight categories offered: born in 2000 (boy and girl categories), born in 1999 (boy and girl categories), born in 1998 (boy and girl categories) and born in 1997 (boy and girl categories).

9 years            2000        300 meters
10 years         1999         300 meters
11 years         1998         300 meters
12 years         1997         300 meters

Event organizers are encouraged to keep their entry fees as low as possible to encourage participation. The maximum fee for both day’s events and the Saturday evening banquet is $60.00, and additional benefits would be expected if the fee were to be set at that level.

The host club should not charge separate trail-use fees to athletes, coaches or persons assisting coaches on the course inspection day (the day prior to the first event) or the days that the event is held. In addition, spectators should be allowed access to the competition trails during competition (to the extent they do not interfere with the competitors) without payment of trail use fees. Instead, organizers should make arrangements ahead of time for payment for use of the Trails for their event, and this expense should be built into the participant’s registration fee.

If the host cub requires that persons using trails or facilities display a pass, persons who are not required to pay trail use fees may be required to display a pass provided without charge by the host club. Event participants should not be required to display a pass during the course of a competition.