Why I love cross country

No need, bigpern. Hobos, like cross country parents, are soulless and thus deserve our scorn.

 

is there anything you people don't whine about?

 

Track is a different story, but I have never covered a cross country meet, where the boys and girls varsity were run back-to-back, in more than 1:30...

 

Actually, if I have time, I always try to quote an offensive lineman. In many cases, they're the most intelligent, most quotable players on the team. And, the truth is, everything else being equal, the team with the better o-line usually wins.

 

Why I don't try to cover the JV better: 1) It's for development, not for winning. There shouldn't be the same pressure on those players who are probably still having fun instead of dealing with the people of a town insane about winning; 2) during basketball season, they're playing at the same time as the varsity in a different building across town and 3) There's no such thing as a junior varsity state championship. Hell, once I decided to put in a box with the JV and freshmen basketball games separately instead of burying them at the end of the varsity stories. Got an anonymous letter from a parent a few days later bitching about how I "screw over" the JV with the box I made that night to make the games stand out a bit more circled with orange marker with "Prime Example!" scrawled on it. I mean it was the first time I had tried this. The next time out, JV and freshmen went back to notes at the end of the varsity story. Yes, people are that dumb.

Why don't you cover the offensive line more? Sometimes it's put more like: "Why do you always write so much about (the quarterback)?" Plain and simple, the quarterback has the ball. If I want to describe a play, especially since I'm keeping my own stats, I have to look for the ball. I will look for the linemen when I can, but I can't produce the box score you're demanding if I stare at the offensive line all night. Secondly, if you want your kid to get that kind of attention, make him a quarterback or a point guard.

 

and dropped dead on the spot.

 

Years ago, a friend told me of a similar problem and the crowd of complainers, at a JV game no less - saw the reporter on the sideline and started a chant: "Lets Hear it for the JV: THEY COUNT TOO!"

Back when I worked in the biz, I'm covering a varsity vs. JV game. I've got a tape recorder ready for quotes and the JV coach says "You've got to be fucking kidding me." Now that's perspective I embraced. I pity those who have to cover a varsity game against a JV team from another school because Team Varsity couldn't fill a hole in the schedule.

 

Just say you don't cover cross-country more because you can cover the runners for the rest of their lives, but only have four years to cover the football players.

 

Just tell them that you don't give a shit. Never easy for a parent to argue that logic away.

 

Six bucks and my left nut says the original e-mailer is not a "cross country fan." He/she is a parent, who only is interested in cross country for the four years Johnny or Suzie is participating.

Football rules (at least where I'm located), period. Thousands of people attend football games. Thousands of people don't attend cross country meets. It's our job as jounalists to report on public interests. 6,000 people at a football game, 100 at a CC meet, and they're supposed to get equal play? Puh-leeze.

 

You play with your balls a lot. You play with your balls more in one hour than Larry Bird does in one night.