I propose a rule change for the championship committee. If someone misses their heat at USMS Nationals due to general stupidity and day dreaming, they should be allowed to swim in an open lane in that same event.
John Smith
(2006 psuedo champion, 50yd back)
Originally posted by dorothyrde
Now the sad fact is, if the starter looked at his heat sheet and saw John Smith, or Dorothyrde, and looked up and saw an empty lane, and looked around and did not see anyone who looked this person, and would not know what the person looked like anyway to even know where to look, they would pause, and then start the heat. If the starter looked down, saw Gary Hall Jr was missing, the advantage the starter has is he/she knows what Gary looks like and would be able to look around and see this person, so yes being famous most certainly would have helped John.
So face recognition creates an unequal playing field (or pool).... I have the perfect solution!
Have all swimmers supply photos along with their entry forms and assign a "watcher" if need be (just as there are timers for different swimmers) whose role it would be to use the photo to search out the swimmer in her/his charge and drag said swimmer to the start, wresting her/him away from the adoring mobs. (This particular job, even if volunteer, should probably come with Workers Comp if the mobs are particularly large or unruly.) Swimmers should be asked not to put caps on until the "watcher" has spotted them and dragged them to the start, as it could interfere with identification... although swimmers wearing shark caps may be allowed to don these, since they could in fact help in identification.
Swimmers who miss heats after having the watcher take them physically to the start would then have their photos posted on the internet (with or without shark caps) for all to see and comment upon in USMS forums.
I admit that as a newcomer to this sport, I might be overlooking a few details in this otherwise very practical scheme... but what's a few details in the interest of ensuring fairness to all swimmers? ;)
Hey, any time you need solutions, I'm the go-to gal! :D
Originally posted by dorothyrde
Now the sad fact is, if the starter looked at his heat sheet and saw John Smith, or Dorothyrde, and looked up and saw an empty lane, and looked around and did not see anyone who looked this person, and would not know what the person looked like anyway to even know where to look, they would pause, and then start the heat. If the starter looked down, saw Gary Hall Jr was missing, the advantage the starter has is he/she knows what Gary looks like and would be able to look around and see this person, so yes being famous most certainly would have helped John.
So face recognition creates an unequal playing field (or pool).... I have the perfect solution!
Have all swimmers supply photos along with their entry forms and assign a "watcher" if need be (just as there are timers for different swimmers) whose role it would be to use the photo to search out the swimmer in her/his charge and drag said swimmer to the start, wresting her/him away from the adoring mobs. (This particular job, even if volunteer, should probably come with Workers Comp if the mobs are particularly large or unruly.) Swimmers should be asked not to put caps on until the "watcher" has spotted them and dragged them to the start, as it could interfere with identification... although swimmers wearing shark caps may be allowed to don these, since they could in fact help in identification.
Swimmers who miss heats after having the watcher take them physically to the start would then have their photos posted on the internet (with or without shark caps) for all to see and comment upon in USMS forums.
I admit that as a newcomer to this sport, I might be overlooking a few details in this otherwise very practical scheme... but what's a few details in the interest of ensuring fairness to all swimmers? ;)
Hey, any time you need solutions, I'm the go-to gal! :D
