Clovis in 09??

I think this is superficially appealing, but is it wise? This isn't an electoral college. If we have 2/3 of the meets in central and western locations, doesn't that just entrench the western "monopoly?" West coast swimmers will be more likely to attend nationals, go every year, enjoy the benefits of high level competition, etc. (When I look at my age group, west coast swimmers seem to dominate. If they have easier access to the fastest pools and fastest meets, that's somewhat of an advantage.) I think it makes more sense to move the meet around fairly evenly, to the extent possible. Otherwise, in addition to fostering the west coast monopoly, east coast swimmers will be penalized with a greater travel/expense burden than their west coast peers. Nothing can be perfectly fair, of course, but, since we pay USMS dues and shell out big bucks for our hobby, it would be nice to feel the love too! Well, if 2/3 are held in the western and central US, that also appears to mean in this instance that 2/3 are held in the eastern and central US... Here's the list from an earlier post breaking it down: East coast Ft Lauderdale 1998 LC Baltimore 2000 LC Rutgers 2003 LC Savannah 2004 LC Ft Lauderdale 2005 SC Coral Springs 2006 SC Central Indianapolis 1998 SC Minneapolis 1999 LC Indianaplois 2000 SC Cleveland 20002 LC Indianapolis 2004 SC The Woodlands 2007 LC Austin TX 2008 SC West Coast Santa Clara 1999 SC Santa Clara 2001 SC Hawaii 2002 SC Federal Way 2001 LC Tempe 2003 SC Mission Viejo 2005 Lc Federal Way 2007 SC Mt Hood 2008 LC I think Minnesota and Texas are each a push for east and west coasters (Texas may be a little closer for the west coasters while Minnesota a little closer for the east coasters, but both are in about the middle of the country.) Cleveland and Indy are much closer to the east coast than the west. Yeah, there doesn't seem to be any northeast meets, but I have no idea why this is the case. Hopefully bids are not being ignored. It certainly appears that the east coast has received their fair share of the meets. I'm not sure if having most of the meets where most of the USMS members are located is strictly a superficially good thing either, but it's not really worth debating. There is no right answer to that question. I would say that the west coast dominance in your age group probably has very little to do with a possible national championship location bias and almost everything to do with the fact that there are just more west coast swimmers in USMS. As for the reason for the larger west coast participation in USMS, I bet it has to do with the fact that we swim outdoors year-round. Indoor pools are miserable compared to training under an open sky. Swimming in a heated pool on a cool, rainy day is actually kind of fun.

I think this is superficially appealing, but is it wise? This isn't an electoral college. If we have 2/3 of the meets in central and western locations, doesn't that just entrench the western "monopoly?" West coast swimmers will be more likely to attend nationals, go every year, enjoy the benefits of high level competition, etc. (When I look at my age group, west coast swimmers seem to dominate. If they have easier access to the fastest pools and fastest meets, that's somewhat of an advantage.) I think it makes more sense to move the meet around fairly evenly, to the extent possible. Otherwise, in addition to fostering the west coast monopoly, east coast swimmers will be penalized with a greater travel/expense burden than their west coast peers. Nothing can be perfectly fair, of course, but, since we pay USMS dues and shell out big bucks for our hobby, it would be nice to feel the love too! Well, if 2/3 are held in the western and central US, that also appears to mean in this instance that 2/3 are held in the eastern and central US... Here's the list from an earlier post breaking it down: East coast Ft Lauderdale 1998 LC Baltimore 2000 LC Rutgers 2003 LC Savannah 2004 LC Ft Lauderdale 2005 SC Coral Springs 2006 SC Central Indianapolis 1998 SC Minneapolis 1999 LC Indianaplois 2000 SC Cleveland 20002 LC Indianapolis 2004 SC The Woodlands 2007 LC Austin TX 2008 SC West Coast Santa Clara 1999 SC Santa Clara 2001 SC Hawaii 2002 SC Federal Way 2001 LC Tempe 2003 SC Mission Viejo 2005 Lc Federal Way 2007 SC Mt Hood 2008 LC I think Minnesota and Texas are each a push for east and west coasters (Texas may be a little closer for the west coasters while Minnesota a little closer for the east coasters, but both are in about the middle of the country.) Cleveland and Indy are much closer to the east coast than the west. Yeah, there doesn't seem to be any northeast meets, but I have no idea why this is the case. Hopefully bids are not being ignored. It certainly appears that the east coast has received their fair share of the meets. I'm not sure if having most of the meets where most of the USMS members are located is strictly a superficially good thing either, but it's not really worth debating. There is no right answer to that question. I would say that the west coast dominance in your age group probably has very little to do with a possible national championship location bias and almost everything to do with the fact that there are just more west coast swimmers in USMS. As for the reason for the larger west coast participation in USMS, I bet it has to do with the fact that we swim outdoors year-round. Indoor pools are miserable compared to training under an open sky. Swimming in a heated pool on a cool, rainy day is actually kind of fun.