The article says that the race organizers are disputing the number of rescues being reported.
I'm not trying to start a flame war, just passing along the news as it is reported.
Just a few thoughts..
Again, we have no idea how the term "assistance." Until then, we don't really know what was done. And this definition would also be necessary to compare it to a USMS OW swim.
.... but this article is simply cr*p "journalism" of the "headless body found in topless bar" variety.
LA Tri is USAT sanctioned
As far as variable time penalties, they are handed out at the time of violation by a race marshall (assuming the violation is witnessed), not after the fact, and whether they are served immediately or later depends on the race. ...
Even OW swimming has race marshalls in the mix for how swimmers act, yes?
You make several interesting points. In USMS OW events, assistance of any sort is reason for disqualification. Resting on a kayak, being physically guided out of the water, any touching that is other than accidental is not allowed. Even handing food or drink to the swimmer is a very particular affair. Purity of this sort would probably send the Tri event registrations plummeting, since someone who cannot make 1 or 2 miles without assisted resting would be unable to justify the entry fee. In OW races, the marshalls are on the course to enforce the rules, not decide to what extent they were broken.
It would be very interesting to investigate the differences between USMS OW and USAT sanction requirements.
As for crap journalism, you can believe what you like. The professional lifeguards and firemen making reports are not in the habit of pumping up numbers for salacious reading. In fact, it creates a considerable amount of paperwork (incident reports) if the person needed assistance other than a hand on the rescue boat to rest. That could be the majority of the cases, but assistance was given nonetheless. The water temperature, with the current and/or rough surf were probably enough to create an environment that would easily foster 169 "assists" out of 2800 competitors in the water.
The fact that USAT allows time penalties is a marvel of marketing. It keeps the feeling of competition alive without having to take someone's money after 10 minutes and saying, "you are out" for having broken a rule by getting assistance. Everyone can justify sitting in a time out tent and starting the bike ride or run a little later, as long as they get to cross the finish line.
Just a few thoughts..
Again, we have no idea how the term "assistance." Until then, we don't really know what was done. And this definition would also be necessary to compare it to a USMS OW swim.
.... but this article is simply cr*p "journalism" of the "headless body found in topless bar" variety.
LA Tri is USAT sanctioned
As far as variable time penalties, they are handed out at the time of violation by a race marshall (assuming the violation is witnessed), not after the fact, and whether they are served immediately or later depends on the race. ...
Even OW swimming has race marshalls in the mix for how swimmers act, yes?
You make several interesting points. In USMS OW events, assistance of any sort is reason for disqualification. Resting on a kayak, being physically guided out of the water, any touching that is other than accidental is not allowed. Even handing food or drink to the swimmer is a very particular affair. Purity of this sort would probably send the Tri event registrations plummeting, since someone who cannot make 1 or 2 miles without assisted resting would be unable to justify the entry fee. In OW races, the marshalls are on the course to enforce the rules, not decide to what extent they were broken.
It would be very interesting to investigate the differences between USMS OW and USAT sanction requirements.
As for crap journalism, you can believe what you like. The professional lifeguards and firemen making reports are not in the habit of pumping up numbers for salacious reading. In fact, it creates a considerable amount of paperwork (incident reports) if the person needed assistance other than a hand on the rescue boat to rest. That could be the majority of the cases, but assistance was given nonetheless. The water temperature, with the current and/or rough surf were probably enough to create an environment that would easily foster 169 "assists" out of 2800 competitors in the water.
The fact that USAT allows time penalties is a marvel of marketing. It keeps the feeling of competition alive without having to take someone's money after 10 minutes and saying, "you are out" for having broken a rule by getting assistance. Everyone can justify sitting in a time out tent and starting the bike ride or run a little later, as long as they get to cross the finish line.
