Give & Take: Letters to the editor

WIAA policy hurts cross country

Regarding Sunday’s (Nov. 2) cross country article on the regional meet in Richland.  Always nice to have coverage of the sport and for those teams and individuals reaping the benefits of their hard work.

 Your article states that the “top 20 finishers not on those teams” also advance.  I wish that were the case but is not true, and brings up two poor WIAA rulings resulting in the wake of recent reclassifications by the WIAA.  

First, the top two teams in our region (as opposed to the top three teams from previous years) advance.  Last Saturday, my team placed third at the regional meet, and in spite of being ranked third in the state all season long, will not be running next week.  

Second, the ruling states that individuals on qualifying teams who finish in the top 10 count as qualifying individuals, which makes absolutely no sense at all. Logical ruling would have those individuals on a qualifying team not be counted (as they are on a qualifying team), thus allowing allotments for individuals who truly should advance. Were this the case, my team would qualify in addition to the two Shadle Park boys and Hanford’s top finisher.

For decades, Eastern Washington, and specifically Spokane, has been the “rift valley” for American prep distance running.  Our state meet is the culminating event. It could arguably be the best meet in the nation, but WIAA policy taints it.  WIAA claims its mission is to be “fair and accessible” yet its current policy is unfair to cross country, cheapens our state “championship,” and most of all hurts the kids by denying them the opportunity to  “challenge themselves to attain personal excellence.”  

Denying kids does not “strengthen character, build confidence, and maximize potential.”  I’m not crying in my beer over this. I’m crying out over asinine policy that has hurt my kids and many others due to incompetent policy.  The only thing being built here are egos of characters maximizing poor policy on the WIAA.  

Will the WIAA ever wake up?

  Alex Dressel

Mt. Spokane cross country coach