Let’s just get this out of the way and start with a rumor. Word on the street is a new site has been selected for the Solo National Championship in 2009. The talk at the Peru National Tour was that someplace called Blytheville, Arkansas would host this event. There is a semi-active National Guard base located there and, yes, that means a return to CONCRETE.
As for lies, it remains a mystery to me why attendance at Peru has declined to such levels since the National Championship shifted to asphalt. Peru remains a viable site and if indeed the rumor is true that the Solo Nationals will return to concrete in 2009 you had better get your entry in for Peru as soon as it opens up in 2009 because the entry cap will be reached. I like Peru and have always liked Peru. Over the years various course designers have used some creativity in bringing a fresh perspective to a site layout that is in essence shaped like a narrow fan. Seat time is still seat time and the composition of the surface really doesn’t change the equation all that much (IMHO).
As for ruminations I will say this. People ought to be careful what they wish for. The crying and carping since the Solo National Championship moved to Heartland Park Topeka has gotten tiring for me. In my view, everyone all has to run on the same surface and and the true test of a champion for me was how that champion was able to adapt to the circumstances at hand. Is the surface sandy? Yes. Does it have as much grip as concrete? No. Was the surface better than Forbes Field? Um, let me think about that for a minute… Hell Yes! While the surface was a challenge it was the same challenge for everyone. Buck up. The quality of the facilities at Heartland Park was better than Forbes Field. The staff at Heartland Park were ‘getting it’ as concerns Solo. Improvements (vast) were made from the first year to the second and I expect there will be improvements again this year.
I guess in the end it is not going to matter where the Solo National Championship is held and I know a lot of people have worked very hard on everyone’s behalf to address everyone’s concerns. It will be interesting to hear what the take on a change in venue will be in fifteen months or so. My guess is there is still going to be a lot of bitching!
Here is an in depth look at Blytheville (Airfield is in the NW corner and I have added lodging to the map)
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