USATF has a very similar course measurer guide which is "remarkably dual." You can search for USATF's guide on the web. The course is laid out in the same bicycle manner using a Jones counter and nominally 1.001X long (short course prevention factor). However, the bicycle calibration course may be laid out in feet or meters, and machinations and conversions used to get between Customary and metric. The course maps specifically allow the start, finish, turn-around points, etc to be referenced in feet or meters from permanent landmarks.
Most of the courses recorded on their website have splits in miles with perhaps a simple midpoint split in kilometers. The overall distance is metric. A 10K race must be 10000 m minimum, 10010 m target, and presumably 10020 m max (I'm not sure there is a hard max, but it is implied. I assert a course of length 32809 ft min, 32841 ft target, 32874 ft max complies, and would seem to be allowed by USATF, and sacrifices very little tolerance from rounding "specward." (not that I think that's a good thing, just a true thing.) ________________________________ From: Martin Vlietstra <[email protected]> To: U.S. Metric Association <[email protected]> Sent: Thu, November 25, 2010 3:41:02 PM Subject: [USMA:48937] RE: Detroit Turkey Trot A quick read of the rules of the IAAF for road races suggests to me the use of kilometres is mandatory, miles optional. (See http://www.iaaf.org/mm/Document/Competitions/Competition/04/54/93/20090723080234_httppostedfile_200806_2_MeasurementManual_12345.pdf) This raises the question “Could a new world record be set on a track that does not display kilometres?” ________________________________ From:[email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of John M. Steele Sent: 25 November 2010 18:04 To: U.S. Metric Association Subject: [USMA:48934] Detroit Turkey Trot Well, this seemed more metric than that other Turkey Trot: *The Detroit Free Press described it as 10 K and 5 K races (with a parenthetical 3.1 miles for the 5K) http://www.freep.com/article/20101125/NEWS01/101125006/1001/rss01 *The organizers describe it as 10K and 5K races (there is also a 1 mile) http://www.theparade.org/turkeytrot/index.php I was feeling pretty smug that Detroit knew how to be more metric than Sacramento . Imagine my surprise when I look at the USATF Course Certification Map. Only mile markers are placed, and all the instructions for starts, finishes, turnarounds, etc are laid out in feet from landmark infrastructure. http://www.theparade.org/docs/turkeytrot/SanctionMap10km.pdf Does USATF normally lay out metric courses in Customary? That just seems to add another layer of complexity.
