Thoughts on NXN, NXR-SW

Almost indistinguishable in color from the Manlius team lined up next to them, Lucy Biles, Allie Schadler, and Katie Rainsberger anticipate the start of the race. Photo by Kyle Brazeil.

Now that NXN-2014 is history, let's sort out a few Southwest-related thoughts while we all still have some interest in discussing the topic.

First and foremost, it was a generally nice showing for the region's teams. 

In particular, the Davis girls and Timpanogos boys did a very nice job of showing they belonged. As long as NXN has at-large berths, people will look at how the teams so invited fared and wonder if they were the right selections. Davis and Timpanogos made the answer easy this year. Peering closely at results, I'm still not sure the Davis girls have things 100% back on track from where they were at mid season, but they proved they belonged even so. 

Timpanogos rose to the occasion with a 12th-place finish in the boys race. And the guys from Desert Hills have to be thinking that one of the things Timpanogos showed was that Desert Hills might have belonged there as well. I know there was some feeling among the Utah folks that Desert Hills should have been invited. While Desert Hills probably had the second-best resume of any #4 team (with Great Oak having the top resume), the prospects for #4 teams getting into NXN grow dimmer each year as the regions continue to rise in both quality and depth. There is no more emotionally draining place to finish at the regional race than fourth. It will continue to be that way.

It would seem that the Desert Vista girls took a chip on their shoulder all the way from Phoenix to Portland, changing only one letter in the airport code along the way. It was a very impressive showing for Desert Vista after what had to be a bit of a frustrating regional race. Also of note here, Dani Jones got win #1 versus Katie Rainsberger after missing twice on the Casa Grande layout. Dani Jones looked simply spectacular over the last mile on the Glendoveer course.

The Davis boys, meanwhile, managed to prove that the small margin of the regional loss to American Fork was no fluke. Two very good teams, and very nearly equal--at least at this point in the season.

The new course is a huge plus for NXN. The rain this year made the course run a little slower, of course, and the softer track probably tended to slightly favor smaller-bodied runners, but this course disarms the criticisms that associated with Portland Meadows. It is definitely an upgrade for the meet, and a course that will run much more consistently from year to year than Portland Meadows. At this point, Foot Locker can no longer lay claim to an inherently superior championship course.

Turning our attention now from the national event to the regional event...

I trust we all can agree that Casa Grande is, in most important respects, the best course option yet for NXR-Southwest. It's flat, fast, and low-altitude, which doesn't necessarily reflect the character of the majority of the region's courses, but it is a fair course and able to handle the crowds that come. I've been to NXR-SW all eight years, and this was easily the least congested feel the meet has had in any of those years. Next least congested would be the first year of the meet, but the meet will never again return to those kind of numbers.

Probably the single biggest issue for Casa Grande is the limited hotel and restaurant accommodations. 11 teams hitting the one Olive Garden in town for take-out team dinners the night before the race proved to be a bit more than the establishment could handle. But, both Olive Garden and the teams are likely to be smarter next year.

Hotels? Well, the regional event had Casa Grande's hotels at the bursting point. That's a good point to note when planning for next year. On the other hand, Chandler proved to be a reasonably quick commute for those who opted to stay there. 

And a big round of recognition for meet director Jeff Guy who keeps finding ways to put all the pieces together and make them fit. It will be a huge loss for the region if Jeff ever lets go of the gig.