Post by Wines Not Whines on Apr 30, 2015 12:55:21 GMT -5
I was really surprised that Chicago didn't ask for credit card info when I signed up for the lottery. I was debating whether or not to enter, and when I saw that there was essentially no risk, I figured I might as well. I assume it would lead to a greater number of entries.
The issue I have with Chicago's lottery system is they haven't worked out the kinks yet. Take 2 people in this post alone who got into the race but can't run it for whatever reasons. Totally acceptable and reasonable, but taking an entry spot from someone who would have loved to run it (but that's me jumping ahead without knowing for sure if you can defer). At least with NYC, they take your credit card info and charge you once you have been accepted via lottery (and then I think you may have the option of deferring, I don't remember). 3:45 for women is not a super fast time, so I am sure a lot of people got in with guaranteed entry, and I wonder how they are going to limit the race field in the future or how soon they will have to drop the guaranteed entry time. What do they do if a huge percentage of lottery winners decide not to register to run? Just have more charity spots available?
The bolded is actually where I see one of the biggest issues. If you are 40+ Chicago is just as hard (if not harder) than Boston! I have a woman I know who is currently trying for a 4:10 for Boston. She has no hope of ever (her words, not mine) qualifying for Chicago. I actually don't think there are that many people getting in through qualifying. When I ran 3:39 there, I was surprisingly high in my placing.
If you enter the lottery, do they not immediately charge your card? That would be HUGE in ensuring that only those who are 99% committed will apply. I think it sucks when races don't allow bib transfers. Believe me, it was a big sore spot for me w/Boston, knowing that roughly 70 people stood between me and a spot, and knowing that way more than that wouldn't show up. I think races count on that though...sort of how airlines overbook flights. They account for people not following through, when making their numbers.
yea, you're right. I don't know what I was thinking when I wrote that....in the brief mindset of "omg Chicago's the best eveeeer and anyone who's got a qualifying time in the whole wide world will want to run it." but yea, no, i'm dumb. just trying to make myself feel better about missing it by <2min
The bolded is actually where I see one of the biggest issues. If you are 40+ Chicago is just as hard (if not harder) than Boston! I have a woman I know who is currently trying for a 4:10 for Boston. She has no hope of ever (her words, not mine) qualifying for Chicago. I actually don't think there are that many people getting in through qualifying. When I ran 3:39 there, I was surprisingly high in my placing.
If you enter the lottery, do they not immediately charge your card? That would be HUGE in ensuring that only those who are 99% committed will apply. I think it sucks when races don't allow bib transfers. Believe me, it was a big sore spot for me w/Boston, knowing that roughly 70 people stood between me and a spot, and knowing that way more than that wouldn't show up. I think races count on that though...sort of how airlines overbook flights. They account for people not following through, when making their numbers.
yea, you're right. I don't know what I was thinking when I wrote that....in the brief mindset of "omg Chicago's the best eveeeer and anyone who's got a qualifying time in the whole wide world will want to run it." but yea, no, i'm dumb. just trying to make myself feel better about missing it by <2min
No, I totally get it! When I first saw the qualifying times, I immediately thought, "Oh that's nice! 10 min easier than Boston. That will give people something to work towards before their BQ." I bet numbers will be high. Then I thought about the fact that it wasn't age graded and I realized how difficult it just became for a lot of people. NYC is considerably more difficult to qualify for than Boston, but at least they use age groupings to make it fair.
I totally sympathize with how close your time is. You'll get there!!
ETA: And they DEFINITELY need to make a cc mandatory for the lottery.
I was really surprised that Chicago didn't ask for credit card info when I signed up for the lottery. I was debating whether or not to enter, and when I saw that there was essentially no risk, I figured I might as well. I assume it would lead to a greater number of entries.
And that's what sucks for those of us who didn't get in. There are a lot of people who did get in who aren't going to run it. Those spots don't open up to those who didn't get in. This is only the second year for the lottery...maybe they will get it figured out in the future.