The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

WITH some of the cross country competitions on the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ calendar in jeopardy, the Bahamas Association of Athletic Coaches has decided to revive the once popular Bay Street Mile for local distance runners.

The one-mile race, reinstated on the calendar in 2010 only to be omitted again over the past two years, will return 6am Saturday, November 9, from the Straw Market on Bay Street and head east where it will end up in front of BASRA on East Bay Street.

Competitors will get to compete in six age group divisions in the male and female categories. They include under-15, under-20, under-30, under-40, under-50 and 50-and-over. Awards will be presented to the first three finishers in each category.

The entry fee is $10 with early registration taking place 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday at the BAAA’s office at the original Thomas A Robinson Track and Field Stadium. Interested persons can also obtain information on the website www.facebook.com/baac242, email batfc242@gmail.com or phone 359-0123 or 359-0001.

Curtis Pride, president of the BAAC, said when they came into office this year, his team of executives decided to provide the opportunity for the local distance runners to participate in a familiar event.

“We want to honour whatever the previous administration had made a commitment to and the Bay Street Mile was one of those events on the schedule,” Pride said.

“When we looked at it, we determined that the Bay Street Mile has a rich history and it’s one of those events that could help to set us up for future success, as it relates to distance running in the country.”

Pride said their association will be doing a disservice to the middle distance runners if they don’t provide some type of forum for them to compete in and develop their skills.

“There’s not enough distance running events on our calendar and our kids don’t get the kind of exposure that they need,” he said. “We know that there could be a lot more distance runners if we have events like these. So we want to provide this opportunity for them to come out and have some fun.”

Although he competed as a field competitor, Pride said he always remembered watching the distance runners participate in the road races, which helped to develop their skills. He’s hoping that their association will find a way to do their part in helping to revive the road running programme.

“It’s something we are going to be committed to in the long run,” he stated.

Although they don’t have sufficient time to plan the event, Pride said they have a committee headed by David Ferguson and Stephen Murray, two former distance runners who are now coaching distance runners, and they are confident that they will make the event as attractive for everybody to come out and participate.

“We want our athletes to look forward to coming out and competing in this Bay Street Mile,” Pride said. “Once this one is finished, the committee will start working on putting an effective plan in place to really make the Bay Street Mile a productive one in the future.”

With a number of the cross country events either being scrapped or in the process of being taken off the calendar this year, Pride said the Bay Street Mile will come at an opportune time to give the distance runners another avenue to develop their skills.

“We want to make sure that this particular event happens because with a number of the cross country meets not being held this year, we have to be concerned about our distance running programme,” he said. “Normally, the cross country helps to provide an avenue for the middle distance runners to get themselves ready during the off season.

“And with the world relays on the agenda for next year, we are hoping that we could have some distance runners available to compete. If we don’t get it together for the first one, it will be difficult to do it for the second one in 2015. But if we can get them ready for 2014, that should make it easier for us in 2015.”

Pride said the Bay Street Mile will provide some impetus for the coaches to look at some of their middle distance runners in action, even though it’s just over a stretch of one mile.