I hope you are right, Mark. I know really dedicated and hardworking runners in this area, young and old, so I am hopeful that competitive running isn't totally on its way out.
But, to the extent that the article represents more and more of the racing scene, doesn't this call into question the value/respect/appreciation for what it is that we measurers do? I don't mean it isn't valuable, just wondering what is the effect of having lots of runners and some RD's who may not really care that a course is measured accurately. (Not to mention that some of those who do care think we get it wrong-- long that is!)
Thanks Pete for giving us this food for thought.