Including information about another course on a cert map

I dealt with maps like this both as a certifier and as a measurer. My feeling is that if the route is clear, extra information does no harm. It reduces work, and gives the event organizer less paperwork to deal with.

We should avoid giving a measurer extra work just for the sake of our idea of how things should be.

The quality spectrum of course maps is wide, and ranges from the really beautiful to the low-end maps that just barely make it through. There's a tradeoff involved - a good measurer can be a bad mapmaker. Some will get better with practice and gentle encouragement, but some never do.

I think that in the case of two related courses using similar yet different routes, having both routes marked on both maps serves to reinforce that the routes are indeed, different. This should help to clarify for whomever is setting the course that they have marked the proper course for the individual races.

I agree, Duane.

I have not yet encountered a situation where a client complained about too much detail on a map.

Hello All,

As I have stated before, I do a lot of work for Walt Disney World. In 2008, I remeasured their Marathon and Half Marathon Courses. The Marathon course was set up differently, giving the faster runners the "Red" course and the slower runners the "Blue course. Only the first four miles were different. The result was to have the bulk of the faster runners through a tight course before the slower runners started to do the same. But the maps are so intricate, going through 5 different theme parks, that I felt that there was a need to put them on separate maps.

Disney, in its infinite wisdom, did away with the "Blue" course the second year. I was glad that I had put them on two maps in the end, because the client needed to show organizers how to set up the correct course. There was no confusion when they were given the correct map.

Since I do my maps electronically, I am able to add and subtract things to make changes. This has also helped year to year, when a course needs to change due to a small portion being under construction. Most of the map stays the same, but slight changes are easy to make. PowerPoint is a great tool, so that a RD can have multiple maps in one document. Both the Red and Blue course for Disney are in the same presentation, but only the Red course is given to the organizers now.