Road Mile Measurement

Whether to use the 1.001 short course prevention factor in measuring a one mile road course may be debated. However, for any course that expects to receive either a USATF or AIMS certificate, the short course prevention factor must be applied. The method of measurement is irrelevant. Bike or steel tape, it doesn’t matter. If a certificate is desired, the SCPF must be used.

The SCPF is now used in road measurements as a worldwide standard, to my knowledge. This does not oblige anyone to use it, unless they desire some sort of federation recognition of course accuracy.

There is a well established, annual, USATF certified, road mile race in Kingsport, Tennessee, (the Santa Special, which is being held this weekend, by coincidence), where a significant number of Tennessee state age records have been set. This course was measured including the SCPF using the bicycle method. The course is flat and is a "U" shape with the "U" part being only a gentle curve. To a mile the SCPF obviously only adds 5.28 feet. At 5 minute mile pace, that extra 5.28 feet only takes 0.3 seconds to run, so the knowledge that the course is accurately measured is valuable for a 0.3 second time increase compared to not knowing how the race course length was determined and questioning whether or not a new personal best was run.

Matthew Studholme posting says it all.

Bill

The Pennsylvania Avenue Mile has been certified for quite a few years. Definitely use a bike as it's faster and the locations or restrictions are likely to change from time to time (in DC it's been almost annually). It's only fair to the runners to incorporate a "U", or semicircle, into the measurement (same is true of racewalk courses). For Pa Ave I was able to use a 70 foot diameter circle which seems to be OK with the elite runners.