2011 was a great year for me.  I had the honor and joy of covering the sport I love through a site that provides more of what "track junkies" love than any other place on the internet.  I got to meet a lot of great athletes and also a number of talented, dedicated coaches.  Sometimes I still can't believe I got such a great opportunity!  But, being the type of person who is not satisfied with simply maintaining the status quo, I've been keeping a list of things that I think I can do even better the second time around.  These improvements, both big and small, could push North Carolina closer to the top of the MileSplit network, and benefit more athletes and teams than ever before.  Let me give you a small "sneak peek" at some things that are on tap for the new year:

 

 

NCRunners Elite Meets

 

NCRunners will be sponsoring three meets in 2012--one for each season--that will feature elite competition from North Carolina as well as surrounding states.  Two of the three meets (spring track and fall cross country) will also feature the Frosh/Soph Challenge, the UNOFFICIAL JV State Championship, which we hope to extend to the winter season in 2013.  More details coming in the next two weeks on the dates and locations for these competitions.

 

 

Expanded Coverage

 

Whether it's acquiring better equipment or adding staff to get to more meets, NCRunners will have a bigger presence than ever.  I hope to get more meet results into the database than ever before, a process that already began with the start of the winter season and should continue through spring track.  That should allow for more front-page features using the power of the database for highlights, rankings, and predictions.  I want to cover more meets, either in person or through a network of freelance reporters that I've started developing (and that includes more photo albums from parents, coaches, and athletes).  Adding some new equipment should allow me to get photos in more situations, and possibly to get multiple video angles (or multiple events) at the same time.  Finally, I hope to introduce a few more regular features to go along with the Meet of the Week and Senior Spotlight articles.

 

 

Subtle Changes to the Site Itself

 

In addition to the constant improvements coming from the developers at the MileSplit national office, I hope to make create a set of protocols for the way I present material here at NCRunners. There will be some small changes to the color schemes and layouts used for specific types of articles, leading to more recognizable consistency.  There will also be an improvement in photo- and video-editing behind the scenes will lead to higher-quality materials being published.  I'm even considering a small update to the NCRunners logo!  Speaking of which, that leads to one more possibility for 2012...

 

 

NCRunners Gear

 

Although this one is the farthest from being ready to roll out, I would like to have some basic NCRunners stuff available this year, starting with shirts and then maybe working into hats, socks, and other relevant items.  I hope to be sporting the gear at the meets I cover in person, as well as making it available for sale through the site.