Click here to subscribe to TexasTrack.com and support this site

Track & Field Statistics

Track & field statistical reporting can be very confusing, but there are certain rules that are used to insure fair comparison of marks.

A big factor in Texas is the effect the wind has on sprint straightaway races. Obviously a 100-meter race run with a Lubbock 30 mph wind had an advantage over one run in the relatively calm confines of east Texas. Unfortunately, wind gauges are used in only a handful of meets hosted by universities so wind is not considered when comparing marks on the TexasTrack.com 2002 lists.

A bigger concern is the reporting of handheld and fully automatic timing (FAT) results. Most meets do NOT utilize FAT timing systems, but report their results incorrectly in 100ths. The rules state that handheld times are rounded UP to the next tenth (0.1) of a second. (Coaches -- you wouldn't report a football or basketball score wrong so why report a track performance incorrectly?)

Comparing handheld and FAT marks is even more difficult because of the inaccuracy of handheld marks (especially the reaction time to the firing of the starting gun). Scientific studies have resulted in a standard adjustment that is used all over the world.

For all races less than 300 meters, 0.24 is added to a handheld time. For races 300 meters or longer, 0.14 is added. For instance, a 10.4 handheld time would be comparable to a 10.64 FAT time.

For the purposes of the high school performance lists, all marks are considered handheld unless specifically informed otherwise by the meet management.

Most importantly, these lists are meant only for relative comparisons. In the sport of track & field, all that matters is who gets to the finish line first, jumps the highest and farthest, and throws the best in head-to-head competition.