[KentuckyHillBilly5321]

Great question, Cat.

To expand on the cross country situation a little bit--

*During cross country season, an athlete is allowed to run in 13 meets (not counting the regional/state). And a team can compete in 2 practice meets (that can actually occur after the official start of the regular season).

*A runner must run in at least four (4) meets to be eligible to run in their respective regional (these can be middle school meets, freshman meets, jv meets or varsity meets).

*KY runners are not necessarily restricted from running out of state, but if they do venture outside of state lines, they can only compete against schools that are members of their state athletic associations (so--no Pikeville vs. Oak Hill Academy type meets--because they are not part of the Virginia High School athletic association).

*There are ways around that. If the runners participate as "unattached" runners. But then, they can have no affiliation with the school, the high school coach and can not be funded by the school in any manner. Matter of fact, I couldn't even go to the meet.

*The cool thing is--that rule really hurts indoor track. But the assistant commission worked to let our runners compete against unattached athletes (or not attached to their high school athletic association) for this season (since there are so few indoor meets in the state)--until they find a better resolution for the sport.

The thing to remember--track and cross country have more silly rules than any other sports--and it is HARD to keep up with them. But it is also very rewarding (and a lot more fun than people think).

Hopefully, I answered your questions! Thanks for being #1 Cat!