It’s a family affair every Wednesday evening this summer in Shoreline Stadium. Club Northwest’s all-comers track and field program is open to all athletes, whether you are pro, amateur or just someone who wants to have fun.
On a typical Wednesday, pole vaulters of all ages clear the bar on one end of the field while 5- and 6-year-olds run the prestigious 50-yard dash on the track.
It’s a relaxed environment. Families pay a small entry fee and are able to take part in any event, from shot put to the mile run. Children of all ages run back and forth on through the stadium, setting up and practicing different track and field events.
The laid-back feeling is a tradition at the all-comers meets, says Bill Roe, Club Northwest director and president of track and field events. Roe has been involved with the all-comers meets since the first one in 1969.
During the 1970s and 1980s, only college level and high school athletes would compete, he said. In 1992, Club Northwest started holding separate events for children. That began to attract more families to the meets and now, the whole family will often take part in the meet, Roe said.
“People pay a fee to enter, then think they might as well run an easy event,” Roe said. “Half of the meet is about 14 (years old) and under.”
Brian Oster, meet director and manager, agrees. He said the event’s focus has changed toward getting children involved in sports.
“(The point is to) bring the next generation into the fold, get them interested in running,” he said.
The meets are supported by the members of Club Northwest, which has roughly 500 dues-paying members, Oster said. The events are run by volunteers, which reflects the family feeling of the meets.
There have been changes to the all-comers meet in recent years. It’s been moved around to different tracks and stadiums. This has caused a drop in adult participants. Roe said he suspects high gas prices and traffic congestion are partially to blame.
Regardless, each meet attracts about 200 to 300 participants, Roe said. There’s different levels of participation, depending on the event.
One meet favorite is the “jogger’s mile,” where athletes aren’t required to run at record-breaking speeds. Instead, the goal is for each participant to predict the amount of time that it will take to run a mile, without the use of stopwatches, of course. Whoever completes the race nearest to their predicted time, wins.
The whole point of the meets is to have fun, Roe says.
“We don’t all apply the rules of the sports. Some people expect us to apply them like it’s a religion,” he said. “They’re surprised we’re so relaxed.”
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