National series 2016 analysis by John Wallnutt

The National Series 2015 /  2016  

I have had a look at the National Series races for 2015 and the new schedule for 2016

Gone as National Series Races for 2016 are

Returning  for 2016 again are

New to the NS list for 2016 are

The full list is as follows

The National Series has been reduced from 29 races to 25. Of the 25 races there are 2 races on the same day on 6 different occasions so this leaves 19 races available.  You must complete at least 4 races and include one sprint and one Olympic and 2 others of any distance ( Sprint, Olympic & Middle). You can do them anywhere in the country i.e. all in Leinster if it suits, you are not required to do 4 races in 4 different province’s.

Picking which race will score the highest is a bit of pot luck but in general races with a bigger entry usually score on average slightly higher. In 2015 Athy would have been the highest scoring race. On the list of events for 2016 I have included a rating for any races which were on the National Series last year . Each has a rating  ie   DCT is 16/115. I have looked at the top 30 finishers in the National Series and checked their  top 4 counting events to see where they scored. The rating  16 / 115 for DCT means 16 ( of the 30) scored points which were used as one of their top 4 results.  The 115 is the average points scored overall by the 16 competitors. Based on this  The Fastnet Sprint, Top Of the Mourne Olympic , Hell of the West and DCT were some of the best scoring events. So were Crooked Lake and Athy but they are not on the NS list for 2016.

In General Middle distance Races will not score as high due to the size of the entry Field( usually smaller) . Also sometimes the National Championship races do not score well due to the fact they are more competitive ( Pulse scored poorly this year). DCT scored well this year as the Olympic Nationals but it also had a very big entry.  A lot of the top 30 scored in DCT (16) Caroline Kearney (12) and Belfast (8)

The only way to make sure you score well in the national Series is to complete 6 or 7 races if possible.  Your top 4 scoring races will count and the lower one discarded. I normally try to get 2 races done before the end of May. These will normally be Pool races which are a great way to get your season off to a good start without freezing your nuts off in the sea! They are also a great way to find out where you are with your training.

As many as possible should aim to compete in the National Championship races which for 2016 will be Hell of the West and Two Proviences  Lanesboro. These races should be supported either way. They may not score as high as some other races but HOTW should be OK due to the size of the event. Lanesboro could be pot luck on points.

It’s never too early to plan your season and you should have your races picked by the 1^st of Jan. We intend to have complete a review of all the races for 2016. Rate them based on course difficulty, race organisation, when entry opens, NS points rating, Size of entry and a few other areas.

In 2015 we had 75 men and 35 women complete one or more NS races . but only 14 men and 4 women completed the required 4 races. From a membership of 275 this is extremely poor.  We will be encouraging  as many as possible Piranha’s to complete 4 races in 2016 no matter what your level  is, so feel free to ask myself or Will and questions you might have. We are also looking into setting up a Handicapped League for all members to encourage you to get at least 4 races completed.