Pinnacle Racing Hosts the 8th Annual Inline Short Track Memorial Weekend Speed Skating Meet

Speed is the name of the game this weekend -- Indianapolis has the Indy 500 and Roswell, Georgia is home to the annual short track Memorial Weekend Inline Speed Meet.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jim & Linda Blair -- Rink Owners & Operators -- 770/998-9701
Contact: Clyde Patterson -- Rink Manager -- 770/998-9701
Contact: Darlene Lowe -- Public Relations Manager - 770/998-9701
PINNACLE RACING IS HOST TO THE 8th ANNUAL MEMORIAL DAY INDOOR SPEED SKATING MEET        

Roswell, Georgia, May 25, 2002 -- Speed is the name of the game this weekend -- Indianapolis has the Indy 500 and Roswell, Georgia is home to the annual short track Memorial Weekend Inline Speed Meet. Jim and Linda Blair, owners and operators of the Roswell Roller Rink located in Roswell, Georgia are expecting a record crowd of 350 registered skaters. The meet promises to be one of the nation's largest this year. The age range of skaters varies from 5 to 60 years old.

About The Indoor Competition

Indoor skating uses a 100-meter oval track in individual and relay events. (Smaller tracks can be used for rinks not able to safely accommodate a 100-meter track. USA Roller Skating will help with this determination.) In both events, the age groups determine distances and divisions. In individual events champions are determined by the points they earn in the final races of each distance skated.

As in individual divisions, relay teams qualify to skate at the U.S. Championships by having placed among the top three teams in the relay's division at their respective regional championships or are a defending champion.

Relay events are divided into four divisions and may be skated by teams of either two or four skaters. There are also separate divisions for quad and in-line skates in relays. The relay races include events for teams of four men, four women and four mixed (two men and two women).

Two person relays are comprised of two men, two women and two-mixed (one man and one woman). The distance and number of laps skated by each team member are determined by age and gender.

In the U.S., a national indoor title is one of the most prestigious honors a speed skater may earn. Accumulating points in a series of races can only obtain it over a variety of distances. The process towards determining a champion in each division begins with the elimination races or heats for each distance.

A pair of rounds from which only six skaters emerge to battle for the top three final placements follows these nerve-testers. Athletes have the opportunity to race at the Indoor Speed Skating National Championships, provided they qualify at one of the nine Regional levels first.

About the Sport

Few sports events can match the head-to-head excitement of a roller speed race. It's a sport everyone can readily understand - racing - where the gold medals and trophies go to those who skate the fastest. When the sheer numbers as well as the enthusiasm first introduce people to the sport they are usually surprised found at competitions.

The fastest skaters in the world are members of USA Roller Skating. Regardless of age, these speed skaters share a determination to race as fast and as far as they can. This youthful enthusiasm is matched by the sport, which demands a blend of quickness, stamina and strategy.

It's fun, exciting, healthy, social and rewarding. The benefits, however, go beyond winning. Skaters learn the importance of teamwork, of being persistent and organized, and of setting and reaching goals. It builds strength and discipline, while teaching the value good sportsmanship.

USA Roller Skating speed skating is a non-contact sport, requiring skaters to display the skill to maneuver cleanly through the pack and into winning position. Skaters are disqualified for pushing, blocking, forcing another racer out of position, or using their arms, legs, or hands in any way, which impedes the progress of other competitors. For added safety skaters are also required to wear approved helmets with the chinstrap fastened during competition.

In-line skates have a permanent home in speed skating events throughout the world. Not only are in-lines popular among recreational skaters, the design's dominance over traditional quad skates in speed skating competitions has prompted USA Roller Skating to create separate divisions in sanctioned meets. In 1996, the USA Roller Skating Board of Directors also divided the two methods into separate national championships.

Recognizing its impact on the sport, USA Roller Skating also successfully lobbied the Federation International de Roller Skating (FIRS) to permit in-lines in international competition. This led to in-lines making their debut at the 1992 World Speed Championships. Now in-lines are the sole skate type in use for international competitions sponsored by the FIRS.

Although the sport is at home in a variety of locales, the two basic USA Roller Skating (USARS) divisions are for indoor and outdoor events.