It is beyond unfortunate that another awesome XC season is being affected by weather again & again. Last week saw the cancellation of the Octoberfest Invitational for a second year in a row after weeks of ridiculous heat forcing the shrinking of many meets' races.
This upcoming weekend could be another horrible weather weekend due to the impending threat of Hurricane Matthew that is currently in the Caribbean.
It of course goes without saying that we hope the Hurricane is not bad for anyone, especially in the Caribbean and southern states.
According to the most trusted weather prediction models (North American and European), Matthew would make landfall in the Carolinas and either move out to sea (European model) or ride up the "I-95" corridor (North American model).
Most meteorologists would say the European model is usually more advanced and accurate.
There have been numerous other models predicted as well and one of them had Matthew making landfall in Florida then moving out to sea and then back into the Carolinas. Hitting the Carolinas seems to be a consensus at this point.
The above weather map found on Weather.com, shows the "cone of uncertainty" for Hurricane Matthew. This cone represents the "eye" of the storm and thus the eye could be anywhere in that zone meaning it could be in the Atlantic or in Richmond... we will have to wait a few days before knowing which way this storm is going.
As of Tuesday evening, it is predicted that the Hurricane would make landfall in the Carolinas Saturday morning. This would definitely affect the major XC meets this weekend.
On the calendar this weekend are three big meets in Virginia. These meets are Albemarle, Big Cat, and Glory Days Grill. For these meets to happen there are numerous factors at play.
The biggest storyline heading into the weekend aside from if the storm is heading out to sea or not will be if Governor Terry Mcauliffe declares a state of emergency early Saturday or not. That status would shut down all sporting events for high schools in VA.
Below are the meet updates as of Tuesday evening. These will be updated as we get more information.
Glory Days' Grill Invitational
"The current weather contingency plan (if we do face serious weather conditions and/or the park allows it) is to run the meet Monday." - Meet Director
Albemarle Invitational
No decisions are being made yet. Meet Management is closely watching the situation unfold and will update MileStat immediately once they know more about the path of the storm and potential impacts on the Albemarle area.
Big Cat Invitational
Meet management is waiting for word back from the school board. There is the potential that the school board administration postpones all extracurricular activities Friday-Sunday and if that is the case there is currently no plan to make this meet up.