I have been wanting to get an answer to this question for quite some time.
I notice this a lot this year in the sprints on the collegiate level especially.
Why is it that some sprinters run .3 to .4 (tenths) faster w/ an aiding wind (+.2.3 or >) oppose to others… I have seen this 3 times this year already.
Example
Meet #1 Event Time Wind
Meet #2 100m 11.84 -.05
Meet #3 100m 11.82 + 3.4
Meet #4 100m 12.00 0.0
Meet 35 100m 11.80 +1.0
You would think during meet # 3 this athlete would have posted 11.4 w/ that wind, but they ran faster w/a less aided wind why?
I have also seen athletes post times w/in 1/10 of their best w/ a 3.5 wind.
Maybe there should be a slight change in their mechanics w/a tail wind…
More forward lean from trunk I’m guessing.
Or does body mass plays an important role in this performance factor.
Reason why I stated body mass is because some can run their same times or even better into winds (-.9 >) negative…, But like the + winds some sprinters run 10 times worst… Like 10.6 guys will run 11.2 into a -1.5 why?
Is it strength/or mechanics?
It’s funny how guys (some) can run .50 faster in the 100m w/ only a 2.5 wind. Me I only get about .07 faster w/ a 2.3w.
Maybe the wind is overrated
From my runs and a few others, I have come to the conclusion that:
Athlete 1 (High Stride Freq/small to medium stride length)
Will have greater benefits with a tail wind as it assists their stride length.
A head wind, will work in the reverse for this athlete.
Athlete 2 (Med-High SF, Med-Long SL)
Will most of the time be less affected by a head wind.
They will also have less improvement with a tailwind. Their stride may improve but wind will not increase their cadence rate.
A few things to consider:
1: Wind readings can be highly variable and unreliable. Examples abound. I was at UCLA once when James Sanford ran a very fast 100, barely over the limit. I walked past the wind-meter and I heard it clicking, meaning that the vanes that measure the wind were obstructed, so the wind was probably 3 times higher than recorded.
Likewise, Evelyn Ashford was ranked number one in the world in 1982 for a 10.96 allegedly into a wind vs Marlies Gohr, who recorded a legal world record-tying 10.88. Turned out the windmeter was left in the normal place when Ashford’s race was turned around to take advantage of an obvious tailwind, so the tailwind for the race showed up as a headwind at the wind-meter. (The proof was that the first 6 girls across the line had PBs) And, of course, we have the 0.0 wind reading on Flo Jo’s 10.49! That’s why the “wind-adjusted” tables piss me off so much and why there is an inverse relationship between blind adherance and knowledge.
Even accurate wind readings can be mitigated by temperature, humidity, altitude etc.
Generally, the bigger and stronger the sprinter, the less a headwind obstructs, compared to the smaller, slighter sprinter. Also the amount of wind obstruction rises exponentially as the (true) headwind increases. While a 1.0 headwind might slow the time by .05 to .10, a -2.0 might cost .30, while a -3.0 might cost .60, etc.
Tailwinds operate in the reverse with the main benefit in the first 2mps with less assist with each subsequent mps. An athlete with technical or flexibility limitations will be less able to take advantage of a tailwind.
I think in beginning athletes core strength might be the most influential factor. A few months ago when I had big core strength problems, running with a heavy wind in favor would throw my trunk forward (and thus the COG forward) and destroy my mechanics. Evidently the result was that my runs with wind in favor were at around the same times as I would be able to run into a headwind. Running against a headwind on the other hand was greatly benefitting me because it would help stabalize my trunk and help me achieve better sprint position.
For more advanced athletes where core strength is not a factor walbin’s reasoning sounds convincing to me. As Charlie said, there is also more to a single performance then a wind reading.
Haha when we ran provincial championships with a +3 wind one of the opposing teams coaches was trying to stand right in front of the wind meter to disrupt the wind through it! (In case a meet or provincial record was set) He was almost thrown out of the track for it!!
