DMR Weekend Is Here

Three meets this weekend will rekindle a fire that burns annually – qualifying for the distance medley relay for the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships.

Some call it “DMR Weekend,” and for good reason – many programs achieve their best qualifying mark of the season on the third weekend of February. In fact, last year all 12 men’s teams that qualified for the NCAA DI Championships raced on this weekend and earned their eventual ticket to the nationals with that performance.

From The USTFCCCA InfoZone: Meets & Results | Records & Lists

How did such a weekend earn this moniker? After all, teams can achieve qualifying marks anywhere from December 1 through two weekends before the NCAA Indoor Championships. Let’s take a glance at three DMR-popular meets for clues.

Alex Wilson Invitational

Saturday, February 18 | Men – Noon ET | Women – 12:15 pm ET

Held at Notre Dame’s Loftus Center, this meet was once a “last chance” affair that was popular with distance runners, including DMR squads. As recently as 2013, all 12 men’s teams that qualified for the NCAA DI Championships did so at this meet – just one week before the nationals. Strong fields are normal, as the oversized 320-meter oval is known to yield fast times.

JDL DMR Invitational

Friday, February 17 | Men – 6 pm ET | Women – 6:15 pm ET

Name another meet that includes “DMR” in its name. The JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem, N.C., rebranded the former UCS Invitational to its current name in 2019, encouraging its destination for teams seeking quick times on its 200-meter flat track. Marks produced here gain benefit for NCAA-qualifying purposes based on indexing that shaves off roughly seven seconds due to the track’s being unbanked and 200 meters or less.

Arkansas Qualifier

Friday, February 17 | Men – 3 pm ET | Women – 3:10 pm ET

Last year, Arkansas added an invitational men’s DMR to this meet with great returns as Washington’s 9:21.10 had been bettered previously all-time collegiately on just three occurrences – all at the Randal Tyson Track Center. This year, the Huskies – with seven sub-4 milers on its roster – have entered two foursomes. A women’s race has been added to the menu this year.

How Fast Is Necessary?

That’s always a moving target.

Going into this weekend, the No. 12 program time – the cutoff to reach the NCAA DI meet – is 9:44.41 for men and 11:00.57 for women. Those are likely to change by late Saturday, perhaps drastically.