Carroll County and redistricting

[trigger 10]

Carroll would rather be in the MED than the River Ridge if it includes Franklin County. Not to long ago, Carroll dropped Floyd in football citing power points as the reason. Truth is, Floyd was beating them at least half of the time. Now they actually want to be in a district where they can play not only D2 but also D1 teams. That's funny.

 

I am sure they have cited travel as the concern but it seems to me that the Piedmont would fix that situation for them.

 

 

http://www.vhsl.org/doc/upload/rr-summary-district-and-conference-appeals-9-11-12.pdf

[trublue 939]

http://www.roanoke.com/sports/highschool/wb/313394

[Deleted Account 5,203]

Carroll would rather be in the MED than the River Ridge if it includes Franklin County. Not to long ago, Carroll dropped Floyd in football citing power points as the reason. Truth is, Floyd was beating them at least half of the time. Now they actually want to be in a district where they can play not only D2 but also D1 teams. That's funny.

 

I am sure they have cited travel as the concern but it seems to me that the Piedmont would fix that situation for them.

 

 

http://www.vhsl.org/doc/upload/rr-summary-district-and-conference-appeals-9-11-12.pdf

 

LMAO, travel time. Hillsville, VA to Bluefield, VA is 1:12. Hillsville, VA to Rocky Mount, VA is 1:30. Which, in a funny coincidence, is the exact same travel time it takes from Hillsville, VA to Roanoke, VA.

 

Pitiful.

[sixcat 2,926]

My address to the VHSL

By Craig Worrell, Sports Editor

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

 

Two weeks ago, I would have found the idea of Carroll County entering the Mountain Empire District as ludicrous. When I first heard a rumor that Carroll was pursuing such a move to avoid placement in the Roanoke-centered River Ridge District, my reaction was what I imagine a lot of others’ would be. I laughed. I think the rumor, at least when it was circulating, was unfounded, but it piqued my interest. And the more I looked at it, the more sense it made. I have no dog in this hunt, and I’m not standing before the VHSL to plead a case. If I were, though, this is what I would say:

 

 

 

Good morning, and thank you for allowing me to discuss Carroll County being placed into a district other than the River Ridge pending the VHSL’s approval of the six-classification system. While the Piedmont District has been mentioned as a secondary option, facts will show that membership in the Mountain Empire District would not only benefit the students of CCHS but would also be favorable to the River Ridge, the Piedmont and even the MED.

 

It will also become clear that there is nothing of benefit to either Carroll County or any member of the River Ridge or Piedmont should CCHS be placed in either of those districts.

 

As a lifelong resident of the county, the son of a longtime teacher-coach at CCHS, a student-athlete there and, for the past 22 years, as a sportswriter, I have watched CCHS become increasingly isolated by the dwindling populations of surrounding school districts. Its athletic program now stands on an island because of school enrollment figures and geographic location, and is on course to be devastated for those reasons. No matter where it lands, Carroll will be an unwelcome member of its new district.

 

Though the VHSL is the governing body of public high school athletics in the state, I am certain that the academic pursuits, safety and general well-being of the students it oversees are given a much higher priority than anything that happens on the playing field. For that reason, several factors considered together are more than sufficient to warrant membership for Carroll in the MED.

 

1. Travel

 

High school athletes are classroom students first, and the amount of travel required of CCHS as a member of either the River Ridge or the Piedmont is reason in and of itself to place Carroll in the MED.

 

According to Google Maps, placement in the River Ridge would have CCHS’s students facing an average distance of 56 miles and an average travel time, one-way, of 1 hour and 20 minutes for district road games. Some of those games would be reached by traveling solely on two-lane U.S. 221 and would include a descent down a dangerous Bent Mountain.

 

In the Piedmont District, and excluding Patrick County, CCHS would have an average distance of 81 miles and 1 hour, 45 minutes. All of those games would include at least 50 minutes on two-lane U.S. 58, and a descent down Lover’s Leap Mountain.

 

That would be similar to Richlands traveling to Johnson City, Tenn., for the average district road trip.

 

Google Maps doesn’t offer calculations for travel by school bus, so actual times will be greater.

 

In either district, the amount of class time missed, either in early dismissals for departures or in late arrivals the morning after, would be huge.

 

It should also be noted that CCHS is the county’s only high school and some athletes have a drive of 45 minutes by car just to get to or from school. In effect, by placing Carroll into the River Ridge or Piedmont, the VHSL would be asking many students to choose between giving up athletics or giving up studying. They shouldn’t be forced to ask that of themselves.

 

By comparison, the average time and distance from CCHS to the six current Mountain Empire District schools stand at 37 miles and 47 minutes, or roughly half that of the River Ridge distances.

 

2. Size Differences

 

Carroll would be a 4A school in a district with two 2As and four 1As. That is the biggest argument against such a move, but an unnecessary one.

 

First, the VHSL has already set a precedent for such a district by placing 6A Franklin County and Patrick Henry in the River Ridge with four 3A schools. Five other proposed districts would include spreads over four classifications.

 

Second, no school is required to play a district member in any sport that is three classifications larger or smaller. Four current MED schools would not be made to play Carroll. Again, the VHSL has set a precedent. In two other proposed districts, the River Ridge and the Colonial, at least half the memberships would be exempt from competing against other district team(s) for reasons of size discrepancy.

 

3. Competition

 

From a competition standpoint, placing Carroll into the MED would not create a significant imbalance in most sports. It would not be like placing Salem or Hidden Valley into the Pioneer District. In its 43 years, CCHS has never won a state championship in a team sport and has never won a district championship in football. Region championships in any sport are very few. And under the 6A system, district championships would have no bearing in determining postseason berths, and each school would participate past the district level only against like-sized schools.

 

CCHS plays projected 1A school Galax in all sports and 2A Grayson County in everything but girls’ basketball and wrestling. Those games are competitive on a regular basis. Graham has been on Carroll’s all-sports schedule as recently as 2010, and Fort Chiswell has been on Carroll’s football schedule as recently as 2000.

 

Bland County and Narrows would most likely have no desire to play Carroll, and vice versa. They would not be required to do so, nor would Galax or Fort Chiswell unless they so chose.

 

In that same vein, Carroll’s enrollment can be a very misleading figure. A school of 1,200 students in a rural location, drawing from a widely-dispersed population, is far from being on equal footing with an urban or suburban school of the same size, and is utterly incomparable to a city school of 1,900 students (Patrick Henry) or to any school of nearly 2,200 (Franklin County).

 

Carroll County is fewer than 80 students away from qualifying as a 3A school under the 6A format, and the true pool of students from which Carroll has to draw its athletes is more comparable to that of an average-sized Group A school. Just 9 percent of Carroll students – 114 of 1,195 in four grades, male and female – are participating in fall sports.

 

For example, Carroll County and Bassett are virtually identical in size. Carroll has 54 football players total on its varsity and JV teams, Bassett has 44 on varsity alone. Ten of Carroll’s players are also listed on the JV roster, leaving 30 varsity-only players, the same number as Galax. By comparison, projected 2A Grayson’s numbers are in the 60s, grades 9-12, with 40 on the varsity roster.

 

4. Finance

 

Secondary to all this but still noteworthy is the financial impact of Carroll’s placement into the River Ridge or Piedmont.

 

Football is the main fundraising arm of the athletic department. With the flexibility in scheduling local nondistrict opponents virtually eliminated in an eight-team district schedule, coupled with a lack of desire by fans to travel from the Roanoke Valley or Rocky Mount to Hillsville, gate revenue for Carroll County would plummet.

 

Conversely, gate receipts would be robust for Carroll in the MED, and for any MED school that hosts it. At the same time, the River Ridge or Piedmont schools would be free to schedule one more attractive nondistrict opponent that could all but ensure a large gate.

 

I believe that if the MED members objectively consider the revenue, competition, potential ratings points and the fact that four current members would not be obligated to compete with Carroll against their wishes, such a move would not be viewed as an outrageous one, contrary to first impressions.

 

 

 

Many in Southwest Virginia perceive their schools as not being worthy of a second thought by the VHSL when it comes to legislation. I ask that you put your children in the places of these CCHS students, and yourselves in the place of their parents, and that you reflect upon whether or not you would subject them to what you would be requiring academically, financially, competitively and socially should they be placed in the River Ridge or the Piedmont.

 

I am not talking only about athletes. These are student-athletes, young men and women who willfully pull the double duty and endure the long hours necessary to maintain both their studies and their level of competition on the field of play.

 

There is no good option for Carroll County, but there is a best option. The MED is that option.

 

If you truly hold the welfare of these students in your interests, you will allow them to compete in the MED. There is no other solution that simultaneously can be fair to the students of CCHS, to those of the River Ridge and Piedmont districts, and be acceptable to the Mountain Empire District while exhibiting and upholding the integrity of the VHSL.

 

Thank you for your time.

[sixcat 2,926]

LMAO, travel time. Hillsville, VA to Bluefield, VA is 1:12. Hillsville, VA to Rocky Mount, VA is 1:30. Which, in a funny coincidence, is the exact same travel time it takes from Hillsville, VA to Roanoke, VA.

 

Pitiful.

 

I am not defending Carroll County because I agree, they will duck anybody to have an easier schedule. They dropped Galax from it's regular season football schedule because of "lack of competitive balance" several years ago just like Floyd. Galax has waxed Carroll in a benefit game each of the past 3 seasons.

 

The problem is the travel to Rocky Mount, not travel time. There is no easy way to get to Rocky Mount from Hillsville. You either take on Bent Mountain or Lovers Leap and I would not want my child making that trip on a bus several times per year.

[sixcat 2,926]

Carroll would rather be in the MED than the River Ridge if it includes Franklin County. Not to long ago, Carroll dropped Floyd in football citing power points as the reason. Truth is, Floyd was beating them at least half of the time. Now they actually want to be in a district where they can play not only D2 but also D1 teams. That's funny.

 

I am sure they have cited travel as the concern but it seems to me that the Piedmont would fix that situation for them.

 

http://www.vhsl.org/doc/upload/rr-summary-district-and-conference-appeals-9-11-12.pdf

 

Again, I have no dog in the fight but I have traveled these areas for work often over the past several years and my children attend Galax schools. The issue with the Piedmont would be travel on US 58 across Loves Leap Mountain. This is a horrible ride in a car, much less a bus. When the old New River District disbanded, Carroll athletic participation declined because of parents travel concerns to Richlands, Graham, Grundy, etc. Parents don't want academics suffering because the kid does not have adequate time to spend on school work. I have to agree. The likelyhood of a kid making a living in athletics is far less than having a career that requires an education. Forget numbers and give the kids a chance to compete.

[ghs73 157]

Again, I have no dog in the fight but I have traveled these areas for work often over the past several years and my children attend Galax schools. The issue with the Piedmont would be travel on US 58 across Loves Leap Mountain. This is a horrible ride in a car, much less a bus. When the old New River District disbanded, Carroll athletic participation declined because of parents travel concerns to Richlands, Graham, Grundy, etc. Parents don't want academics suffering because the kid does not have adequate time to spend on school work. I have to agree. The likelyhood of a kid making a living in athletics is far less than having a career that requires an education. Forget numbers and give the kids a chance to compete.

 

i would much rather leave from cc go to I77 to I81 toward roanoke, yea farther to drive but much better road to drive on and if the were in the med and played graham that is how they would drive anyways 77 to 81 to 77 to bluefield. so why not drive north on 81 to roanoke or pick up teams like pulaski giles eastern montgomery, radford and teams that way. maybe cc should ask to be an independent school not in any district and find schools closer like above mentioned, they also have gw wytheville and marion .

[futbolking 766]

Carroll would rather be in the MED than the River Ridge if it includes Franklin County. Not to long ago, Carroll dropped Floyd in football citing power points as the reason. Truth is, Floyd was beating them at least half of the time. Now they actually want to be in a district where they can play not only D2 but also D1 teams. That's funny.

 

I am sure they have cited travel as the concern but it seems to me that the Piedmont would fix that situation for them.

 

 

http://www.vhsl.org/doc/upload/rr-summary-district-and-conference-appeals-9-11-12.pdf

 

Piedmont would be the best fit for them...they'd be playing D-3 and D-4 schools (and not very good ones at that...) They'd fit in perfectly.... Don't understand what their gripe would be with that....

[sixcat 2,926]

i would much rather leave from cc go to I77 to I81 toward roanoke, yea farther to drive but much better road to drive on and if the were in the med and played graham that is how they would drive anyways 77 to 81 to 77 to bluefield. so why not drive north on 81 to roanoke or pick up teams like pulaski giles eastern montgomery, radford and teams that way. maybe cc should ask to be an independent school not in any district and find schools closer like above mentioned, they also have gw wytheville and marion .

 

I could be wrong but the point seems to be, having a school or two, like Graham, that is of some distance away is OK but having all district games more than an hour away, like Cave Spring, Hidden Valley, Salem, Franklin County among others, is difficult at best.

 

Halifax County has similar issues. Isolation for schools of that size.

[futbolking 766]

i could be wrong but the point seems to be, having a school or two, like graham, that is of some distance away is ok but having all district games more than an hour away, like cave spring, hidden valley, salem, franklin county among others, is difficult at best.

 

Halifax county has similar issues. Isolation for schools of that size.

 

Simple solution....join the Piedmont.

[sixcat 2,926]

Piedmont would be the best fit for them...they'd be playing D-3 and D-4 schools (and not very good ones at that...) They'd fit in perfectly.... Don't understand what their gripe would be with that....

 

Drive from Hillsville along US 58 toward any Piedmont District school and you will quickly see the gripe. Lovers Leap has an elevation drop of very nearly 2,000 feet in 5 miles along with continuous switchbacks.

 

It is also an average travel time of 1 hour and 45 minutes to each Piedmont District school excluding Patrick County.

Edited August 29, 2012 by sixcat

[barondawg77 115]

This is the downside of consolidations. It won't be long before every county has one high school, or only two, and travel will be a huge issue for everyone in SWVA. Every time a consolidation happens, scheduling gets tougher for everybody. It isn't just the schools consolidating, or the other district schools, it trickles throughout the region. It will only get worse guys.

[futbolking 766]

Drive from Hillsville along US 58 toward any Piedmont District school and you will quickly see the gripe. Lovers Leap has an elevation drop of very nearly 2,000 feet in 5 miles along with continuous switchbacks.

 

So, stay in the River Ridge...come on..PC, Christiansburg and Blacksburg are not that far away...neither are the Roanoke schools for that matter...they're as close as Bluefield or Narrows. Frankin County might be strech... but come on...there is no justification to playing against Bland County with a combined enrollment of about 300 students.... or Narrows with around 300...maybe less???...

[ghs73 157]

Piedmont would be the best fit for them...they'd be playing D-3 and D-4 schools (and not very good ones at that...) They'd fit in perfectly.... Don't understand what their gripe would be with that....

 

It is called Franklin County sounds like they do not want to play them.

[sixcat 2,926]

So, stay in the River Ridge...come on..PC, Christiansburg and Blacksburg are not that far away...neither are the Roanoke schools for that matter...they're as close as Bluefield or Narrows. Frankin County might be strech... but come on...there is no justification to playing against Bland County with a combined enrollment of about 300 students.... or Narrows with around 300...maybe less???...

 

Read the newspaper article pasted in this thread. Carroll would not have to play Bland or Narrows, or any other school 2 classes below themselves. The VHSL is already doing this with another district.

 

It's a cumulative issue. Trade a few long trips for ALL long trips.

[RichlandsAlum 678]

My address to the VHSL

By Craig Worrell, Sports Editor

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

 

Two weeks ago, I would have found the idea of Carroll County entering the Mountain Empire District as ludicrous. When I first heard a rumor that Carroll was pursuing such a move to avoid placement in the Roanoke-centered River Ridge District, my reaction was what I imagine a lot of others’ would be. I laughed. I think the rumor, at least when it was circulating, was unfounded, but it piqued my interest. And the more I looked at it, the more sense it made. I have no dog in this hunt, and I’m not standing before the VHSL to plead a case. If I were, though, this is what I would say:

 

 

 

Good morning, and thank you for allowing me to discuss Carroll County being placed into a district other than the River Ridge pending the VHSL’s approval of the six-classification system. While the Piedmont District has been mentioned as a secondary option, facts will show that membership in the Mountain Empire District would not only benefit the students of CCHS but would also be favorable to the River Ridge, the Piedmont and even the MED.

 

It will also become clear that there is nothing of benefit to either Carroll County or any member of the River Ridge or Piedmont should CCHS be placed in either of those districts.

 

As a lifelong resident of the county, the son of a longtime teacher-coach at CCHS, a student-athlete there and, for the past 22 years, as a sportswriter, I have watched CCHS become increasingly isolated by the dwindling populations of surrounding school districts. Its athletic program now stands on an island because of school enrollment figures and geographic location, and is on course to be devastated for those reasons. No matter where it lands, Carroll will be an unwelcome member of its new district.

 

Though the VHSL is the governing body of public high school athletics in the state, I am certain that the academic pursuits, safety and general well-being of the students it oversees are given a much higher priority than anything that happens on the playing field. For that reason, several factors considered together are more than sufficient to warrant membership for Carroll in the MED.

 

1. Travel

 

High school athletes are classroom students first, and the amount of travel required of CCHS as a member of either the River Ridge or the Piedmont is reason in and of itself to place Carroll in the MED.

 

According to Google Maps, placement in the River Ridge would have CCHS’s students facing an average distance of 56 miles and an average travel time, one-way, of 1 hour and 20 minutes for district road games. Some of those games would be reached by traveling solely on two-lane U.S. 221 and would include a descent down a dangerous Bent Mountain.

 

In the Piedmont District, and excluding Patrick County, CCHS would have an average distance of 81 miles and 1 hour, 45 minutes. All of those games would include at least 50 minutes on two-lane U.S. 58, and a descent down Lover’s Leap Mountain.

 

That would be similar to Richlands traveling to Johnson City, Tenn., for the average district road trip.

 

Google Maps doesn’t offer calculations for travel by school bus, so actual times will be greater.

 

In either district, the amount of class time missed, either in early dismissals for departures or in late arrivals the morning after, would be huge.

 

It should also be noted that CCHS is the county’s only high school and some athletes have a drive of 45 minutes by car just to get to or from school. In effect, by placing Carroll into the River Ridge or Piedmont, the VHSL would be asking many students to choose between giving up athletics or giving up studying. They shouldn’t be forced to ask that of themselves.

 

By comparison, the average time and distance from CCHS to the six current Mountain Empire District schools stand at 37 miles and 47 minutes, or roughly half that of the River Ridge distances.

 

2. Size Differences

 

Carroll would be a 4A school in a district with two 2As and four 1As. That is the biggest argument against such a move, but an unnecessary one.

 

First, the VHSL has already set a precedent for such a district by placing 6A Franklin County and Patrick Henry in the River Ridge with four 3A schools. Five other proposed districts would include spreads over four classifications.

 

Second, no school is required to play a district member in any sport that is three classifications larger or smaller. Four current MED schools would not be made to play Carroll. Again, the VHSL has set a precedent. In two other proposed districts, the River Ridge and the Colonial, at least half the memberships would be exempt from competing against other district team(s) for reasons of size discrepancy.

 

3. Competition

 

From a competition standpoint, placing Carroll into the MED would not create a significant imbalance in most sports. It would not be like placing Salem or Hidden Valley into the Pioneer District. In its 43 years, CCHS has never won a state championship in a team sport and has never won a district championship in football. Region championships in any sport are very few. And under the 6A system, district championships would have no bearing in determining postseason berths, and each school would participate past the district level only against like-sized schools.

 

CCHS plays projected 1A school Galax in all sports and 2A Grayson County in everything but girls’ basketball and wrestling. Those games are competitive on a regular basis. Graham has been on Carroll’s all-sports schedule as recently as 2010, and Fort Chiswell has been on Carroll’s football schedule as recently as 2000.

 

Bland County and Narrows would most likely have no desire to play Carroll, and vice versa. They would not be required to do so, nor would Galax or Fort Chiswell unless they so chose.

 

In that same vein, Carroll’s enrollment can be a very misleading figure. A school of 1,200 students in a rural location, drawing from a widely-dispersed population, is far from being on equal footing with an urban or suburban school of the same size, and is utterly incomparable to a city school of 1,900 students (Patrick Henry) or to any school of nearly 2,200 (Franklin County).

 

Carroll County is fewer than 80 students away from qualifying as a 3A school under the 6A format, and the true pool of students from which Carroll has to draw its athletes is more comparable to that of an average-sized Group A school. Just 9 percent of Carroll students – 114 of 1,195 in four grades, male and female – are participating in fall sports.

 

For example, Carroll County and Bassett are virtually identical in size. Carroll has 54 football players total on its varsity and JV teams, Bassett has 44 on varsity alone. Ten of Carroll’s players are also listed on the JV roster, leaving 30 varsity-only players, the same number as Galax. By comparison, projected 2A Grayson’s numbers are in the 60s, grades 9-12, with 40 on the varsity roster.

 

4. Finance

 

Secondary to all this but still noteworthy is the financial impact of Carroll’s placement into the River Ridge or Piedmont.

 

Football is the main fundraising arm of the athletic department. With the flexibility in scheduling local nondistrict opponents virtually eliminated in an eight-team district schedule, coupled with a lack of desire by fans to travel from the Roanoke Valley or Rocky Mount to Hillsville, gate revenue for Carroll County would plummet.

 

Conversely, gate receipts would be robust for Carroll in the MED, and for any MED school that hosts it. At the same time, the River Ridge or Piedmont schools would be free to schedule one more attractive nondistrict opponent that could all but ensure a large gate.

 

I believe that if the MED members objectively consider the revenue, competition, potential ratings points and the fact that four current members would not be obligated to compete with Carroll against their wishes, such a move would not be viewed as an outrageous one, contrary to first impressions.

 

 

 

Many in Southwest Virginia perceive their schools as not being worthy of a second thought by the VHSL when it comes to legislation. I ask that you put your children in the places of these CCHS students, and yourselves in the place of their parents, and that you reflect upon whether or not you would subject them to what you would be requiring academically, financially, competitively and socially should they be placed in the River Ridge or the Piedmont.

 

I am not talking only about athletes. These are student-athletes, young men and women who willfully pull the double duty and endure the long hours necessary to maintain both their studies and their level of competition on the field of play.

 

There is no good option for Carroll County, but there is a best option. The MED is that option.

 

If you truly hold the welfare of these students in your interests, you will allow them to compete in the MED. There is no other solution that simultaneously can be fair to the students of CCHS, to those of the River Ridge and Piedmont districts, and be acceptable to the Mountain Empire District while exhibiting and upholding the integrity of the VHSL.

 

Thank you for your time.

 

I believe that this should be referred to Bryce Harper for an official response along the lines of:

 

"That's a clown request, bro."

[ghs73 157]

My address to the VHSL

By Craig Worrell, Sports Editor

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

 

Two weeks ago, I would have found the idea of Carroll County entering the Mountain Empire District as ludicrous. When I first heard a rumor that Carroll was pursuing such a move to avoid placement in the Roanoke-centered River Ridge District, my reaction was what I imagine a lot of others’ would be. I laughed. I think the rumor, at least when it was circulating, was unfounded, but it piqued my interest. And the more I looked at it, the more sense it made. I have no dog in this hunt, and I’m not standing before the VHSL to plead a case. If I were, though, this is what I would say:

 

 

 

Good morning, and thank you for allowing me to discuss Carroll County being placed into a district other than the River Ridge pending the VHSL’s approval of the six-classification system. While the Piedmont District has been mentioned as a secondary option, facts will show that membership in the Mountain Empire District would not only benefit the students of CCHS but would also be favorable to the River Ridge, the Piedmont and even the MED.

 

It will also become clear that there is nothing of benefit to either Carroll County or any member of the River Ridge or Piedmont should CCHS be placed in either of those districts.

 

As a lifelong resident of the county, the son of a longtime teacher-coach at CCHS, a student-athlete there and, for the past 22 years, as a sportswriter, I have watched CCHS become increasingly isolated by the dwindling populations of surrounding school districts. Its athletic program now stands on an island because of school enrollment figures and geographic location, and is on course to be devastated for those reasons. No matter where it lands, Carroll will be an unwelcome member of its new district.

 

Though the VHSL is the governing body of public high school athletics in the state, I am certain that the academic pursuits, safety and general well-being of the students it oversees are given a much higher priority than anything that happens on the playing field. For that reason, several factors considered together are more than sufficient to warrant membership for Carroll in the MED.

 

1. Travel

 

High school athletes are classroom students first, and the amount of travel required of CCHS as a member of either the River Ridge or the Piedmont is reason in and of itself to place Carroll in the MED.

 

According to Google Maps, placement in the River Ridge would have CCHS’s students facing an average distance of 56 miles and an average travel time, one-way, of 1 hour and 20 minutes for district road games. Some of those games would be reached by traveling solely on two-lane U.S. 221 and would include a descent down a dangerous Bent Mountain.

 

In the Piedmont District, and excluding Patrick County, CCHS would have an average distance of 81 miles and 1 hour, 45 minutes. All of those games would include at least 50 minutes on two-lane U.S. 58, and a descent down Lover’s Leap Mountain.

 

That would be similar to Richlands traveling to Johnson City, Tenn., for the average district road trip.

 

Google Maps doesn’t offer calculations for travel by school bus, so actual times will be greater.

 

In either district, the amount of class time missed, either in early dismissals for departures or in late arrivals the morning after, would be huge.

 

It should also be noted that CCHS is the county’s only high school and some athletes have a drive of 45 minutes by car just to get to or from school. In effect, by placing Carroll into the River Ridge or Piedmont, the VHSL would be asking many students to choose between giving up athletics or giving up studying. They shouldn’t be forced to ask that of themselves.

 

By comparison, the average time and distance from CCHS to the six current Mountain Empire District schools stand at 37 miles and 47 minutes, or roughly half that of the River Ridge distances.

 

2. Size Differences

 

Carroll would be a 4A school in a district with two 2As and four 1As. That is the biggest argument against such a move, but an unnecessary one.

 

First, the VHSL has already set a precedent for such a district by placing 6A Franklin County and Patrick Henry in the River Ridge with four 3A schools. Five other proposed districts would include spreads over four classifications.

 

Second, no school is required to play a district member in any sport that is three classifications larger or smaller. Four current MED schools would not be made to play Carroll. Again, the VHSL has set a precedent. In two other proposed districts, the River Ridge and the Colonial, at least half the memberships would be exempt from competing against other district team(s) for reasons of size discrepancy.

 

3. Competition

 

From a competition standpoint, placing Carroll into the MED would not create a significant imbalance in most sports. It would not be like placing Salem or Hidden Valley into the Pioneer District. In its 43 years, CCHS has never won a state championship in a team sport and has never won a district championship in football. Region championships in any sport are very few. And under the 6A system, district championships would have no bearing in determining postseason berths, and each school would participate past the district level only against like-sized schools.

 

CCHS plays projected 1A school Galax in all sports and 2A Grayson County in everything but girls’ basketball and wrestling. Those games are competitive on a regular basis. Graham has been on Carroll’s all-sports schedule as recently as 2010, and Fort Chiswell has been on Carroll’s football schedule as recently as 2000.

 

Bland County and Narrows would most likely have no desire to play Carroll, and vice versa. They would not be required to do so, nor would Galax or Fort Chiswell unless they so chose.

 

In that same vein, Carroll’s enrollment can be a very misleading figure. A school of 1,200 students in a rural location, drawing from a widely-dispersed population, is far from being on equal footing with an urban or suburban school of the same size, and is utterly incomparable to a city school of 1,900 students (Patrick Henry) or to any school of nearly 2,200 (Franklin County).

 

Carroll County is fewer than 80 students away from qualifying as a 3A school under the 6A format, and the true pool of students from which Carroll has to draw its athletes is more comparable to that of an average-sized Group A school. Just 9 percent of Carroll students – 114 of 1,195 in four grades, male and female – are participating in fall sports.

 

For example, Carroll County and Bassett are virtually identical in size. Carroll has 54 football players total on its varsity and JV teams, Bassett has 44 on varsity alone. Ten of Carroll’s players are also listed on the JV roster, leaving 30 varsity-only players, the same number as Galax. By comparison, projected 2A Grayson’s numbers are in the 60s, grades 9-12, with 40 on the varsity roster.

 

4. Finance

 

Secondary to all this but still noteworthy is the financial impact of Carroll’s placement into the River Ridge or Piedmont.

 

Football is the main fundraising arm of the athletic department. With the flexibility in scheduling local nondistrict opponents virtually eliminated in an eight-team district schedule, coupled with a lack of desire by fans to travel from the Roanoke Valley or Rocky Mount to Hillsville, gate revenue for Carroll County would plummet.

 

Conversely, gate receipts would be robust for Carroll in the MED, and for any MED school that hosts it. At the same time, the River Ridge or Piedmont schools would be free to schedule one more attractive nondistrict opponent that could all but ensure a large gate.

 

I believe that if the MED members objectively consider the revenue, competition, potential ratings points and the fact that four current members would not be obligated to compete with Carroll against their wishes, such a move would not be viewed as an outrageous one, contrary to first impressions.

 

 

 

Many in Southwest Virginia perceive their schools as not being worthy of a second thought by the VHSL when it comes to legislation. I ask that you put your children in the places of these CCHS students, and yourselves in the place of their parents, and that you reflect upon whether or not you would subject them to what you would be requiring academically, financially, competitively and socially should they be placed in the River Ridge or the Piedmont.

 

I am not talking only about athletes. These are student-athletes, young men and women who willfully pull the double duty and endure the long hours necessary to maintain both their studies and their level of competition on the field of play.

 

There is no good option for Carroll County, but there is a best option. The MED is that option.

 

If you truly hold the welfare of these students in your interests, you will allow them to compete in the MED. There is no other solution that simultaneously can be fair to the students of CCHS, to those of the River Ridge and Piedmont districts, and be acceptable to the Mountain Empire District while exhibiting and upholding the integrity of the VHSL.

 

Thank you for your time.

 

one problem with this i see is say if carrol was let into the med and the 4 teams decided not to play them then who would you suggest cc get to replace those 4 teams, you run into the drive time again and having kids out of school more for travel time.

[sixcat 2,926]

one problem with this i see is say if carrol was let into the med and the 4 teams decided not to play them then who would you suggest cc get to replace those 4 teams, you run into the drive time again and having kids out of school more for travel time.

 

Very true. No solution is a perfect solution. Galax already plays Carroll in every sport (benefit game in football) so that would not change but the other three would not have to.

 

A lot of people on this site talks about bringing back the "old" or "original" SWD. Carroll talks about bringing back the "old" New River District. Carroll has never been a good "fit" in the SWD. Maybe someone is trying to see that Carroll gets into a district that "fits" a little better.

[sixcat 2,926]

This is the downside of consolidations. It won't be long before every county has one high school, or only two, and travel will be a huge issue for everyone in SWVA. Every time a consolidation happens, scheduling gets tougher for everybody. It isn't just the schools consolidating, or the other district schools, it trickles throughout the region. It will only get worse guys.

 

This is true. Carroll consolidated it's high schools more than 40 years ago. During the old New River district days, it was never an issue but when Independence and Fries consolidated to form Grayson County, Galax stopped bringing in kids who lived outside the city limits. Those kids were now forced to go to either Grayson or Carroll, depending on which side of Galax you lived on. Galax enrollment dropped significantly, while Grayson and Carroll's enrollment went up significantly. People forget, before this snowball affect happend, Galax was a AA school with an average enrollment of nearly 800. Galax dropped to A as well as George Wythe, Giles and Narrows. Giles and Narrows joined the MED and GW joined the Hogo. When Radford dropped to A a few years later, the MED split to form the Three Rivers and the MED.

[ISOaPBR 15]

...duck anybody to have an easier schedule. They dropped Galax from it's regular season football schedule because of "lack of competitive balance" several years ago just like Floyd. Galax has waxed Carroll in a benefit game each of the past 3 seasons.

 

The problem is the travel to Rocky Mount, not travel time. There is no easy way to get to Rocky Mount from Hillsville. You either take on Bent Mountain or Lovers Leap and I would not want my child making that trip on a bus several times per year.

 

 

Christiansburg, Bassett, Grayson County, Mount Airy NC and Martinsville on your schedule is hardly ducking anybody.

 

AVERAGE travel time is twice as long in the River Ridge. There's more to it than Franklin County. Galax lies half in Carroll Co. Would you have no problem with your kids going to Roanoke or beyond for five of their eight district road games, Interstate or not?

 

When Carroll and Galax stopped playing football, Galax had lost about 15 straight to CC.

 

Galax waxed everybody last year. Carroll won two years ago.

[ISOaPBR 15]

I believe that this should be referred to Bryce Harper for an official response along the lines of:

 

"That's a clown request, bro."

 

Reason being?

[futbolking 766]

Maybe Carroll County and Pulaski could form a 2 team district and call it the PUD district....

[futbolking 766]

Christiansburg, Bassett, Grayson County, Mount Airy NC and Martinsville on your schedule is hardly ducking anybody.

 

AVERAGE travel time is twice as long in the River Ridge. There's more to it than Franklin County. Galax lies half in Carroll Co. Would you have no problem with your kids going to Roanoke or beyond for five of their eight district road games, Interstate or not?

 

When Carroll and Galax stopped playing football, Galax had lost about 15 straight to CC.

 

Galax waxed everybody last year. Carroll won two years ago.

 

They alternate home and away each year....so, you're looking at 2 Roanoke Schools, Salem and Franklin County? CBURG, BBURG and Pulaski are relatively close. So, if 2 are home and 2 are away....that makes 2 Road trips each year of about an hour and a half....doesn't seem too bad to me.

[ghs73 157]

Christiansburg, Bassett, Grayson County, Mount Airy NC and Martinsville on your schedule is hardly ducking anybody.

 

AVERAGE travel time is twice as long in the River Ridge. There's more to it than Franklin County. Galax lies half in Carroll Co. Would you have no problem with your kids going to Roanoke or beyond for five of their eight district road games, Interstate or not?

 

When Carroll and Galax stopped playing football, Galax had lost about 15 straight to CC.

 

Galax waxed everybody last year. Carroll won two years ago.

 

graham has gone as far as greeneville tenn. to play games in past. dont think other than beaver any school has gone further for a regular season game. district or not.

[sixcat 2,926]

Christiansburg, Bassett, Grayson County, Mount Airy NC and Martinsville on your schedule is hardly ducking anybody.

 

In football, maybe, other sports, not so much. A good example is girls basketball being 21-1 or something similar and playing a Blacksburg team with a record of something like 11-13 in an early round of playoffs and getting beat fairly handily.

 

AVERAGE travel time is twice as long in the River Ridge. There's more to it than Franklin County. Galax lies half in Carroll Co. Would you have no problem with your kids going to Roanoke or beyond for five of their eight district road games, Interstate or not?

 

Exactly what I said in other posts. I would not want my kids going to either district to play sports, I thought I had made that clear.

 

When Carroll and Galax stopped playing football, Galax had lost about 15 straight to CC.

 

That could be said for many other schools on Galax list of football opponents dating back to the early 80's. They had only beaten Grayson once in school history before a few years ago. They have a similar record against Radford also.

 

Galax waxed everybody last year. Carroll won two years ago.

 

I think some people from Clintwood would disagree!