Pack-Style Rules
General Overview
Pack-Style Competitions are held every year in various venues across the USA. They are also referred to as "mass-start".
Basically, all the skaters line up on the starting line, the gun is fired, and the race begins. The first skater to cross the finish line wins. Pack-style racing is the origin of todays international speedskating.
There are several major national Pack-Style competitions held every year. They are:
- US National Championships - The winners of each age category in this competition claim the title of US National Champion.
- North American Championships - This is a competition between USA skaters and Canadian skaters.
- Other significant Pack-Style competitions include:
- John Rose (held in Roseville, MN). This usually brings in a large group of Canadians.
- Great Lakes (held in Milwaukee, WI).
- Still other Pack-Style competitions include:
- Weekly competitions at the Guidant John Rose Oval (Roseville, MN)
- Gold Cup Speedskating Championships (Milwaukee, WI)
- 1-94 Sprints Long Track Pack Meet (Milwaukee, WI)
- Holiday Classic (Milwaukee, WI)
- Zhuikov Cup (Duluth, MN)
- In addition, there are marathon Pack-Style competitions including:
- Skate the Bay--International Speedskating Marathon (Webster, NY)
- North American/U.S. National Marathon Championships
- Also, in the Masters category there is:
- Masters International Meet (Milwaukee, WI)
An abriged version (cut & paste) of the ISU speedskating rule book (2008-2009 skating season) can be helpful to new skaters.
The full unabridged version of the speedskating rules (2008-2009 skating season) can be found on the ISU website.
Track Start / Finish Lines for the Guidant John Rose Oval (Track was re-surveyed in the fall of 2008)