# The TrackReels blog

> Plain-English guides to wind legality, timing methods, highlight video and the college track recruiting timeline.

Plain-English guides to marks, rules and recruiting, written for athletes and the people helping them.

[September 19, 2026·8 min read ## Good Mile Times by Age and Grade: Rate Your 1600m Published 2026 qualifying 1600m and 1500m times from California, Oregon and Florida youth, the college ranges, mile versus 1600 versus 1500, and hand timing. TimesStandardsMiddle Distance](https://trackreels.io/blog/good-mile-times-by-age-and-grade)
[September 16, 2026·8 min read ## Good 800m Times by Age and Grade: Rate Your Time Published 2026 qualifying 800m times from California, Oregon and Missouri, a middle school standard, the college ranges, why the splits matter, and hand timing at 800. TimesStandardsMiddle Distance](https://trackreels.io/blog/good-800m-times-by-age-and-grade)
[September 8, 2026·7 min read ## Good 200m Times by Age and Grade: Rate Your Time Published 2026 qualifying 200m times from California, Oregon and Missouri, the college recruiting ranges, the bend, the wind rule and the hand-time catch. TimesStandardsSprints](https://trackreels.io/blog/good-200m-times-by-age-and-grade)
[September 1, 2026·7 min read ## Hurdle Heights and Spacing: Youth, HS, NCAA, WA Every hurdle height, spacing, run-in and hurdle count for the 80m to 400m hurdles by level, transcribed from World Athletics, NFHS, NCAA and USATF rules. RulesHurdles](https://trackreels.io/blog/hurdle-heights-and-spacing)
[September 1, 2026·7 min read ## Long Jump and Triple Jump: Meters to Feet Chart 6.50 m is 21' 3.75" and 21' 4" is 6.50 m. Long jump and triple jump conversion charts that round the way NFHS, NCAA and World Athletics rules require. ConversionsJumps](https://trackreels.io/blog/long-jump-triple-jump-meters-to-feet)
[September 1, 2026·8 min read ## High Jump and Pole Vault: Meters to Feet Chart 6' 0" is 1.83 m and 16' 0" is 4.88 m. High jump and pole vault bar heights in feet-inches and meters, and why a bar set in inches is 3 mm off the metric bar. ConversionsJumps](https://trackreels.io/blog/high-jump-pole-vault-meters-to-feet)
[September 1, 2026·9 min read ## Shot Put, Discus, Javelin: Meters to Feet Chart 50.00 m is 164' 0" and 131' is 39.92 m. Shot put, discus and javelin charts rounded the way NFHS and World Athletics rules require, plus shot weights by level. ConversionsThrows](https://trackreels.io/blog/throws-meters-to-feet)
[September 1, 2026·4 min read ## NCAA Altitude Conversions End in 2026-27 The NCAA voted in June 2026 to end altitude and indoor track-size conversions for championship qualifying from 2026-27. What the report says and what changes. RecruitingNCAARules](https://trackreels.io/blog/ncaa-altitude-conversion-eliminated)
[August 31, 2026·8 min read ## There Is No Cross Country Recruiting Standard Every 5K cross country recruiting table online falls apart on inspection. What college coaches actually recruit distance runners off instead. RecruitingCross CountryDistance](https://trackreels.io/blog/cross-country-recruiting-standards)
[August 28, 2026·2 min read ## Indoor Track Sizes: Banked, Flat and Oversize A standard indoor track is 200m, but banked, flat and oversize tracks run at different speeds. The NCAA converts between them with published factors. IndoorRulesFacilities](https://trackreels.io/blog/indoor-track-sizes)
[August 12, 2026·4 min read ## Is 11.5 a Good 100m Time? Rate Yours by Level For a girl 11.5 is inside the D1 recruiting range. For a boy it is not a recruiting mark. Hand-timed, it is really an 11.74. The full ladder, D1 to NAIA. TimesStandardsSprints](https://trackreels.io/blog/is-11-5-a-good-100m-time)
[August 12, 2026·6 min read ## Good 100m Times by Age and Grade: Rate Your Time Published 2026 qualifying 100m times from California, Oregon and Missouri, a middle school championship standard, the college ranges, and the hand-time catch. TimesStandardsSprints](https://trackreels.io/blog/good-100m-times-by-age-and-grade)
[August 12, 2026·5 min read ## Good 400m Times by Level: Rate Your Time Published 2026 state and section qualifying 400m times from California, Oregon and Missouri, the college recruiting ranges, and how to read your own split. TimesStandardsSprints](https://trackreels.io/blog/what-is-a-good-400m-time)
[August 12, 2026·5 min read ## Good Long Jump Distances: Rate Your Mark by Level Published 2026 state and section qualifying long jumps from California, Oregon and Missouri, the college ranges in meters and feet, and what adds distance. StandardsJumpsField Events](https://trackreels.io/blog/good-long-jump-distances)
[August 12, 2026·5 min read ## Good Shot Put Distances: Rate Your Mark by Level Published 2026 state and section qualifying shot put marks from California, Oregon and Missouri, the college ranges, and why 12 lb and 16 lb throws differ. StandardsThrowsField Events](https://trackreels.io/blog/what-is-a-good-shot-put-distance)
[August 12, 2026·3 min read ## How to Get Faster in the 100m The parts of a sprint that actually respond to work, in the order they pay off, and the honest limits of anything you read online. TrainingSprints](https://trackreels.io/blog/how-to-get-faster-in-the-100m)
[August 12, 2026·3 min read ## How to Improve Your 400m Time Why the 400 punishes pacing errors more than fitness, how to read your own split, and what a realistic in-season improvement looks like. TrainingSprints](https://trackreels.io/blog/how-to-improve-your-400m-time)
[August 12, 2026·3 min read ## How to Get Recruited for Track and Field The actual sequence, from working out your realistic division to what to send a coach and when they are allowed to reply. RecruitingStandards](https://trackreels.io/blog/how-to-get-recruited-for-track-and-field)
[August 10, 2026·8 min read ## MileSplit vs Athletic.net: Which Is Better? Both paywall their rankings. What each covers, what a subscription unlocks, how to pick the one your state uses, and the free option that ranks every legal mark. ResultsRankingsRecruiting](https://trackreels.io/blog/milesplit-vs-athletic-net)
[August 10, 2026·6 min read ## How to Film Track and Field: Every Event Where to stand and what to shoot for sprints, hurdles, distance, jumps and throws, so the footage is actually usable for recruiting. VideoRecruitingHow-to](https://trackreels.io/blog/how-to-film-track-and-field)
[August 10, 2026·4 min read ## How Long Should a Track Highlight Video Be? The team-sport answer is wrong for track. Why full races beat montages, how much footage each event needs, and what coaches skip. VideoRecruiting](https://trackreels.io/blog/how-long-should-a-track-highlight-video-be)
[August 10, 2026·4 min read ## NCAA Track Recruiting Calendar 2026-27 Every contact and dead period for Division I cross country and track this cycle, taken straight from the NCAA calendar updated 30 July 2026. NCAARecruitingRules](https://trackreels.io/blog/ncaa-track-recruiting-calendar-2026-27)
[August 10, 2026·6 min read ## MileSplit Alternatives for Track Athletes What MileSplit puts behind its paywall, the free and paid alternatives for results, rankings and video, and the one that ranks every legal mark for free. ResultsRankingsRecruiting](https://trackreels.io/blog/milesplit-alternatives)
[August 10, 2026·5 min read ## Getting Recruited as an Unattached Athlete What unattached means in track, whether those marks count for recruiting, and how to get them in front of coaches when no team uploads them. RecruitingMeetsMarks](https://trackreels.io/blog/unattached-track-athlete-recruiting)
[August 10, 2026·5 min read ## When Can Coaches Contact You? By Class Year For D1 track the line is June 15 after sophomore year: for the class of 2029, June 15, 2027. What each class can do today, and the two moves legal at any age. NCAARecruitingRules](https://trackreels.io/blog/when-can-college-track-coaches-contact-you)
[August 10, 2026·10 min read ## Track Meet Abbreviations: NM, SB, PR, DQ, NT Every code on an athletics or track results sheet decoded: PR, SB, MR, CR, NR, AR, WR, NM, NH, DNF, DNS, DQ, FS, SCR, NT, NWI, the w flag and q versus Q. RulesResultsGlossary](https://trackreels.io/blog/track-meet-abbreviations)
[August 10, 2026·5 min read ## What Is a PR in Track? PR vs PB vs SB PR and PB mean the same thing, SB does not. Which marks count, how wind and hand timing complicate it, and what coaches accept as real. RulesMarksGlossary](https://trackreels.io/blog/what-is-a-pr-in-track)
[August 10, 2026·4 min read ## Seed Time Rules: NT, Heats, Lanes and Faking It A seed time decides your heat and lane. What to enter when you have no time, what NT does to your lane draw, and why inflating a seed backfires at check-in. MeetsRulesGlossary](https://trackreels.io/blog/what-is-a-seed-time)
[August 8, 2026·5 min read ## Hand Time vs FAT: Why a Stopwatch Reads Fast What fully automatic timing is, the exact conversion coaches apply to a hand time, and why a stopwatch PR does not travel. RulesSprintsRecruiting](https://trackreels.io/blog/hand-timing-vs-fat-explained)
[August 8, 2026·5 min read ## Recruiting Standards: the Three Real Sources Why the recruiting standards you find online are usually wrong, and the three places to look up what your event really needs. RecruitingStandardsNCAA](https://trackreels.io/blog/what-marks-get-you-recruited)
[August 8, 2026·5 min read ## Which track event should you actually run? An honest guide to picking an event: what each one really demands, why the 400m breaks people, and which events are quietly desperate for athletes. EventsBeginnersRecruiting](https://trackreels.io/blog/which-track-event-should-you-run)
[August 1, 2026·7 min read ## Track Scholarships and the New Roster Limits The 12.6 and 18 scholarship numbers everyone quotes stopped being the rule in 2025. Here is what replaced them, and what it means for your recruiting. RecruitingScholarshipsNCAA](https://trackreels.io/blog/track-scholarships-and-roster-limits)
[August 1, 2026·5 min read ## How to Email a College Track Coach The rules on who can contact whom differ by division and changed recently. Here is what to send, when, and why coaches may already know your times. RecruitingCoachesNCAA](https://trackreels.io/blog/how-to-email-a-college-track-coach)
[August 1, 2026·4 min read ## Indoor vs Outdoor Track: The Real Differences Why your 200m is slower indoors, which events only exist in one season, and how to present indoor marks to a college coach. RulesIndoorMarks](https://trackreels.io/blog/indoor-vs-outdoor-track-differences)
[July 29, 2026·4 min read ## Wind-Legal, Wind-Aided and NWI: What Counts The +2.0 m/s rule is the short answer. Enter your time and wind reading to see what your mark is worth in still air, and whether it counts for rankings. RulesSprintsRankings](https://trackreels.io/blog/wind-legal-marks-explained)
[July 24, 2026·4 min read ## What Track Coaches Want in a Highlight Video Coaches watch film differently from football recruiters. What to film, what to cut, and the mistakes that get a video closed in ten seconds. RecruitingVideoCoaches](https://trackreels.io/blog/what-college-coaches-look-for-in-highlight-video)
[July 18, 2026·5 min read ## Track Recruiting Timeline: Year by Year When coaches can contact you, when they actually start looking, and what to do in each year of high school if you want to compete in college. RecruitingTimelineNCAA](https://trackreels.io/blog/how-track-recruiting-timeline-works)

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