Dates announced for the FSU Invitational/Pre-State and ACC Championships at ARP

The State XC meet is by all indications returning to Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee on November 7th.  The FHSAA recently concluded the bidding process for the State XC meet and the bid submitted by VisitTallahassee.com's Sport Council, a division of Leon County, was the highest rated bid. 

The Florida State XC Finals have been held in Tallahassee at Apalacheee Regional Park, nicknamed the "Cross-Country Playground" since 2012, a tenure of three consecutive years.

In December 2014, at the conclusion of the original contract, the FHSAA requested proposals for hosting the 2015/2016 State XC Finals and a total of six bids were submitted.   Ultimately 4 of the bids were ranked by the FHSAA.

The 4 bids under consideration were Winter Springs/Central Winds Park, The National Training Center in Clermont, and Central Florida's Polk County Sports Management at Holloway Park.

What's Next?

Now that there is a "winning" bid, the FHSAA and VisitTallahassee.com are conducting contract negotiations.  If the FHSAA and VisitTallahassee.com are successful and can agree on a contract, a formal announcement will be made by the FHSAA.  If they aren't successful, the FHSAA will move to the 2nd ranked bid by Winter Springs High School and try to conclude a contract with them.

The FHSAA website for some time now has had November 7th as the State XC meet date.  That date is a good weekend in Tallahassee as FSU doesn't have a home football game that weekend and hotel availability shouldn't be an issue.

Our Take

We're extremely pleased to see the State XC meet return to Tallahassee for a good many reasons, the first of which is VisitTallahassee's Sport Council, who, in conjunction with FSU, has proven year after year that they care about the race experience.  Meet management really determines just how great that race experience is and it can't be underestimated that the State Meet is a once in a lifetime experience.  As media, we've witnessed first hand just how much they care about visitors to their county and city and ensuring the State XC Meet is a first class operation in all aspects. 

Is it perfect in every sense of the word?  Can it ever be?  Probably not,  but we've seen the strides made over the years at ARP and always enjoy going back to Tallahassee knowing the likes of VisitTallahassee's Brian Hickey along with his great staff and volunteers from within the community, along with Coach Braman's staff at FSU, really care about the State XC meet from a fan's perspective.

Secondly, the course at Apalachee Regional Park is a great cross country course that will only get better year after year.  One only needs to remember back when ARP was carved out of the countryside, the course it is now, and the vision Coach Braman, Leon County, and Gulf Winds Track Club have for further improvements to know that it will continue to excel as a runner's paradise.

Book your rooms

FSU issued a press release on Monday stating October 2-3 as dates for the FSU Invitational which will act as the Pre-ACC and Pre-State meets.  The ACC Championships will be on October 30th and by all indications the State XC Meet will be on November 7th.