An alternative name for a "handicap" race?

4 watchers

jacdaw May 2016 6:45pm, 24 May 2016 1,664 posts	0 jacdaw The term was used for racing long before it was used to mean disabled (a quick google suggests more than 250 years), so I don't see the harm in continuing to use it for races.
mbln May 2016 6:48pm, 24 May 2016 796 posts	0 mbln lol at 'Chase Me' races
fetcheveryone May 2016 6:53pm, 24 May 2016 17,241 posts	0 fetcheveryone Yeah, I looked up its origins too - it comes from "hand in cap". So if we can hope that the association with general human ability has been battered back into the dark ages, then it makes more sense that the word can resume an innocent association with sporting activity.
jennywren May 2016 7:00pm, 24 May 2016 12,841 posts	0 jennywren Especially as in a sporting context it's about promoting fairness rather than discrimination, as it is when applied to disabled people.
fetcheveryone May 2016 7:02pm, 24 May 2016 17,242 posts	0 fetcheveryone Good point
BaronessBL May 2016 7:20pm, 24 May 2016 5,533 posts	0 BaronessBL Agree with everything jennywren has said on this thread so far. Our club has a Hilly Handicap series... I've never thought of it as meaning anything other than weighted in favour of slower runners (I'm usually one of the first to start)
JK chameleon May 2016 7:44pm, 24 May 2016 11,454 posts	0 JK chameleon As a tenpin bowler I was in a handicap league. Not once did I connect this to the pejorative usage - is it possible someone is trying to be a bit too PC?
FergusG May 2016 9:49pm, 24 May 2016 140 posts	0 FergusG Don't think there's anything wrong with the term in this context, but if anyone insisted on a new term, I'd suggest "Graded Race".
Son of a Pronator Man May 2016 10:04pm, 24 May 2016 8,163 posts	0 Son of a Pronator Man If anyone with a disability spoke up and said that they found the term offensive, I'd listen to that. But I think there;s a danger of looking offence where there is none. The able bodied being offended on behalf of people with disabilities
Wazelle May 2016 8:46am, 25 May 2016 1,848 posts	0 Wazelle The Equaliser