Please include me as an enthusiastic supporter of ranking wrestlers in the state of kansas, to particularly include, all-class wrestlers.

As well, suffice to say that in my opinion the Chief deserves a hearty note of thanks for his willingness to unselfishly devote his time, extensive knowledge and energy to this thankless task.

Throughout the wrestling season, the Chief has placed his considered OPINION on the line, for all to consider, debate and otherwise challenge. And the Kansas wrestling community has done just that as obviously reflected by the attention this particular thread has generated. It would not surprise me that the Chief has his personal "favorites" and/or "prejudices" (as we all do, to include those involved in ranking at any level, in any sport)- but if he does, he does a pretty good job of either suppressing or disguising same. He responds to all comments (positive and negative) in a very timely,civil manner. He has demonstrated, time and again, his willingness and ability to consider other's "opinions", and on countless occasions, has adjusted his "rankings" accordingly.

I believe that it was Winston Churchill, who, when asked about the concept of democracy, once stated: "Democracy is the absolute worst form of government there is ... except every other that has ever been tried". This sentiment captures my attitude involving rankings as a resource to give us an idea how our wrestlers from the various classes, "stack-up" (remember, there is no grand state competition). Of course, it would be better to allow all wrestlers to "face-off on the mat". It's just not possible nor practical.

As an aside, even if we were to abandon the practice of having a central depository of opinion(s) for the ranking of our wrestlers in this state, it would hardly end the debate, controversy and endless arguments as to who is better and/or best - we just wouldn't have anywhere or anyone to go to, to lend support and/or criticism for our own point of view. By my way of thinking, so long as we have competition, we'll always want to "keep-score": meaning, know who is ahead and who is behind, at any given point in time. Ranking serves as a vehicle for this purpose, imperfect though it may be.

Rankings motivate and, at times, probably intimidate wrestlers. Rankings invite controversy, debate and argument, among wrestlers,their coaches and fans; but, at least wrestling is being discussed - attention is being paid to the sport.

Everyone knows that rankings are opinions, which are the product of speculation, hearsay and whatever else anyone allows to enter their particular opinion process. So be it.

The Chief, in another thread, included comments which struck me as particularly true and worthy of repeat. In effect, he mentioned that a particular wrestler, at a given point in time "owns" that ranking. While I'm not exactly sure what he meant by that, I choose to believe that this sentiment at least contemplates the fact that a particular wrestler can always lay claim to the fact, that in someone else's considered opinion, this particular wrestler's status was, if for a brief period of time, exalted and he was celebrated as an elite wrestler. I like that!

I check the rankings regularly and although I don't always agree with the ranker, the rankings nonetheless gives me a pretty good point of reference as to how the various wrestlers in the various classes stack-up against each other. It definitely adds a dimension of intrigue and/or anticipation to match-ups between wrestlers.

Sorry to have droned on for so long. Chief - keep up the good work.