On your marks ... Get set ... ? Without the blast of a starting pistol, sprinters might limp instead of lurch from the starting blocks.

On your marks ... Get set ... ?

Without the blast of a starting pistol, sprinters might limp instead of lurch from the starting blocks.

The crack of a handgun, long associated with competitive running events, is in jeopardy due to the scarcity of blank ammunition.

Dale Gabor, director of cross-county and track and field events for the Ohio High School Athletic Association, was told, bluntly, that �blanks are low on the totem pole; that�s the reason they haven�t been produced.�

By the first of the year, Gabor said he typically has been shipped tens of thousands of rounds of .22- and .32-caliber ammunition, which he then distributes to district officials for use in track meets across the state.

This year, �It kept getting later,� he said of the deliveries he was promised in February, then March. Outdoor track typically begins the last week of March.

�It�s April now, and I�m concerned,� Gabor said.

He orders through Vance Outdoors on Cleveland Avenue, where owner Doug Vance said that high-volume manufacturers such as Winchester Ammunition have simply not kept up.

Vance said blanks are �a pittance� of his business.

Gabor said he ordered twice as much a year in advance to prevent shortages that he has heard are related to society�s growing appetite for guns and ammo.

Winchester�s website states: �We are experiencing an extremely high demand for our products, and blanks are a portion of that.

�We are working as hard as we can to produce an increased supply of quality ammunition to meet our customers� needs.�

The problem is not just in Ohio.

Three years ago, a Winchester representative told Harvey Richards, Gabor�s counterpart with the Missouri State High School Activities Association, that the company had skipped an entire year of producing the blanks.

Now, he said, �I will buy every shell they will get me just to make sure I have enough.�

Gabor has heard of no one running out in Ohio. And there are alternatives, such as electronic starting pistols, which can sell for $300 apiece. But he�s continuing his quest for those using the traditional blanks.

�I�ve heard that some coaches were able to round up some shells from friends who had extras,� Gabor said.

dnarciso@dispatch.com

@DeanNarciso