There is little doubt that the new ChampionChip and its clones are
revolutionizing the administration of road races. As the chip grows
in popularity and more and more runners purchase their own, it is inevitable
that problems will arise due to conflicts among the unique numbers that the
chips broadcast. If I may be permitted to indulge in some speculation about
what the future holds ...

- Esther Dyson, newly furloughed from the internet naming agency she currently
heads, will be tapped to lead an international organization insuring that each
chip manufactured globally bleeps its own unique signature.

- Dyson's well-intentioned decision to allow letters of the alphabet in
the chip codes will lead to an explosion of interest in "Vanity Chips".

- Hucksters (mostly teens) will seize the economic opportunity created by the
aforementioned trend and will corner the market on such gems as "Liv2Run" and
"IRun4JC". They will come to be known as "chip squatters".

- New forms of petty crime will evolve. Those with an abundance of speed and
a paucity of conscience will be seen to run races, their shoes festooned with
dozens of chips paid for by people in search of cheap PRs. Aimless youths
with too much time (chip time?) on their hands, will sneak boxloads of 
spurious chips across the start mats, creating enormous headaches for
organizers and wasting precious bandwidth. 

- The impact on popular culture will be incalculable. Common phrases -- "a
chip off the old block," "let the chips fall where they may," "when the
chips are down," "a chip on one's shoulder (???)" -- will come to have new
meaning, or may fall into disuse. Crooners will tell of lovers who "pass
like chips in the night." Dreamy hunks, wearing nothing in races save the
shoes that bear their electronic identities, will come to be known, 
affectionately, as "chippendales." 

And the list goes on ...