Don't listen to me. I am not even into speedrunning Pokémon a lot due to RNG. But still, a possible fun idea is adding a new half quest category. When the credits roll when you beat Lance for the first time, the timer stops. I think it would make it a lot shorter. Also, no major glitches allowed.

JPN actually has that even on this board, no clue why english doesn't. A short-ish any% glitchless category would be something nice for in-between and any% Lance I'd definitely pick up for both Gold and Crystal.