Ves 2014...

[riderideride]

6 hour riders start at 10am, 3 hour riders start at 10:20am or vice versa
Would this work?
Fields to tend to spread out pretty quick.

Depends on lap times I know some rounds last year my race buddy hit out close to 20 minute lap times and I usually send him on a double straight up. Not so sure he would like having to pass all over again....

I think it's actually pretty hard to please everyone when you are talking about two very different races being run concurrently. Also a large volume. Maybe an hour in is better than 3? It's always when I'm tired that the 3 hour peeps start I try to just wait a bit till the fasties have gone and then head out on my lap, but not ideal when you are actually racing another team! Hehe

 

[akashra]

You're basically stuffed any way you do it. Start them all together and you have a congested course at the start, 3hr solo mixing with the 6hr solo, and then after most of the 6hr solos have got tired you have hardly anyone on the track.
Do it later and you've got a mid-race congestion problem that's completely unpredictable.

I suppose you could possibly start say all the 3hr Solo Men at 10am and 3hr Solo 40+ and Solo Women at 1pm - but you're bound to get complaints about that too.

 

[Roasted Chicken]

Congestion aside, I gather the real reason for the 10am and 1pm starts is so all races finish at the same time so that presentations can be held together and you don't have people on the podium with the transition area a ghost town.

I like the 3hr option, it is not always easy to find a race partner that can do the whole series as a team and the 6 hr, although a goal to do someday is a bit out of my reach with limited ride time these days.

Have to agree that there is a bit of a gap between rnd 1 and 2, although April will be busy with Wombat and Odyssey but not heaps running in May or June that I am aware of. Of course always keen to see Interwinter calendar, as it might fill those gaps nicely.

 

[caad9]

3 Hour racing

The 3 hour category will slowly become the preferred option IMO.
Most people can handle 3 hours at whatever speed they wish, whilst still being able to function the next day/week. Not to mention the effort of driving home, which gets brought up every year.

I know it certainly plays a big part in my decision making at races.

As Akashra & Grover mentioned, an XCO series would be fantastic.
However, I can already hear people whinging about the long distances travelled for not a lot of saddle time.

It will be impossible to please the masses, no matter how hard organisers try!

 

[Coaster]

I love the 6 hour events. Even though I'm a mid pack rider, I really enjoy the challenge of a six hour ride so I hope it doesn't swing too far back. Again as a mid pack rider it's not the best experience having all the 3 hour guys tearing up behind you over the next hour or so, not that they are rude or anything like that, I just don't want to hold them up so pull over or slow down which diminishes the experience. It's a tough one.

I imagine it's easier for timing and results to have everyone finish at the same time. I think Akashra's right, "you're basically stuffed any way you do it" unless you are lucky enough to have 2 courses ready made!

Regardless, I'll keep doing them. I'm always amazed at how good the events are that are put on by the clubs, I think they make a fantastic effort and I've never been to a dud.

 

[riderideride]

Maybe all the 3 hour racers should pair up and take on the 6 pairs racing really is fun, I hope it doesn't end.

 

[akashra]

As Akashra & Grover mentioned, an XCO series would be fantastic.
However, I can already hear people whinging about the long distances travelled for not a lot of saddle time.

It will be impossible to please the masses, no matter how hard organisers try!

I think the answer to this is to combine travel so races are back-to-back over multiple days, or offering multiple events within the same day.

I'm currently toying with some ideas for events - for the State Series we were looking at doing things like Bendigo Saturday Castlemaine or Redesdale Sunday, or Lake Mountain Saturday, Buxton Sunday - things like that.

Something else I'm looking at are events where we might have XCO at 10am, and some other form of event in the afternoon. Could be a 3hr, could be XCT; could be another XCO - maybe you reverse the course from what you just rode. You're spot on though - the argument is the travel to riding ratio.

We're also going to have a much harder problem to overcome in that noone these days wants to pre-enter. The unfortunately reality is I think it was our own event that really drove a nail in to that - we just got really unlucky with weather, and ended up in the unavoidable situation of a Marathon on a wet weekend that noone wanted to commit to in the conditions. If it does end up affecting things in 2014 - that people refuse to pre-enter events, I can see a lot of events being scaled back or cancelled in future, as it actually costs serious money to put on good events at some venues. $10 discounts for pre-entry just aren't going to cut it.

Maybe all the 3 hour racers should pair up and take on the 6 pairs racing really is fun, I hope it doesn't end.

IMO pairs racing can actually be harder than solo racing. Solo racing you pace yourself, but it's the rest between laps that really smashes you in pairs racing. You're expected to go all-out while on the track, rather than pacing yourself.

 

[caad9]

I think the answer to this is to combine travel so races are back-to-back over multiple days, or offering multiple events within the same day.

You are heading in the right direction with multi format racing.

I think two events that you barely ever hear people complain about are the Forest Festival & GMBC's 3 race interwinter round. Value for money from those races is unrivaled.
If people are to commit to a race/leave the family/travel, they are going to need a very good reason to do so nowadays.

The weather will ALWAYS be a big factor in people entering in advance, but I think that's warranted.
For many people there are responsibilities with work/family etc that keep them from committing to a race too far ahead.
Why use the limited opportunity available to go racing in driving rain when you don't have to?

 

[DoubleD]

XCO racing is well and truly alive in parts, look at GMBC's no frills Friday racing. Big turnouts, for an hour of great, fun, friendly racing throughout the year. Those numbers then translate into huge turnouts for their 3hr series and other events such as the Yowie.

The secret is accessibility, friendly racing, low prices ($10 entry), good courses. This is club racing so no-one's making money out of it, and what is made goes straight back into the club and trails.

I don't doubt another evening during the week at either Dights, Hans Loop or somewhere within about 45 minutes of the cbd using the same formula could be built up similarly.

I may have more time later in the year to try and push for something like this.

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[caad9]

I've used the GMBC event as an example of a great day out.
I think GMBC run a fantastic event and hope they continue to do so across their broad range.

They are VERY lucky with their location though.

 

[DoubleD]

I've used the GMBC event as an example of a great day out.
I think GMBC run a fantastic event and hope they continue to do so across their broad range.

They are VERY lucky with their location though.

They have done a hell of a lot of work to get lucky like that :biggrin-new: They work hard with Parks, they raise money, they have volunteers who devote extreme amounts of time and as a club they they really know what they want to deliever. It's not that fantastic a venue in many ways, eg it's a pain to get to from the city on a Friday night for the racing, but with all that work the package works.

I'm amazed whenever I go to Lysterfield that that venue is so underutilised for racing. There should be a regular XCO series out there using the Comm Games track. I'd attend weekly or fortnightly. It should be the home of the Vic State Champs and be used on the same date each year for the XCO championships. This is almost a no-brainer. As a venue I think it has easily the potential of the Youies for this type of racing, probably more as I'd guess it's a lot closer than the Youies for many people.

 

[monc]

I love the 3 hour series, my +1 is far more interested in doing the solo 6 hr than racing pairs, so the 3 hour still allows me to race (cause I'm a Scotty and none of my riding friends have the time to commit to racing 6 hr pairs with me), do some supporting of my +1, and still have one of us not totally wiped out for the drive home.

How about a much extended start loop for the races, the the 3 hr people can be more spread out and not hit the 6 hour field as a block. I think the worst example of this was the Creswick race last year, where the 3 hour racers all stood as a large group right on the race track to start, which would have been really off putting (no separate start loop).

 

[trav]

?

They have done a hell of a lot of work to get lucky like that :biggrin-new: They work hard with Parks, they raise money, they have volunteers who devote extreme amounts of time and as a club they they really know what they want to deliever. It's not that fantastic a venue in many ways, eg it's a pain to get to from the city on a Friday night for the racing, but with all that work the package works.

I'm amazed whenever I go to Lysterfield that that venue is so underutilised for racing. There should be a regular XCO series out there using the Comm Games track. I'd attend weekly or fortnightly. It should be the home of the Vic State Champs and be used on the same date each year for the XCO championships. This is almost a no-brainer. As a venue I think it has easily the potential of the Youies for this type of racing, probably more as I'd guess it's a lot closer than the Youies for many people.

What hard work with Parks would that be?

 

[DoubleD]

Maybe the emphasis came across wrong. Tim would appreciate that. I was suggesting that some club members must put in a lot of "hard work in conjunction with Parks", but having said that I'm new to the scene down there so I'm just making some assumptions about the effort that goes into making a facility like that, and where e it comes from. Building just that new section of track must have been a huge effort

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[trav]

Maybe the emphasis came across wrong. Tim would appreciate that. I was suggesting that some club members must put in a lot of "hard work in conjunction with Parks", but having said that I'm new to the scene down there so I'm just making some assumptions about the effort that goes into making a facility like that, and where e it comes from. Building just that new section of track must have been a huge effort

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Thats ok,but ill make it clear

GMBC do not do any work at the You Yangs.

 

[DoubleD]

Ok, my mistake. And if you're the Trav from Trav's Diamond et al, you have my heartfelt thanks and admiration

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[akashra]

Thats ok,but ill make it clear

GMBC do not do any work at the You Yangs.

What hard work with Parks would that be?

Trav, your idea of "work" here is labour. GMBC do plenty for the park and sport in other ways. This isn't the place to air your constant anti-GMBC agenda.

 

[Cúl-Báire]

Thats ok, but ill make it clearGMBC do not do any work at the You Yangs.

You do a top job Trav no doubting that! :thumb:



I won't comment on the anti GMBC.

 

[riderideride]

Thats ok,but ill make it clear

GMBC do not do any work at the You Yangs.

Ouch. I'm pretty sure we do more than nothing. Providing trail $$ isn't nothing. And I know some members have provided man hours on the trails too and been to trail building workshops.

 

[trav]

Ouch. I'm pretty sure we do more than nothing. Providing trail $$ isn't nothing. And I know some members have provided man hours on the trails too and been to trail building workshops.

Read my post again,i didnt say GMBC do nothing,i said "GMBC do no work",which isnt a problem,the trail crew prefers it that way.
Makes quality control much easier.

Anti GMBC,no just letting every one know the actual facts.