1.volunteers
2.cost
3.trend
4.age of participants
5.venues
6.romance
7.society
8.return on investment
9.time
10.risk factor
11.social media
12.us
13.reputation
14.stress
15.commitment
the reason why road racing is dying.
think about it
explained next week..
11 comments:
as someone relatively new to the sport, 12 is the biggest thing here. triathletes are easy targets, both for jokes, and for convincing to do a road race or two, but all too often roadies throw stones at the thriving sport instead of begging them to try their dying sport.
12:31 PM
agree
This is a great list!!
I can not wait to hear the explanation for all these.
Unpopular Opinion: I don't see how the USAC category and license system is sustainable. My amateur observation on why races like Barry Roubaix, Ore 2 Shore, Peak to Peak, Lumberjack, Cherry Roubaix and Iceman are so popular across all abilities (Alexey level pro to the most beginner of beginners) is because they're open pro-am events where people from different disciplines and abilities can come together in one shared experience. Barry is probably the only road race that most mountain bikers do and Iceman or Ore to Shore is the opposite (the only mountain bike race that true road racers do). People like to be able to compare times, like to race and be part of the action, NOT be excluded or told they're not good enough (most people already know their abilities). I think the USAC category system is missing out on two groups, the beginners and the really good weekend warriors. I think that the category system is intimidating for someone who just likes to ride bikes and sometimes wants to ride hard with other people. Starting anything new can be scary and I don't think it helps that people who are already in the sport aren't overly nurturing and constantly remind new riders that their category is called crash 5 (So why race that crit when Barry is more fun anyway?). How are you supposed to create new riders this way? The second group that USAC or more specifically USAC road is missing is the weekend warrior fast Strava rider, elite mountain biker or the accomplished triathlete. I know of plenty of fast mountain bikers that are turned off by road racing because they don't want to spend the money to race in the 30 minute beginner crit. I know triathletes that are the same way, they would like to race road but don't want to race road bad enough to take a few months to upgrade to Cat 3, which for some is still a lower category than they should be. I've heard people complain that there isn't enough road races in Michigan, however, if the race turnout is low already and the road racing discipline isn't growing, why would someone want to put on a race when there is hardly any interest? I don't think it's the lack of road races, its the lack of interested people. Bike racing is strong in the mountain and gravel scene (there is 665 people preregistered for a potentially rainy Yankee Springs TT!!!). Those races are great because they're inclusive, lighthearted and fun. Plus people don't want to miss them (Lumberjack, Barry and Iceman all sell out!!!). I'm a fairly quick dude and as much as I'd love to have huge road racing payouts and a ton of fan fair around me I know i'm not the model that the future of racing should be built off of, people don't really want to watch me and 10 other dudes race a 90 minute crit, but an overwhelming number of people want to talk post race about their race experiences or finishing times after Barry/Iceman/O2S/Peak2Peak. Getting more people on bikes and at races is whats good for everyone....Just my VERY amateur douchebag opinion/rant. I enjoy the Michigan scene regardless, that's why I still live here. As always i'm a huge fan of the blog, keep up the good shit!
-ScottyA
#SIMONSTER2020
3:20 PM
Nice cant wait to hear the TMS break down as well.
1. 8-10 race max MBRA road race series
2.three legit TTS
3.At least two road races..........please
4.Push the Cone Azalia event back to legit spring weather..no later April 1
5.non conflicting promoters..
6.More Sunday races..give the bike shop guys a break
7. 1 lap MTB TT series..seriously two lap TTs are dumb 1.5 hours is NOT a quick effort
8.Keep the gravel shit for spring..lets not kill this scene as well by too many double events
9.consistent payouts at every race
10.more consistent classes..drop the 1 hrs masters..it had its time..want to race for 1 hr? race elite
11.combine classes with less than 5 riders..racing your girlfriend is not a challenge
12.ask for advice from racers
13. support new events..Corktown etc..
14.promoters ..refrain from last minute calendar additions..give people a chance to plan they all have lives outside of bicycles
15.lets make michiganscene great again....
5:43 - That sounds euphoric. I wish it were all true.
9.consistent payouts at every race
*$200/cat 12 pro men and women? That's not what you meant. Spoken by a true masters racer. "Consistent" payouts to anyone but cat 12s = scene dead. Every cat 4 or masters racer is responsible for our current state. No, you don't deserve to get paid for your stupid hobby. Even if a sponsor "pays" for it on Sunday, we all pay for it in the long run.
12.ask for advice from racers
*And then laugh at them when they bring up #9
7:23 AM
consistent payouts at every race
probably means at least the same for every race..it doesn't have to be a dollar value.IE could be water bottles to the podium to a gel flasks.
with nothing to give and probably money to the guys that got on the boxes..NO ONE WILL SHOW UP
you know like maybe have a budget of some sorts at the beginning of the season..one title sponsor for entire season instead of trying to get the Local bike shop to kick in the money they dont have..
maybe that is what comment meant to say
8:01 AM
...with nothing to give and probably money to the guys that got on the boxes..NO ONE WILL SHOW UP...
Refer to 7:23:
Every cat 4 or masters racer is responsible for our current state. No, you don't deserve to get paid for your stupid hobby.
Look at all those amazing gravel payouts! Oh wait. Yet a ton of people show up. So payout money is absolutely not the answer. It is the reason why we are where we are right now.
If you want to get paid on the weekends, go get a paper route.
6:25 PM
YOUR WRONG
the gravel mentality is different than the road mentality.
you can not change it
This conversation for most people is simply an extension of them at races. You have the fast guys complaining they have to earn upgrades, guys that probably never get paid complaining other people get paid, and everyone whining that there isn't a fix. I wish for once this would create a meaningful conversation with results. You can have a payout in fields and still have races make money, it happens at races all the time. Races shouldn't have to have significant payout to exist, that also holds true. Road racing can never be as popular as gravel racing unless the "I'm a winner" mentality changes. In gravel there isn't only one pack and the longer the race goes the smaller each group is so everyone gets a warm fuzzy feeling from doing their best. This phenomenon is why the super long distance stuff is popular if the suffering is part of the distance and not the speed everyone that finishes gets to feel like a winner even if they aren't competitive. Different strokes for different folks.
In the mean time the weekday race model and races like Zeeland should be embraced if you are going to have fewer people show up but they are competitively minded set up 3-5 classes to race and run them all together. You could race all of your main money making groups in A, B, C format with additional races or scored categories for women and a 35+/45+ masters field. This would allow bigger fields with shorter schedules, fewer expenses, and a better overall experience. On the subject of masters racing, cycling needs it for the income it provides. You can bash 35+ year old guys that love racing and try hard but aren't on the pro path all you want, but if they serve enough of a purpose to a team or shop to get the bro deal and then show up to races and pay an entry fee(usually in bigger numbers than the wannabe pros) their money is worth taking in exchange for an event that keeps them around. In general racing bikes is a pretty harmless hobby and can be very fun and healthy the idea that only certain people should get to pay an entry will kill the sport quicker than a lack of payout.
If I was MBRA I would work to foster a pared down race day format, work with local clubs to find car tracks, office parks, or easy and affordable race venues, and to build a "race in a box". If every MBRA race had the same schedule in terms of race order and time, the same payout(if your race can payout more advertise and give out the extra money in primes), the same timing company(start their own or partner with an established one), and races held a season long number within their category it would certainly help to make everything smoother. No one can predict when or if the competitive bike racing bug will start to bite large numbers of people again, but until then hopefully some people step up or stay in the game long enough to keep it alive even if it is on life support.
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