I have low expectations for Spring Series races. I always anticipate them to be under-marshalled, over-registered and under-punctual. And I acknowledge that there are many unforeseen things that happen in races (crashes, obstinate park users who refuse to listen to marshals, Benjamin Netanyahu going for a jog), but Spring Series races seem to have an abundance of unforeseen occurrences occurring in them. Due to the regularity of these calamities, I’m forced to conclude that these extra occurrences aren’t due solely to bad luck, there has to be some culpability on the part of those who put on the races.
Let’s use Sunday’s race for example. Normally I try to steer clear of being the typical bitchy bike racer, as that’s a tiresome stereotype that I do not wish to propagate, but in this case I will put on my bitchy jeans (they have a special sand-blasted finish). First on my "bitch list" is the fact that pre-reg for the race was $27, while the price for day of registration was $35, which is nearly a 30% surcharge. Of course, I should be more diligent in my race planning, but I do have a hectic schedule and my race decisions often come at the last moment. This lack of planning evidently costs me $8—is it worth $8? On Sunday morning, I decided it was.
After a slightly DMV-ish sign in process (I don’t blame promoters for last minute whiney racer registration nonsense—I DO however, blame promoters for leaving registration open in order to collect every registration possible. You should set a firm time for registration to end, and that means letting some registration fees uncollected—it’s the only way some tardy racers will ever learn. I know it’s hard to face begging racers, but it’s called tough love for a reason), I pinned up and made my way to the start to stand and shiver with my fellow racers for a reasonable ( for the Spring Series) extra 10 or so minutes past the official start time.
Before starting the race, we were bull-hornily briefed by the race promoter. He helpfully mentioned the location of potholes on the course and advised us in the pro1/2/3 race to keep a brisk pace, lest we get caught by the trailing throng of 3/4 racers which he reckoned was 150 racers strong. As an aside, that’s a lot of racers in one field. For comparison, that’s akin to inviting the entire crowd at the Bad Brains concert (I am the master of the timely reference) over to your dorm room after the show. There’s a slight chance everyone will be cool and play Twister, but chances are that your mini-fridge is going to get trashed.
We shoved off and started racing our $7 (un-preregistered price) laps. And the action was representative of early season New York City racing. Lots of attacking without any meaningful gaps, and a brisk pace. After $25.65 worth of racing, we came upon those racers unlucky enough to be involved in the dorm party catastrophe. There were three or four racers on the ground and two ambulances attending to the injured. We all slowed because—duh—and gingerly picked our way through the wreckage. We rode past the start finish to hear the bell ringing to signify the last lap of the race. We had slowed at this point and were left to wonder whether the race was still in fact a race at this point.
This questioning lasted for about $2.50. The we started racing again. We raced on the West Side and through Tavern, and when we got to the downhill where the crash happened we stopped racing—because there were marshals waving at us and because—see aforementioned "duh" statement from above. We rolled slowly past the ambulances and stopped at the finish.
Now, no promoter can control the action of racers once they’ve started racing. A promoter can yell at racers from the side of the road or have a moto try to control the racers, but no promoter can forbid a pack of racers from acting stupidly nor can they prohibit crashing. Mishaps happen. This is racing. But there are things promoters can do to minimize these mishaps occurring. And not packing race fields like a freshman formulating an after-party is a good place to start, otherwise you can kiss your mini-fridge goodbye.
one of the riders in the 3/4 field posted a video of the finish of the race. He was near the front, so you can get a good view of what happened. Pace moto came past 72nd st to find riders and the ambulance all over the road. He put his hand down to warn the riders behind him, but at those speeds when riders are jockeying for position, the smart thing to do is get out of the way. The rider with the camera slows down and just weaves his way through the obstacles. Others sprint away thinking the race was still on. Considering rules of racing in the park forbid racers from riding in the rec lanes for any reason, most of the racers should have been DQed. It’s a bad signal to send that it is ok to race through the rec lane. A savy marshal would have run south to warn the pace moto and approaching riders before they reached the scene of the accident. This is why it is so important for you to take your marshal duty very seriously.
i think “doube e” is illegal.
Just received the email the 3/4 race has been reset to 100 racers, max – makes me think someone’s reading this page. This won’t prevent crashes, but may create a greater vacancy to the doorless stalls in the bathroom.
Any news on the guys who went down? Everyone ok?
That was almost fabianese poetry
http://twitter.com/#!/NYCSpringSeries/status/176474573016010753
Velo Crashalot p/b FR,B.
And professor, we should also consider sanctions against the racers who clearly don’t know how to race safely and show a painful common sense deficit. Many of us didn’t need a marshall to tell us what to do…
The crash was in the Cat 5 race which had 50 riders. Just about every early season cat 5 races has 50 riders no matter who promotes it.
I also assume Van Dunk will give creid to the racers.
That said, I do agree 150 for a short Central Park race is very dangerous. Glad to hear they are limiting it to 100.
Pre-reg came to about $29.80 with tax. So you were really paying a $5.20 day of fee. $5 day of fee is pretty standard (see Bethel….Branchbrook). Johnny Cakes has a $10 day of fee.
I love some guy comparing cat 5, spring series, first race of the year, to the giro. Get a grip.
Pretty sure that was a Cat 3/4 guy making the comparison so he can rationalize riding through like a moron.
im not sure if you know but, the ambulance is at he start line so w/ my ass hanging out and a gash that needed 18 stitches i had to go some where to pin my shorts back on and get a bandage on the hole in my leg. maybe you ride around w/ a full medical kit and a bunch of safety pins but i don’t. have a beer and relax dude. no need to come on here being all aggressive for no reason like some of the dickheads racing yesterday.
but the nyvelocity rider with the ripped bib and his ass cheek hanging out looked pretty pro.
Hoogerland Eye for the NYVelocity Guy
Spring Series is the new Giro!
“Cheek-a-boo” is always pro
The best part of the pro/1/2/3 race was when all the riders were at a complete stop by the ambulances in front of Tavern and AVD asked — with absolutely no hint or irony — if “we wanted to sprint for the line.” Yes. I want to sprint as far away from the spring series as possible. But I am sure I’ll forget how terrible it is in a few weeks and go back.
He done Van Dunked all my money!
You know you’ve made it when your name becomes a verb.
this needs to be better attended. for real. maybe bad brains can play the after party.
https://nyvelocity.com/content/event/2012/men%E2%80%99s-racing-clinic-presented-crca-kissena
Van Dunk to Maaco
The way they do it at Bethel:
http://bethelspringseries.com/2012-bethel-spring-series-changes
1. For Cat 5s, the clinic before the Cat 5 race will be mandatory for all Cat 5s
We’re doing this because the first two weeks of 2011 had two crashes in the Cat 5 race, both caused by riders doing specific things they shouldn’t have done, things that were covered in the clinics just beforehand. We want to make this a safe race, with safe riders, so we’re making the clinic mandatory.
Just one more thing to add to the list of how Aki is doin it right. Coffe stands, bathrooms, happy children.
Once again..we’ve all been “Van Dunked!!”
How about, “This ain’t my first rodeo, you son of a motherless goat?”
anyone know when the repaving is supposed to be done?
the parks people told the promoter that they should be able to run some march races after it is paved. sooooo maybe very soon. promoter told me they were out there last week estimating the job, so i hope very soon
Kinda sorta makes you appreciate CRCA even more.
Cut to: AVD rolling around naked in a huge pile of dirty crumpled singles.
You forgot to give kudos to the riders who forked out the extra buck to enjoy the toll road, or as some call it, “Le Piste Joggeur”… day-glo green helmet cover guy rules!
“First rodeo, bitch” to mengoni
THis page is a joke! Let’s sugest solutions instead of Non-sense coments. Netxt race should be doube e point and money or a Free Race. Also They need to hired better marshalls, the place where this occurred has enough space to move the ambulance to the side. Accidents Happends, The Giro had a fatality last year and they didn;t stop raceing(sad news indeed). I hope al the CAt 5’s guys get better.
hear hear.
Classic Van Dunk… where did all the results and money go. We need an answer.
You shoulda shouted out, “Hey Van Dunk, this ain’t my first rodeo, bitch!”
I regret I can’t star that last comment more than once.
I ♥ Roger
the ambulance was at the crash site for the 3/4 field…
Administer two amps Sodium Bicarb. Insert an airway. Start an IV, and Lactate Ringer’s.
Roger, I didn’t read that as a criticism. Riding around bleeding with your pants ripped is always respected.
Sorry to hear about the the stitches. Heal fast sir.
I saw Van Dunk drive off in a Maybach
@roger – definitely not a criticism of you
ya after i type that i was hopping i didnt read that out of context.so no disrespect. hope everyone was ok. that was a very nervous energy race and was not much fun at all to be in. at the end of the day we all do this cause its fun. and that wasn’t. Thanks for the kind words and hope to see you all out there under way better circumstances!
Roger…
+2 to whomever wrote “Hoogerland Eye for the NYVelocity Guy”
😉
Every year SHIT happens at Spring Series by VD.
Everyone complains about it on this site…at least the 10 odd years I have been racing in NY area.
Same old shit and yet people STILL show up to take part in it every year. Like some stupid honey badgers.
It’s March, everyone wants to race and flex muscles, but gee..really? Do you have to race just because there is a race?
If you can’t get away to race out of town, go on a training ride. It is still March!!~~!
I hope the veteran teammates are sharing their wisdom about these spring series.
Wisen up and ask the veteran racers for suggestions…seriously….and LISTEN to their feed backs.
LEARN from other people’s mistakes or other people’s discoveries!
All those who goy hurt, I wish you quick recovery.
I propose a Spring Computrainer Series, with everyone networked via computer.
Although some doofus would probably find a way to crash….
its understandable that racers who are inexperienced, and rusty at the same time are going to crash more often. even in spring series 123s and masters are usually pretty safe.
Spring Series races are always a shitshow. It’ll never change. I’d rather do Gimbels, save my cash, and get some early season training that is way tougher than any race in CP has to offer. Plus, the Gimbels long ride has a seasoned crowd full of old, grizzled Cat 2 and 3 masters types from Westchester who know their shit and won’t crash you out.
If you think the gimbels or rocket rides are harder than a race you should actually try racing sometime.
gimbels turns like 12-15 guys pro each year. fact.
There is some Pro who is always on the Gimbels and Rocket ride, I think his name is Will. Anyways, he wins them all the time and is super strong. He will show you how to ride fast!
Bethel was good. Nice course (if you like doing right turns). Plenty of free parking and very well run.
Here’s a vid of a couple of laps from the Mens 1,2,3. I would recomend downloading if you want good HD quality.
Enjoy
http://vimeo.com/37996515
maybach, thats funny as i was going to inquire if he was sti;l driving the three wheel parking ticket rig sold at auction in the nineties
additionally has he cut his hair
and lastly not to get personal and or raciall, is his last name really van dunk?
Gimbels ride, thats funny
What’s so funny about Gimbel’s? Gimbels is not funny. Gimbel’s is serious. Gimbel’s is RESULTS.
Do you really think AVD will listen to any suggestions? He’s been running the spring series for some time now and keeps doing the same things wrong over and over again. Is it really that hard to run a TT and have results available the same day? Is it really smart to have a 125 field limit on a 3/4 in CP or PP? Not to mention that the price per lap is ridiculous.
It is possible to have a crash free cat 5 race. On saturday the cat 5 field did 4 very fast laps and had no crashes. No to mention this was on a day with very wet roads.
Putting on a race is hard work and I would not deny a promoter a profit. But you really should not reward promoters that do a poor job. Especially one that does the same poor job year after year.
As far as ambulance placement on the road goes, there is nothing a marshal can do. The ambulance will park where it thinks it needs to park to best take care of the injured. The best a marshal can do is try to give everyone warning of the ambulance on the road as soon as possible.
You’re blaming a Cat 5 crash on AVD?
Or am I misreading the context of your post?
That Bethel vimeo is pretty cool. Bunch of Adler guys doing work son! That’s how Adler rolls!
Looks like Adler was pulling back his teammate. Maybe he didn’t like who’s was with him in the break.
AVD is responsible not only for the 5’s crash but for the mortgage mess this country is in. Occupy Spring Series!
There needs to be some thought put into the cone placement. Ie: don’t do it where idiots will inevitably run into them and kick them into the racing lane. This was an issue at the bottom of HH on lap 1 of cat 5, and also at the descent leading up to it in the 3/4.
Before the next SS race, drink green tea. It is loaded with anti-accidents.
I know funny, and that there was funny.
DOT did some work in Central Park patching some of the holes going up Harlem Hill!
Has anyone registered their concerns reagrding Van Dunk’s promotion (through Metropolitan Cycling Association / Team Squiggle) of Central and Prospect Par bikes races with USA Cycling? If enough people show genuine dissatisfaction, maybe VD loses his USAC sanction. Better yet, Van Dunk gets negative feedback from the governing body, and decides to clean up his act.
probably not, because its so much easier to complain here.
usac should regularly monitor nyvelocity.com to stay up to date on important things that affect the lives of dozens.
Yeah report him to USCA so they can stop the spring series all together, You guys are genius at its best.
Ride in CP/PP as a “going rogue” peloton, no numbers, and you get everything you could want, except having to pay AVD for it, and not getting your “prize money”…
I welcome that idea
– Central Park Precinct Commander, Philip Wishnia
If someone was serious about fixing Spring Series, the correct approach seems to be to take over the Metropolitan Racing Association which has the grandfathered permits.
‘Yeah report him to USCA so they can stop the spring series all together, You guys are genius at its best.’
Well then QT, if you are not intersted in doing anything constructive, and would rather piss and moan then you deserve what you get – the status quo. If VD loses his USAC sanction, perhaps it opens the door to a competiting promoter who may do a better job.
I have been out the NY metro bike racing scene for a several years; I am comteplating a possible return. The last race I would sign up for w/b a Spring Series race. ‘Been there done that’ – it wasn’t enjoyable; don’t need to go back.
New email from AVD. Cat 5 in CP is now 2 laps instead of 3, 6 in prospect park instead of 7, max of 50 riders in all fields at Floyd Bennett.
Think we can trade Van Dunk to the Orlando Magic for Dwight Howard?
I’ll take it from you thoughtful will do attitude your NEW as in Im going through a mid life crises and this is easier they trying to get my limp dick hard. For the rest of us, the spring series is a tradition 12 years ago I did my first Sping Series race it was a lot like last weekend. The only difference from then to now is it was very laid back, stock broker type A suck.
I’ll tell you what Clearcoat get back to me when you have catted up and understand that these races are strictly for fitness and fun and should be taken with a grain of salt. The races that matter and a few months away.
e
Somebody should do something.
AVD finally listened to all your complaining and did something he thought would improve the situation. He feels like his changes will make this series safer and more fun for those involved and I respect him for being able to take the criticism and do something about it. Obviously he believes that these changes and his handlin of the catastrophe on Sunday are the best options for the series and the racers involved. But of course noone is satisfied with that either. It’s funny, there is always b*tching on this site, just empty complaints, but it’s very rare to see constructive criticism. I’m sure AVD isn’t getting rich off the spring series, he obviously does this for the benefit of the sport and the local racers so if you have such a big problem with it then stop showing up bc the race will probably be alot more fun without hearing all of you crying about it the whole pre, during, and post-race
I refuse to race until warm croissants are served pre-race at the reg. table.
Guys,
I understand you are annoyed at the situation but I am sure you have all woke up one spring morning in the past years and ventured out to compete in the NYC Spring Series Races. AVD is one of the promoters in NY that keeps the sport going and is trying to do something proactively to make the series safer due to the mishap on sunday morning.
If you prefer to go to Bethel so be it but don’t hate on the local races because you have the free will to verbally communicate your opinions on this site.
I will wait for your more bitchie responses to this post… Keyboard is at your finger tips.
They’ve shortened this coming weekend’s Cat 5 race to 2 laps. All other issues aside, $30 for 12 miles is ridiculous.
I’ve emailed AVD for a refund. Patiently awaiting a response.
the crash in Cat 5 was the fault of the field — too slow a pace left too many people competing frantically for 20th place. that’s what happens in Cat 5 races.
yes, it’s frustrating that the ambulance was in a the middle of the street, but just be glad it was not you getting a neck brace before being brought to a hospital. the ambulance can park wherever the heck it needs to and no marshal is going to convince them to move.
in the Cat 3/4 race — yes the field should have been smaller and there should have been more marshals to keep people out of the rec lanes.
now, time to arrange travel to Bethel…
Maybe instead of telling the 123s to race faster he should remind the beginners not to sprint from the back of the pack. that will cut down the crashes by 50% right there.
Gimbels rode a smart menswear section.
The problem is that AVD is too cheap and is going to get someone really hurt. He sent the Masters field out without a pace vehicle on Sunday. Last year at Prospect park he used a crappy old van as a pace vehicle. As a result, a jogger, who had no idea that the van was a pace vehicle, stood in front of the van yelling at the driver that the park was closed to cars. The field had to scatter into the bike lane and an exit lane to avoid rear-ending the stopped van. A pace vehicle in a crowded park is an absolute necessity and must be clearly identified.
Promoters are entitled to make money for the work they put into running races, but the races must be run safely. When Charlie I. promotes a race, there are strict field limits, motorcycles for every field, a limited # of fields so they don’t pass each other, and when a break has a significant enough gap over the field a motorcycle leads the break and a 2nd motorcycle comes up and leads the field. All of those safe guards cost the promoter money, but they make the event safe.
Its inexcusable to have a field with no pace vehicle. There is no reason to do it, except to save money.
If a field runs down one jogger or a kid on a bike, there will be no more park races. If AVD continues to run dangerous races someones gonna get hurt.
I have been in a coma since 2004 and just came out. I’m so glad the same conversation is still going on following the first weekend of racing! I haven’t missed a thing!
BTW, can someone tell me if Lance was ever found guilty of doping?
Thomas Tank if you think he is in it for the money then maybe the problem is you. If any of the promoters are in it for a buck it is certainly not VD.
Look him up, his commitment and love of the sport is huge. Again he is from a time before Lance.
You are a product of Lance!
e
Rip, you’re not going to believe this but Lance was found to have been schtupping Sarkozy’s wife, Carla Bruni.
It all makes sense now.
Thomas Tank makes a fundamental point . . . You would think that the NY metro bike racing community, given how enthusiastic its members are about their sport, would demand quality races from the local promoters, especially when there are clear differences in the promotion of events.
BTW Remi Fork, Clearcoat likes his viagara. I got the flash sports car, now all I need to do is trade the old lady in for a trophy wife. And, I am still ‘catted up’ as I never let my license lapse. Just saying ;0>
I also like my Sophia Viagara. Works just like the pill only this one is FREE!
http://img.portwallpaper.com/imgcel/Sofia_Vergara/Sofia-Vergara-36.JPG
AvD has a throphy wife.
that was pretty good
Being old school and having deep love isn’t an excuse for being sloppy and dangerous. Yeah, of course crashes happen, but fewer crashes happen when promoters take nothing for granted, including that racers or the public have “common sense.” Parks Dept could require promoters to do what Charlie I does and have motos with radios for every field and break. (They probably do.) They could agree with promoters on some common guidelines for dealing with dangerous problems and neutralizing fields and require bull horning those at the start — ambulance stopped on the course, bodies strewn on course, truck driving wrong way, secret service caravan etc moto will slow/stop and the field is neutralized until the moto marshal gives OK. Etc. Better races already do it.
Lets presume that he’s not in it for the money. I’ll buy that. I know AVD, he loves the sport. Now give me some justifiable reason for sending out a field in CP with no pace vehicle. Bottom line is that there is no acceptable reason for doing it.
I stated in my post that promoters should make money for what they do, but not at the cost of the rider’s safety. Also, its not just the riders who are endangered in CP by a field with no pace vehicle, its everyone else in the park.
No one held a gun to the masters and said you must Race, they could have asked for there money back. Instead they choose to race.
Just like AVD did not make the 5’s crash they did it because they lack the necessarily experience, mindset and common sense that tells most of us “don’t risk everything for a park race”.
The park only gives the permits to Van Dunk because he had them last year. As soon as the Park hears that he fails to meet their requirements or the needs of the cycling community they won’t give him the permits.
If Charlie I was willing to take over the series, I’m sure there would be 300 names on the petition to support him. For sure the 150 in the Cat 3/4 field would sign it.
We were better of without a pace car the last time I raced a Van Dunk race I had to turn right at the bottom of the down hill in Prospect to avoid hit the stopped pace car. Nor did we have a Pace vehicle lead us through the Cat 5 crash like the one in did in the 3/4 race.
I fart in your general direction.
Bethel is the new NYC Spring Series… I’m just sayin…
Sunday’s sunrise time : 7:14am
Spring Series start time : 6:45am
Nothing like 100 excitable 3/4’s racing in the dark.
Classic AVD. Love it.
Last spring series race I was in, the pace car was a rusted 1970’s van with bubble windows, red shag carpet and Grandmaster Melle Mel blasting on the 8-track.
does anybody have an update on the one rider taken off in an ambulance from the 5s? seriously hope he is ok
Bite the ass off the Bear…
http://www.velonation.com/Ride-Maps/Ride-Map-Viewer.aspx?N=Hunter%20Mountain%20Spring%20Classic&RouteId=165
Hunter Mtn Classic is born
Can we please focus on what’s important here? Which is of course, pictures of ourselves racing. Where the links at.
facebook
So, to make the Cat 5 ‘safer’, it’s being reduced to 2 laps. Let’s do the math. A 12.2 mile, twitchy, wheel-rubbing, $29US shite show + 33% less race experience per race = Stay in bed Cat 5’s and go for a solid group or solo ride after the sun comes up. That’s my plan after surviving last week.
If Charlie runs the race it will be safer but only 3 fields. My favorite promoter is Greg Avon, well run, more money, and more fields. Also the Borrow brothers.
I concur with the below statement! The cat 5″s could NOT handle the extra lap they opted for resulting in 300 riders having the plug pulled on them!!! They get shaky and can’t seem to handle the heavy fatigued and attrition that sets in after 18 miles.
Not a good start for pro123 racing in NYC:( lame.
suggestion, run the cat 5’s on their own course at Floyd and pad the sides with hay.
Hunter Mountain Spring Classic
https://www.bikereg.com/Net/15789
What I really want to know is what official would allow a race to start before there is enough light to see the road? I know if I was at a race and they tried to start the race before there was enough light, I would not start and I would demand a refund. Especially at the prices charged at the spring series.
Cancelling a race, like the masters race when they don’t have enough mots, costs money. To put on a race in CP you need a minimum amount of marshals. It probably costs AVD $1000 just to cover marshal costs, so he is going to put on a race to avoid losing money.
Racers crash. Especially early season cat 5 racers. Was it AVD’s fault? Probably not, but when you cut corners when putting on a race you can be sure people will point fingers your way.
Starting a race 1/2 hour before sunrise is a good example of a dumb move. If there are no clouds in the sky, you can get away starting 15 minutes before sunrise and still have enough light. Starting 1/2 hour before sunrise means you will be doing at least one lap in the dark. It’s just not a good idea to do that.
i agree…i never understood why they couldn’t get the parks dept. to permit the “daylight savings race” for 730, then maybe 7 the next week. I remember a few years ago when the park was in worse shape people cracking rims in the 123 race because they couldn’t see the potholes.
I did the masters in one of those daylight savings races 3 or 4 years ago. AVD seemed surprised by the time change, we were held at the line for quite a while before being sent off in the dark. It was dark but manageable, except for the 6th ave entrance where we rode directly towards a streetlamp, which reduced everything to silhouettes right as the road turned into one lane. That was pretty damn scary.
I also broke a set of wheels going into a pothole.
Maybe the Battenkill promoter will take over the Spring Series and charge $75 a race. Guarantee you that will make the races much safer.
You don’t need to charge $75 to make a profit at a race. A good guess is that AVD races have about 200 racers. That works out to $5400. Figure $1k for marshals. $400 for motos, assuming they show up. $600 for insurance. $200 for officials. Another $300 for the folks helping out during the race. $1050 goes to prizes. Permit fees add about $100. Lets say he sets aside another $500 for race series prizes. That leaves a little over $1k for the promoter. Not too bad for the amount of work involved. Not to mention that races outside of CP require a lot less marshals, so the cost for marshals drops quite a bit. As you can see the fixed costs to put on a race are quite high and cancelling a race can cost a promoter quite a bit of money. But when they don’t cancel a race they can make a decent amount of money. It’s not an easy job and you probably will get a lot of crap from folks, but if you plan and do a good job there is money to be made.
Guido, I think you’re underestimating everything. At least 300 riders showed up last week and I don’t think AVD pays that much for anything.
not a bad start to the AVD whining this year. looking forward to the time trial.
Turn out for the spring series last year, particularly full series registration, was noticeably down. Maybe you guys forgot what a shit storm it’s been year to year. The turnout this weekend, certainly fueled by the mild winter and the conditions Saturday, was nothing short of remarkable.
Why the officials let AvD start races in the dark, combine fields, run without motos, increase field sizes to dangerous levels…are all good questions. But in the world that is the NY Spring Series none of it should prove surprising. The clear answer is folks want to race. They also want to race close to home. It may suck, but if it’s the only choice on a given Sunday he’s going to get riders. It’s easy to say don’t race…but when you’re on the line at 0 dark thirty and a whistle blows you’re apt to clip in and go. It may be a bit pavlovian. It may even be flat out stupid. But it seems it is the way it is. That doesn’t change the fact that there are folks in the NY area who can restore that once prestigious series to its former glory, and run races in a way that keeps the racers happy, and both the racers and people in the park safe.
If not, I will hold out as long as possible before doing another one of his races.
According to his twitter he is comping fees for the impacted fields and he posted results.
Men’s .75 is correct in this case.
http://www.usacycling.org/results/?permit=2012-752
“Am I Guilty or Not” is the new question? And the answer isn’t Yes?!?
So the guys listed in the results of the Men’s .75 (ie 3/4 field) are basically the ones who raced their way around the ambulance and all the personell on the road AND INTO THE JOGGERS LANE while most of the field stopped.
or maybe the ones that followed the pace vehicle?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8OPxZvCAuw
I was in the 3/4 race, we came up so fast down that hill that when we saw the ambulance, there was no time to stop! just avoid what was in front of you and not get jack-hammered by the guys behind you. I know all the other pro riders would have hit their brakes in the fastest part of the race, without any warning, and would have just easily stopped. So sorry that the 3/4 are not as pro as everyone else. I believe that everyone should have been nuetralized, maybe, just maybe there was no time, no you should not go around in the joggers lane to save your skin and make it through, and as the motto kept going and the momental still carried forward, those that were in the front to begin with, humped it up the hill to finish. Sorry for racing. Wish i was you!
AVD
I was in the front, slowed down to get safely through the crash and rode the rest on the assumption that it was neutralized. I guess I failed the douche test.
Tom, you can go home with that fresh feeling you did the right thing.
Easy solution to AVD poor planning. Skip the races.
It’s March, little squiddies – there’s no reason to be this worked up over shitty races in the park. Save your money, energy, and skin and train for a few more weeks when the sun is shining brighter in the early morning and the crazy people have worked the crashes out of their system.
Over and out.
Uuuuugggghhhhhh!
Dan/Andy can we do Hopefull Friday a day early this week? I’m sick of all the bitchin’ N moanin’ about last weeks race. Nothing will get resolved here anyway.
Besides… Grant’s Tomb is this weekend and nobody is talking about it yet. Will it be the old course or the same as last year? Good weather Vs. rainy-snow? Is Olsen going to try to break away? Which Cat.4 is going to take the field out at the start? Oops, wait scratch that.
Inquiring minds want to know what color Olsen’s mouthpiece will be. It seems he did better last year when rocking the orange colourway.
Suck it
The reg’ is too damn high