RMCCC Updates 9/17/08

Hello RMCCC ,

Once again there is a lot of information in this email, be sure to read and pass along to your teams.

Results:  USAC results from CSU and CSM races are now posted.  I am still working on some issues with Men B STXC from CSM but all other results will be final as of Thursday 9/18 at 5pm.  If you have not yet checked, be sure to verify your results (place, name, school).  I will have division results and team points uploaded soon.

Officials Clinic:  There will be a level C official clinic during the CU race weekend.  I would like to schedule the best time for interested attendees.  The choices are Saturday night (9/27) at 8 -10pm or Sunday 1-3 pm.  Please email me if you are interested and which time.  The class is 1 hour of lecture followed by a short test.  After passing the test and purchasing a level C license ($35) you will be certified as a level C official.

Upgrades:  Thank you to those of you who are taking care of your upgrades online during the week.  Be sure to print your 'Authorization to Ride' and bring it to every race as verification of your new categories.

Conference Finals:  Gravity Conference Finals are October 4^th and 5^th at Fort Lewis.  There is a (tentatively scheduled) awards ceremony and lunch on Sunday October 5^th for Gravity events.   Endurance Conference Finals and Team Conference Finals are October 11^th and 12^th at Mesa State.  There is an awards ceremony and lunch on Sunday October 11^th.

Conference Meeting:  The annual conference meeting will be held Saturday night October 11^th at Mesa State College. Each team should plan on sending representatives to discuss conference proceedings and set the Road Race Season.  Road Race Bid forms will be available soon.

Nationals:  Three main considerations for nationals

1.        Upgrades.  To race at nationals you must have a category A license in your discipline and race in one season race and conference finals in your discipline. For gravity upgrades,  if you are currently classified as a B rider, then there are 2 more races for your to achieve your gravity upgrade (WYO Super D (see Super D note below) and CU MX).   Given our short Gravity season I will entertain petitions to upgrade for FLC and conference finals.   For XC, you must receive your upgrade by the FLC race (you can upgrade during the weekend) and then race one FLC race and both Mesa races as an A.

2.       Qualifications.  Riders racing at nationals must be full time students and must have completed on race and conference finals as a category A racer in their discipline (Gravity or Endurance)

3.       Allocations.  We do not yet have allocations for the number of teams and riders the RMCCC will be able to send to nationals.  I will notify you as soon as we do.

Super D:  The ongoing debate of how to regard super D continues.  At the beginning of the season, Spencer and I (with input from the conference) decided to have super D count towards team conference points only and not towards upgrades or nationals points.  However upon further review of the collegiate cycling rules, we have decided that this is not inline with the current rules (see rules listed below).  Super D is currently listed as a "Gravity Event" in the collegiate cycling rule book and thus will be treated as a gravity event in the RMCCC.  This means the Wyoming Super D can be used for upgrade points. While we are in agreement with following the rule as listed, both Spencer and I have reservations on this point.  The downhill race at Nationals is an Expert level course.  The reasoning behind requiring riders to be properly upgraded to A before attending nationals is in part a safety issue.  We do not want completely inexperience gravity riders racing on this course as it is not safe.  It is our feeling that a Super D result does not adequately indicate a rider's skill in a national level downhill.  Please, as you are requesting your upgrades, or encouraging your teammates to upgrade, keep safety and skill levels in mind.

Rule Changes:  Every year the collegiate board reviews the rule book.  There are several updates being considered for this season.  The proposed changes will be sent out soon.  If you have a rule suggestion or change, let me know and I will see that it gets considered.

Whew!  Thanks for reading this far, and thanks for everyone's hard work and good humor dealing with all the day to day stuff we do so we can be on our bikes.  Happy riding and racing

Rules relating to Super D from the 2008 Collegiate Cycling Rule Book
2.4.7 "Gravity Race" means one of the following mountain bike race formats:
Collegiate Slalom, dual slalom, dual, mountain cross, downhill and super-D.
10.3.3 Conference mountain bike championships must include a cross-country Race
and at least one Gravity Race and should include a short track Race and a second
Gravity Race.
11.8.1 The cross-country, short track and downhill and one of the other Gravity
Races must be conducted at a Collegiate Cycling Mountain Bike National
Championship.
11.8.11 To compete in a Gravity Race at a mountain bike National Championship,
a Rider must have either: (a) Competed in the Gravity Races at their conference
championships as a category A Rider and must have competed in at least one other
Gravity Race in the current conference mountain bike season as a category A
Rider, or (b) Competed as a category A Rider in their final three conference
Gravity Races during the current conference mountain bike season.