Scott Jones

Look at the size of the Cat 3 fields and they always seem to be pretty
large, as do most fields these days. It is hard to get upgrade points when
there is a strong field of 70+ racers. Yes, you can upgrade pretty quick,
but if you are like me and are not a great at one part of racing (I'm not a
good climber) there are only so many races that I will do well in and score
points at.

Cat 3's and Cat 4's at Tuesday PIR have 2 choices. A strong Cat 4 can still
ride in the Cat 4/5 race and the same can be said with a strong 3 riding in
the 3/4 field. I CHOOSE to ride in the 1/2/3 field as a Cat 3 for several
reasons. It is usually a longer race with faster speeds and has stronger
riders. I don't win, but that is not what its about for me. Some people like
to win, so they ride in a group that they win or be very competitive in on
Tuesday nights.

I think Candi and now Kenji have done a good job of upgrading people as they
should. It is not easy to keep track of thousands of racers and do
everything as fast as you want it done.

Stop whining and start riding!

2008/5/14 Quenton :

> I thought the dwindling numbers was also because of the insane amount of
> points previously needed to upgrade from 3 to 2? From what I understand the
> new upgrade rules will help feed more people into the upper ranks. It's only
> 25 points now... last year wasn't it closer to 50?
>
> Heck, it may not have been strong 3's not wanting to upgrade but strong 3's
> having a hard time reaching the minimum number of points to upgrade. In
> either case, the new upgrade rules should help swell your field, and make it
> easier for guys like myself to upgrade
>
> In the end us spamming our opinions doesn't really solve anything.
>
>
> 2008/5/14 :
>
>> If someone is a 1/2 and over 40, they are not sandbagging by racing
>> masters. It is one of their categories. Is there something wrong with
>> having strong masters riders and a hard fast quality masters race? Are
>> masters races only supposed to be slow plodding affairs. The reason why the
>> 1/2 category is small is because there are not enough young people taking up
>> bike racing and bike racing is a sport that is aging. That is not going to
>> improve by forcing old guys to race in the 1/2 category and reducing the
>> quality of the masters races. Also, having raced in some Cat 3 races, I
>> have not seen any dominance on that front, as most of the strong cat 3's
>> have been upgraded.
>>
>> --
>>
>> George Schreck
>> gschreckchat@comcast.net
>> (503) 502-0425
>>
>>
>> -------------- Original message --------------
>> From: Erik
>> Forget about "sour grapes". What a cop-out. I have nothing to do with
>> cat 3/4/5 or masters racing whatsoever, and this whole scenario pisses me
>> off.
>>
>> If you're not a beginner, stop whooping up on the 4/5's - you're not
>> helping anybody by soloing in 5 minutes ahead of the group. There is no
>> such thing as a "Cat 4/5 Champion", mmkay? Okay, so you "won". You're
>> still just a schmuck who should be racing with the rest of the Cat 3's.
>> You're worse than a wannabe, you're a should-be who chooses to stay in his
>> proverbial dirty diapers in a last ditch effort to avoid big-boy pants.
>>
>> Same goes for the 3's. If you've finally taken some initiative and done
>> some real training and begun "dominating" the Cat 3 races, wake up and race
>> with others at your newfound performance level.
>>
>> When you stay at a level you have outgrown, you keep the next level from
>> being as competitive as it should be and you keep those you're flogging from
>> making t heir next step. You make yourself a road block for everyone who
>> actually wants to improve. You're stifling our growth as a legitimate
>> sport. Stop it.
>>
>> I'm not the only one who's sick of seeing the pro/1/2 field shrink while
>> perfectly capable 3's avoid upgrading because racing might actually be hard
>> again (cat 1/2 "masters", I'm looking in your direction, too. Might you be
>> switching to "Depends" a little too early?). You're all weakening the sport
>> through what can only be called a lack of "juevos".
>>
>> Yes, I'm judging you . . . and I'm right. You can argue and rationalize
>> your inaction all you want, it'll still be bad for the sport.
>>
>> -Erik
>>
>>
>> > Date: Wed, 14 May 2008 00:32:44 -0700
>> > From: qconant@gmail.com
>> > To: obra@list.obra.org
>> > Subject: [OBRA Chat] Re: Wow...rubbed some people the wrong way...
>> >
>> > sorry in advance, I can't resist...
>> >
>> > Regardless of if someone is actuall y a sandbagger, it just sounds like
>> sour grapes if you complain about it publicly. It really does. It sounds
>> like "I should have won, but someone else was faster, stronger, or more wily
>> than I".
>> >
>> > Alot of us spend a great deal of time not winning, or even placing in a
>> spot worth talking about. It's not fair, but that's just the way it goes.
>> There's always someone out there who either has better tools, or can use
>> what they have better.
>> >
>> > I dunno. Next time, mark the sandbagger and be their shadow, maybe you
>> can use them to your advantage.
>> > _______________________________________________
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>>
>>
>> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>> From: Erik
>> To: Quenton ,
>> Date: Wed, 14 May 2008 18:58:17 +0000
>> Subject: [OBRA Chat] Keep on rubbin' - the damage sandbagging does to us
>> all
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>
>
> --
> " There is nothing but atoms and space,
> everything else is only an opinion"
> - Democritus from Abdera
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