mike.m-@obra.org

Meadors, Ivan C [mailto:Ivan.C.-@intel.com] quoted Roger Marquis:

"Until the early '70s blocking was against the rules in the US (it is

unknown if this rule was

ever enforced)!" This does not mean physically impeding anyone but it does

mean interrupting any paceline- like rhythm that might develop."



Roger should probably know this a bit better as I believe he is nearly as

old as I am. I remember it because I was there. At the time the ABL, the

previous name for USCF, had a rule that stated that the leader of a field

was obligated to chase everyone in front of him. The intent of the rule was

not just to make blocking illegal but to abolish team tactics in general.

This rule was enforced, although enforcement was spotty as it is clearly

physically impossible to do what the rule required and impossible for an

official to judge whether the leader was actually doing it. The rule was

removed because it was felt that it was unenforceable and that it encouraged

a way of bike racing that put the US at odds with all other countries and at

a disadvantage in international competition.



Under current rules it is not legal to physically block someone, as in move

into their way. For OBRA the applicable rule is:

"13.2 - Misconduct may be punished at the discretion of the Chief Referee.

The forms of misconduct include, but are not limited to:...

- Making an abrupt motion which interferes with the forward progress of

another rider "

What is legal is to not participate in chasing. Messing up the chase by

being in the way is legal.



The bottom line is that it is not cool to go to the front and completely

fill the road with team members going slowly. It is part of bike racing to

have team mates go to the front to mess up any potential chasers. What is

actually even more acceptable is to just stay out of the way forcing others

to do the work of running down your team members.



Mike Murray