Kris Schamp
Hi Everyone,
On Monday June 25th (only four weeks away), we are kicking off the 3rd edition of the Clif Bar Portland Mountain Bike Short Track Series. Like last year, this fun midweek series will be held during six consecutive Monday evenings on the infield of Portland Int'l Raceway, just a couple miles north of downtown Portland.
Racers will do multiple 3-5' laps on what has proven to be an awesome course that is a combo of bumpy dirt track (motocross course), grassy flats, and twisty singletrack (under the trees). The compact course makes for a very spectator-friendly race. More details and a some great action photos of last year's series are posted on our web site at www.portlandracing.com.
Here are a couple other updates that I thought you might be interested in:
1) Pre-registration & Series Pass:
Pre-registration for the series has opened. When you pre-register, you'll be able to skip the lines at the registration desk on race days. And if you pre-register for the whole series, we'll let you race all six races for the price of five! Junior riders who pre-register for the whole series get even a better deal: they get to race all 6 races for the price of 3 (only $5 per race!). Pre-registered riders will also receive a goodie package, courtesy of our sponsors! For more info on how to pre-register go to www.portlandracing.com/registration.html. Pre-registration deadline is June 18, so don't wait too long.
2) Race Schedule (same as last year):
5:45 pm: Kiddie Race (5?)
6:00 pm: Beginners & Juniors (20?)
6:30 pm: Sport Women & Singlespeed (25-30?)
7:00 pm: Sport Men (30?)
7:30 pm: Pro/Semi-Pro Men, Pro/Semi-Pro/Expert Women and Expert Men (30-40?)
3) Categories & Upgrading:
We will track 14 different categories, including four age groups (Jr Men under 14, Jr Men 14-18, Jr Women 18 and under, and Master Sport Men 45+). Beginner, Sport and Expert Men racers who podiumed last year in 3 or more races (or who ended top-3 overall) will have to upgrade. Beginner racers who had at least one top-3 finish are also asked to upgrade, so the "real" beginner get a chance of placing. The upgrade rules do not apply to junior racers or racers age 40 and over.
4) Points:
For each race, points will be awarded 15 deep in each category. All races will count equally (the final race is NOT a double-pointer!), though only your five best races (out of six) will count towards the overall series standings. The final series points will count towards the Oregon BAR (Best All-Around Rider) ranking. Since we are racing for six weeks, the final results will count as one set of BAR points.
5) Sponsors & Prizes:
We are very thrilled to have a wonderful group of sponsors, who are committed to support and grow our grassroots series. Clif Bar continues to be the series' title sponsor and will provide racers with post-race snacks and energy drinks. The friendly folks at Chris King have stepped up to provide free mechanical support to our racers and... they plan to cater free lemonade to racers and spectators alike! Bike N' Hike will continue to be our special women?s sponsor and the Bike Gallery will throw in some special prizes for our kiddie and junior racers. Other loyal series sponsors are Giant, Trek, Yakima, Wend Magazine, Pyramid Brewing, St Honore Bakery, New Seasons, and Dirt Rag. Like in previous years, we will have cool awards for the overall top-3 finishers in each category. We will also have a $750 cash purse for the top-3 in the Pro/Semi-pro Men and Pro/Semi-Pro/Expert Women categories. And then there are the random weekly prizes and our "Grand Series Raffle", which will t
ake place on the final race day. Stay tuned for more details on the cool prizes we'll have up for grabs!
6) Pre-riding: The motocross course and surrounding area will be open for pre-riding on race days from 4pm through 5:45pm. If time allows, racers will also be able to pre-ride the course in between the race heats (limited to 1 lap and only after the last rider has come through).
7) Volunteers: We are still looking for a couple hands to help out with set-up, registration, lap-counting, course marshaling, and tear down. If you (or your friends, partners, kids, etc.) are interested, just shoot me an e-mail. Already a big thanks to anyone who has volunteered so far. This series wouldn't be possible without your help!
That's it for now. We are looking forward to seeing you all on Monday June 25th to kick off another fun season of short track racing. And don't forget to pre-register before June 18th to save $$ and time on race day.
Cheers!
~Kris
Kris Schamp
kris@portlandracing.com
www.portlandracing.com