Kris Schamp
For those of you who didn't see the email I sent out yesterday...
We are just a couple days away from the start of the fifth edition of the Portland Short Track Series and everything seems to be falling together pretty nicely. Here are some important updates I like to pass along :
1) Today (Fri 6/19) is the last day to pre-register for Monday's race!
For our racers' convenience and to alleviate the lines at registration on race day, we now offer online registration for single races. Each week - until end-of-day on Friday - you can register for the next upcoming race at the same rate as last year ($10 for Cat 3 & Juniors, $15 for all other categories). If you wait until Monday, you will pay $5 more. So, be smart and pre-register today at:
http://www.portlandracing.com/online-registration.html
IMPORTANT: All races will start on time. Please schedule enough time to get to PIR, get all your stuff together, ride your bike from the parking lot to the infield, and get registered. If you plan to pay for your race on Monday, we recommend you arrive at PIR at least 1 hour before the start of your race, because the registration lines on our first day of racing always tend to be pretty long.
2) Make sure to fill out our online Series Race Waiver & Registration Form!
Whether you pre-register online or plan to pay for your races on race day, please take a minute and fill out our online series waiver form: http://www.portlandracing.com/regform-09.php
You need to do this only once and you will be all set for the whole series. It will save you time at your first race (no need to hand-write a paper waiver) and it will make the racer administration at our end much easier.
3) Pre-registered riders & Race Plates:
Like previous years, all racers will receive a special series race plate, which you will receive at your first race. These are the only race plates that will be honored by our officials. No OBRA MTB XC series race plates! If you have pre-registered online or purchased a series pass, all you need to do on Monday is pick up your race plate at our separate pre-registration desk (in front of the race tower) and you're all good to go.
4) FREE Beginner & Intermediate Clinics:
This year, we'll host FREE clinics for novice and intermediate racers. The Women's clinics will be taught by local pro riders Sue Butler, Alice Pennington, Tina Brubaker and Emily Van Meter. The Men's clinics will be entertained by longtime singlespeed short track racers Ethan and Jake Furniss and also feature guest clinics by our 3-time Short Track champ Shannon Skerritt and possibly some other pros. The clinics will be held from 5pm to 5:45pm on the race course. Meet-up is in front of the registration tent. You don't have to register in advance for the clinics, but you need to fill out and sign a series waiver. If you plan to race the first race of the evening (Cat 3 & juniors) and want to attend the clinics, we strongly recommend you pre-register online.
5) FREE kiddie races and skills area!
In good short track tradition, we'll have free races for the young ones, which will start every week at 5:45pm under the trees. Kids below the age of 10 are no longer allowed to race in the junior race (sorry, new OBRA rule!), but we'll make good by adding a new feature your children - or your inner kid - will love: a skills area, featuring skinnies, teeter-totters, even some miniature north-shore style ladders, all built and hosted by Northwest Trail Alliance, a group you should consider joining if you like to have more trails to ride in the larger Portland area.
6) Sponsors, Goodies and Prizes, Oh My!
We are thrilled to enjoy the continued support of some longtime sponsors and get some great new ones on board as well. Hopworks Urban Brewing, SE Portland's all-organic, bike-centric eco-brewpub is our new title sponsor and every week they will throw in some great prizes (t-shirts, restaurant vouchers and of course... beer!). The friendly folks at Chris King have volunteered again to provide free mechanical support to our racers and serve up lemonade to racers and spectators alike. Like in previous years, racers will also enjoy free post-race PB&J sandwiches, courtesy of St Honore Bakery and - new this year - Larabar will sweeten the deal with their ultra-yummy energy bars. Our other generous series sponsors Cyclepath, Yakima, Portland Design Works, Nossa Familia Coffee and Bike N' Hike will be throwing in more great prizes, which we'll raffle off throughout the series and at our Grand Series Raffle, at our final night of racing. Like in previous years, we will also have cool
awards for the overall top-3 finishers in each category and a $750 cash purse for the top-3 finalists in the Pro Men/Women categories.
7) Some IMPORTANT safety tips:
On Monday nights between 6pm and 8pm there are ongoing road bike races on the PIR race track. If you are in a rush to get to the short track course, please use the wooden bridge, midway across the finish straigthaway of the road track. If you prefer to cross through the main gate (where the road racers enter), you should at all time obey the directions of the crossing guard marshals' and use extreme caution when crossing. As a general rule, never cross the track when oncoming racers are in sight.
That's it. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to shoot me an e-mail. I am looking forward to seeing you all on Monday, either as a racer or as a spectator!
Cheers!
~Kris
Kris Schamp
Portland Racing
http://www.portlandracing.com