The Grizzly XC 2009

[Brent]

Dobi, you just confirmed that this sport is a drug and it's addictive. Dehydration and hallucination are signs of this.

In 07 i remember one of the first time racers coming up to me 2 hours into the race and said the ribboning was terrible. well we sent him out with one of the sweepers and he blew right past 3 corner ribbons and straight down a really rocky hill straight into the huge skeg field. man, that guy was on fire...i can't believe he made it through the skeg and onto the ribbons at the other end of the park going back wards into the pros. no wounder his eyes were the size of saucer plates. when he finally climbed the rooty hill back to the start, he told me we had to do some serious reribboning.
it reminds me of my first couple of races going whiskey throttle past most corners and exerting all of my energy in the first 20 mins. finally when the race was done (moose mtn xc) i thought i had just survived the last days of WW 2.
I did an HS in St Francis where there was a check right in the middle of a stump-bike-destroyer section where you had to go ultra slow so you could not miss all the white ribbons and check.....well, i crashed tapped in 5th on the cutline right before it and to this day i can still not think of how i possibly could have missed that check and got DNFed.
whatever, it's racing and i think we should appoint 37 into hiring the check volunteers...didn't they have the same idea in RedBull Romaniacs right at the last check just to play with everyones fatiqued minds?? that is pure genius.

[thirtyseven]

it's racing and i think we should appoint 37 into hiring the check volunteers

Im thinking the budget wont cover exactly what I had in mind, but ill give it my best shot, come to think of it my mother-in-law will be in town, this is going to be the most talked about race ever......

[shreder]

Derek, don't beat the dead cat...you were the ONLY guy to miss that signage! Perhaps pre-riding the course as much as you did was not a good thing!

Don't feel I am beating the cat Darren. I am the only one who missed the turn, not because the signage was adequate - but only because I was the first one through and the volunteer "directing" riders to go in various directions only began directing Juniors in the appropriate direction AFTER I had passed the intersection.

I believe my earlier post was and is very valid - for any race. It wasn't directed at any specific individual, although I appreciate the fact that you obviously feel guilt from that situation which leads to your sensativity. It's ok Darren, as you pointed out, we all screw up some times and miss things.

CRY BABIES BETTER STAY HOME

[thirtyseven]

CRY BABIES BETTER STAY HOME

I dunno, seems to me the only time I past him last yr he had a seperated shoulder and was riding a pumpkin, seemed pretty tough to me, classy too, he perchased a membership to an organization that is dedicated to preserving the riding/racing areas we enjoy, before bringing up a valid critizism of a race that HIS club hosted!!!! hmmm..... maybe he should stay home, I might get a few more trophies, nah Ill give up the trophies just to watch him crash...

[steve-o]

CRY BABIES BETTER STAY HOME

I dunno, seems to me the only time I past him last yr he had a seperated shoulder and was riding a pumpkin, seemed pretty tough to me, classy too, he perchased a membership to an organization that is dedicated to preserving the riding/racing areas we enjoy, before bringing up a valid critizism of a race that HIS club hosted!!!! hmmm..... maybe he should stay home, I might get a few more trophies, nah Ill give up the trophies just to watch him crash...

[BigR]

Well said 37!

[steve-o]

I expect that we'll be seeing shreder race in the pro class??

[MtnBlue]

Well said 37!

x2

[dirtyboy]

Well, I was wondering how to handle this earlier today because I didn't want it to get out of hand.

I think that it is great how the competitors and fellow racers stick up for each other. Nice work thirtyseven and crew.

As for shreder, I'm sure that he'll be racing Pro at the Grizzly XC cuz that's his class.

[crazy2wheeler]

Well said 37!

x2

Hey all you guys, thanks for the support!

I cry all the time during those really emotional scenes in drama movies, but I don't think I've ever felt that way on my bike!

Anyway, I've also received messages from several people who have much experience running off-road races (CRMC, and CMA series) who've told me that they themselves felt the comment about splitting a course is valid, and that they personally wouldn't organize a race with a split course because it takes a significant step-up in the number of volunteers required. Anyway - a summary of THEIR opinions.

I'm sure the next Grizzly will be a fantastic race, and the efforts of everyone involved ARE very much appreciated.

Cheers

[darren]

Ola from Mexico! Nice and sunny and warm down here...definately not the case up there!

Anyways, wanted to follow up with our Grizzly XC meeting that we had (I think December 4) at the Capital Hill Community Center before the RMDRA meeting. Here are some highlights:

-Mrs Wildman (also know as Suzanne) will be in charge of all important stuff including but not limited to permits, trophies, advertising, band organization (just an idea for Saturday night), etc, etc. Basically she's the man, I mean the woman!
-Wildman will be in charge of the EX section which is still at this point only a fluffy idea, none the less we are working on it!
-Jack will be in charge of the "West" loop
- Dave S (pending) will be in charge of the "East" loop. "Pending" meaning he is still thinking about it. But if there are others interested please pm me.
-Brent K is looking after the Pro Only loop
-Sean B is looking after the kids loops on Saturday except for the expert kids loop, pretty much most of Saturdays stuff anyways
-And I'll be the event organizer

So far the team we have seems to represent a broad group of racers with some pretty diverse backgrounds. As time goes on we will be needing volunteers and all that so keep watching the forum here for details.

Anyways, stay warm and I'll have a Corona for ya!
Darren

[darren]

Back from Mexico...wow it really is cold!

Anyways, just to follow up on my previous post, I found my notes and there were a couple of items that I missed that we had discussed:

-Iron Man concept is still interesting, however, it will be done in a diferent way than 07. The 07 concept took too long, although a great idea that we could maybe utilize in a diferent format. The race will essentially be comprised of the East and West loop. The racers that sign up for the Iron Man Competition (open to all categories) will do the two loops for their CMRC points and standings, and then can go on to do the Pro Only loop. Whoever crosses that line first wins the Iron Man Competition. There would be a big cash purse, same as 07. This is what we discussed at the meeting, and I think it is a good idea. We are still debating on making the Pro Only loop manditory for the Pros, but I think that is up for negotiation. I think it would make sense to do it that way.

-Instead of having class splitting in the course, only have "easy way" and "hard way". This will, among other things, hopefully eliminate some of the confusion generated in 07. Even though class splits on courses does work and is completely relevant to our style of racing, we decided against it for a number of reasons. The "hard way" and "easy way" format is simple and should avoid any previous problems. For example; if there is a very hard hill, the straight climb would be the "hard way" and the route that takes longer but is more rider friendly would be the "easy way." That way as a racer, you would choose what you like. If you want to take the "hard way" and make 5 attempts before going the "easy way" that is up to you. I am sure this format will not suite every racer, but as shreder said, "cry babies better stay home!"

Anyways, thats the scoop.
Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!

Darren

[Suzanne]

Hey Everyone,

I definitely like Big Dog and Dirtyboy's suggestions about having one big loop that is resonably challenging. The higher classes do the loop twice and the Pros do their own special loop after they complete their two loops. Let's make this race easy and fun for everyone. It's way more fun to challenge yourself by going faster through a "blue/black" course than to spend your entire day lifting your bike through "double black" sections.

We discussed some spectator entertainment at our meeting and I think it's a great idea to set up some endurocross stuff for spectators to watch as riders come around for their second loop ... we'll see what we are allowed to do once we start working on the TFA and all that stuff.

Also, I don't like the idea of splitting up the course UNLESS we have a sign that says "easy way" and "hard way" and riders of all classes get to choose their route. I think we should use this method to allow newer riders to get around big obstacles anyway. We should try and find alternative routes so people dont' spend two hours trying to climb one hill.

Suzanne Wildman

[shreder]

Well, I was wondering how to handle this earlier today because I didn't want it to get out of hand.

I think that it is great how the competitors and fellow racers stick up for each other. Nice work thirtyseven and crew.

As for shreder, I'm sure that he'll be racing Pro at the Grizzly XC cuz that's his class.

I am pro, must have me mistaken for someone else. I've never dislocated my shoulder either. It was a nasty comment and I revoke it. Reading complaints aggrivates me. I feel cross country is getting too soft and that the Grizzly is where it should be. Cross country is strictly volunteer so if any one has any complaints they should help flag it and be involved.

[Suzanne]

Sounds good Darren, I like the idea of still have the Ironman, in fact, I think we totally must do it. Maybe the Pros would be required to do the Pro loop in the main race and then the Ironmen will have to do the loop once more. That way they will be finishing while the beginners are coming in from their first loop.

Suz