| Subject: | Re: National/International bike racing |
| Date: | 02/16/2000 12:03 AM |
| From: | Scott Powell |
|
I hate to send out these mass messages, but there is a time for everything . . . Jonathan raises some very intriguing ideas, and I agree with his theory. Let me confess my naivety, however (and perhaps I am not alone). There is a general feeling of abandonment by USAC - it's a feeling we in Oregon share with riders and directors of all levels across the country, up to and including the aforementioned Mr. Wordin. In response to that abandonment, OBRA has joined up with a number of other states to form a loose alliance - FAIC, right? Have I got it right so far? So, we have a state-based OBRA, who has aligned with a handful of other states (how many others have joined?). I hope I'm still on the right track. Mike has explained that there is talk among the aligned states to possibly hold regional and national events. I am all for Jonathan's idea of trying to progress local riders up through the system. I think it could look something like this: 1) Rider does well at local races; 2) Therefore, rider is selected to represent the locality at a regional level event; 3) If the rider does well at a regional-level event (or a number of events), the rider is selected to represent the region at a national event. 4) All along the way, the rider can see that there is an actual step-ladder which they can climb. 5) Eventually, if the rider has succeeded all along the way, perhaps the rider is given an opportunity to race pro (assuming that pro directors choose to attend the regional and national events - a pretty safe assumption, I would think, if there were such a system of races in place). Here is the trick: How do we put together a step-ladder of local, regional, and national events? This is where my naivety really gets me. I don't even know who in Oregon is in contact with who from Washington and California. I don't know if there are any formal connections or lines of communication. My ultimate point is this: It seems a lot of us in Oregon would like to see a new local/regional/national chain of races formed without the assistance of USAC. In order to do that, I would think we need to do the following: 1) Have some meetings to get our ideas together on paper (I'll even offer to provide meeting space); 2) Designate someone to communicate those ideas to the other independent regional bike racing communities; 3) Work with our fellow independents to ultimately form a new local/regional/national chain. Mike, maybe you can help us out here - Is this possible? If so, how can we, the greater OBRA community, help? Certainly, it is impossible to expect you and Candy to do this. The community needs to step up to the plate here. But, can you help us get started? Scott "maybe I'm thinking too big" Powell Team O. ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com |
