Hold up on that car wash ladies and gentleman! (This was the line Jackie Gleeson used when confronting a few juvenile delinquents stripping Junior's car in the epic 70's classic: Smokey and the Bandit). ABD has three more "man verses machine" indoor races to go before the series is decided at the John Fraser Memorial outdoor event in April. JFM is a total game changer for those racers having difficulty transitioning from the security of the "no drag factor" on the Compu Trainer to unpredictability the outdoor elements present. The elements can be really tricky during springtime racing because riders never know which weather they are going to get: sunny and balmy or windy and cold. Throw in a little rain or snow flurries into the mix and things can really get interesting in a hurry. JFM is a great race, put on a by a great club with excellent turnout year after year. I look forward to this event each year as the kick off to outdoor racing in the area.
As many of you know, I coordinate the MATTS series. Each year, I work with race directors and riders to come up with best practice to improve our series. This season, we changed our rules to make the series more competitive and to attract more racers to the series. I am working on a MATTS specific website that should be up before the outdoor season, and MATTS color flyers will go out to all bicycle shops in the month of February. You will be happy to know that we also added the 4-person TTT to the MATTS schedule as well as stealing Bartow away from Tour of Illinois Wisconsin to make it a MATTS event in 2012!
In 2012, a rider's best 10 races will be used to calculate overall awards. Many of our racers have families. That being said, things for our athletes come up during the season, and he or she may not be able to make a race. Thus, to promote competition and not penalize our customers for having to attend a family event or work on a race day, MATTS went with the "10 Best" rule this season.
There have also been changes made to age and ability categories for 2012. To attract a broader customer base, MATTS is going with age categories in five year increments, and ability categories: Open 1,2,3 and Cat 4/5 for men and women. Racers will not be able to race down in age and must race in his or her ability category. Racers competing in team events will be awarded 15 points each for entering these racers. Team events will be scored on a combined age bases with an Open Category and Mixed Category included in the mix. MATTS made a change to the team rules to give racers more choice in finding a partner for these events. The last change was to the points. In 2012, points will be awarded as follows: 25 for first place, 22 for second place, and 20 for third place. Fourth place on down will be pointed in one point increments 19, 18, 17.... Medals will be awarded 5 places deep for all categories. The revised 2012 rules will be posted on the ABR website in February: http://www.ambikerace.com/forms.htm
Changing gears for a minute: Charles Gerlach Update: As you know, Charles Gerlach is my teammate and friend. He is doing a lot better after his accident. Physically, he looks great. He is slowly progressing each day. If he is not back racing his bicycle by the end of 2012, I am sure he will be making a comeback in 2013. He is pushing some decent wattage in his basement for a guy who cheated death just a few months back. He is very grateful for all the support the cycling community has given him since his accident. He has won just about every race he has entered. This is a bit of a marathon road race for him. When he is ready, he will attack the field, and win this race as well. We are all rooting for you Charles!
Lastly, I will do my best in 2012 to keep up with my blog. I will have a link to this blog on the MATTS website, and / or have a blog within the MATTS site. I hope to keep this blog going with help from one of my teammates. I wish you all a happy and safe 2012 cycling season. Please wear your helmets, especially in the city. It is crazy out there.
Be Safe,
DP
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