I wrote a post a couple days ago about how the USAC is now going to enforce a UCI rule that prohibits any rider with a UCI license from competing in non USAC sanctioned events such as Leadville and Chequamegon. I stated in that post that I had no intention of adhering to that rule. Others jumped me to it.
I’ve listened and read more about trying to figure out a work around for the rule and assumed that the powers at the USAC would do what is right and figure something out.
I believed this to be true because on the podcast, link above, Scott Tedro, the president of Sho-Air, said that he had been talking to Micah Rice at the USAC and that he thought that by this time they would have “fixed” it.
Then yesterday, this article at Velonews that implies these “negotiations” have completely fell apart and there is going to be a show down at the Whiskey 50, where Sho-Air is going to be having all its riders, including Jeremiah Bishop, current overall leader of the PRO XCT series (USAC run), participate.
I wish that I was healthy enough to to do this event and participate in the protest and to show an outright refusal to accept USAC’s stance on this UCI rule.
I assume that Jeremiah, Tinker Juarez and others are going to be fined and then suspended for 30 days. The more riders that they have to suspend, the stupider they look in the eyes of their members. Eventually, there won’t be any licenses riders that can participate in their sanctioned races because they have suspended them all.
I would like my name to be included in the legal challenge the Scott Tedro and others must already be ready to file. Maybe it can be even if I don’t go and get suspended, I don’t know. I would be willing to donate money to help support the legal efforts to eradicate this rule.
It is so wrong on so many levels, that even the powers at USAC must recognize this. I don’t think that they have any idea what can of worms they are opening by not getting on top of this situation before it explodes and gets out of hand.
This is going to be a real divisive issue until it has been properly addressed by USAC. It is a total cop out saying that it is a UCI and take it up with them. The USAC is our voice to the UCI and they are the ones that need to take it up with them. This rule mainly applies to only the United States and isn’t a good thing for our sport. It is that simple.
Here’s a link to the Sho-Air press release addressing the issue.
I heard this hot shot from Mexico may be tearing up some non-USAC races this season…goes by the name Estaban Tilfordo.
Screw ’em! We invented mountain biking and we can have great competitions here without the UCI sticking a gun in our backs. My UCI Masters license wasn’t worth the paper it was printed on. U.S. sponsors of the UCI circuit should revoke any support they give and ask for a refund for past years. The UCI has shown that it was either involved and/or incompetent in the doping culture that is ruining cycling. And now they want to steal from our athletes with their stupid and clumsy rules. Won’t get fooled again.
A brief note about Leadville. Depending on the year, that race has been sanctioned by USAC.
Maybe a promoter or two can tell us why it is that event could have a huge elite field and somehow not be run as a highly ranked, high cost, bigger prize purse, etc race? I may have read the rules too literally.
I’m wondering where does it end? Lets just say every promoter showed up at USA,s cycling door step and said I want to be sanctioned. First problem, not enough officials to cover every race. So then USA cycling says no race, we chose what races we want. OH wait, thats why we are here in the first place. Guess what some of us compete for fun, to see how we compare to our fellow men and women. WE do this without cheating and share our stories afterward. Lets just say you are young person with potential what better way there is to find these kids. USA cycling didn’t start the High school league. Pat McQ.and USA cycling your system has failed and we are looking for a better way. Jim D.
There’s no negotiating with USAC or the UCI. I’m not sure why you think, at the executive level, either USAC or the UCI is interested in grassroots racing. As a member you don’t even have a say in how the organization is run.
I know there are a number of well-meaning people inside that organization that would like a vibrant grassroots scene, but according to Thom, that’s not monetizing the sport or exercising total control over it. For USAC and the UCI the goal is to attract television viewers for their elite road show produced by either RCS or ASO.
I haven’t bothered to check if any other countries are impacted by this. Given Thom Wiesel owns USAC, it would not surprise me to hear the U.S. is the only one enforcing the rule.
Steve, you should enter and DNS to see if that’s enough to draw the penalty. Someone needs to track a DNF from the event and see if they draw a penalty.
I have a real problem with the whole hegemony. About 12 years ago, I was given the information from USAC and the UCI about the actual numbers of license holders in most of the federations around the world. What it showed me was, and I suspect is even more true now, was that without the US and it’s growth and development of the sport, the UCI and Euro-centric racing would probably be D.O.A. We have more license holders, more renewing license holders, more new license holders, and more events every year. Sadly, the demise of NORBA and the East-West regional cup hurt the number of license holders for MTB, but the UCI needs to realize that cycling’s growth is completely dependent upon the success and fostering of the US market, and they need to let go of their Euro-centric concepts on events, dates, and titles. Does anyone remember the meetings in the late 90’s and early 00’s which sort of ‘wussified’ mountain biking, making it go from classic courses to more ‘crowd friendly’ wide open courses and events?
USAC, meanwhile, should use their clout to force the UCI to host more events here, give USA audiences more venues, and basically do everything possible to foster goodwill between the OBRA’s and ACA’s of the world. They should also embrace the technology gains and leadership that they’ve enjoyed as Euro manufacturers have played catch-up. Mountain Biking is a distinctly American sport, and Steve is one of its’ Titular Heads of State, so something like this, with USAC wiping their hands of all responsibility, really chaps my hide.
Steve,
You want to “participate in the protest and to show an outright refusal to accept USAC’s stance on this UCI rule?”
NASCAR has a process called “Start and park”. A car without the ability or means to win a race can start, do a couple of laps and then take a “DNF” retire because of a mechanical problem.
You can pay the entry fee, show up at the start line, ride a couple of miles and then take your DNF because of a flat tire or derailer problem.
Remember when….
I think mid-late 80’s, before NORBA merged into the USCF, you would be suspended(I’m not 100% what the penalty was) from the USCF.
Did that ever come to a head before Norba got bought up?
USAC is not growing the number of racing events sanctioned.
They are “growing” by requiring non-racing events to be sanctioned and then claiming USAC participation is growing. They are doing similar tricks with membership. The classic being one-day licenses counted as “growth.”
The reality is the number of races with large prize purses has steadily declined over time and being replaced by new, much smaller events. At some point though, the bigger events will decline as their promoters retire and USAC’s fee structure overwhelms the rest.
Fergie,
The point of the USCF penalty was to take over NORBA. NORBA racing had big-money sponsors and strong attendance at the time. It was something USAC could not accomplish. Ever.
They did something similar to Colorado’s independent cycling federation ACA a year or two ago. They basically told ACA either you become a USAC regional body or we will bankrupt the ACA a number of creative ways.
This ” Rule 1.2.019 ” is causing concern in Europer and Australia also !
phat mc splat has TO GO , NOW !
My letter to the ” Cycling Ireland Board ” asks them to call an ” EGM ” forthwith , to decide whether to nominate phat , for his 3rd term as president of UCI ( Uniformly corruptly Incompetent ) !
YOU ALSO can email with YOUR Protest by visiting their website :
http://www.cyclingireland.ie/Home/Contact-Cycling-Ireland.aspx
WHAT HAVE YOU TO LOSE ?
DO IT NOW , as the meeting is Friday 12th April !
Yes , FRIDAY !
I think your right that there is little to no-growth in UCI and to some extent USAC. Partially this is because we have more participatory categories than say Europe for example where you race jr/espoir/elite then retire to the grand fondo style events instead of masters racing which does decently well in the US. However the mt. bike industry is growing tremendously, yet its almost all growth in trail bikes, not 18lb XC race bikes or DH bikes. Hence the growing aspects of mt. biking such as enduro, which is far more participatory than XC or DH yet the UCI axed its work on permitting enduro events, which ironicly are selling out in seconds to minutes. Even more ironically, Europe is far ahead of USAC in enduro, its just all unsanctioned.
Great interview with JHK on why he left XC and World Cups and is only competing in non-sanctioned XC and Enduro this year.
http://www.mountainbikeradio.com/into-enduro/jeremy-horgan-kobelski-and-heather-irmiger/#.UWXPe4J0TbY
That JHK interview is what you hear everywhere, more and more. Personally I stopped racing XC 15+ years ago because 9 out of 10 courses were built to be easy to promote and make spectating “friendly”. So you travel all the way to Moab, Quebec, Europe, etc, and there are awesome rides everywhere, but your stuck riding and practicing on the lamest thing around that is the official “race course”. DH is slightly better in some regards, but you end up missing the entire reason you started riding mt. bike in the first place, awesome trails that take you awesome places. IMO, its finally trending back to epic rides that people are building race courses on and Cape Epic, Whiskey, Trans-Provence, Kennebec Pass Enduro, Whole Enchalada, etc. These are the rides you would do with your buddies if you were traveling there, but now they are race courses. Almost every event in this category, XC or Enduro is un sanctioned.
I think your right that there is little to no-growth in UCI and to some extent USAC. Partially this is because we have more participatory categories than say Europe for example where you race jr/espoir/elite then retire to the grand fondo style events instead of masters racing which does decently well in the US. However the mt. bike industry is growing tremendously, yet its almost all growth in trail bikes, not 18lb XC race bikes or DH bikes. Hence the growing aspects of mt. biking such as enduro, which is far more participatory than XC or DH yet the UCI axed its work on permitting enduro events, which ironically are selling out in seconds to minutes. Even more ironically, Europe is far ahead of USAC in enduro, its just all unsanctioned.
Great interview with JHK on why he left XC and World Cups and is only competing in non-sanctioned XC and Enduro this year.
http://www.mountainbikeradio.com/into-enduro/jeremy-horgan-kobelski-and-heather-irmiger/#.UWXPe4J0TbY
That JHK interview is what you hear everywhere, more and more. Personally I stopped racing XC 15+ years ago because 9 out of 10 courses were built to be easy to promote and make spectating “friendly”. So you travel all the way to Moab, Quebec, Europe, etc, and there are awesome rides everywhere, but your stuck riding and practicing on the lamest thing around that is the official “race course”. DH is slightly better in some regards, but you end up missing the entire reason you started riding mt. bike in the first place, awesome trails that take you awesome places. IMO, its finally trending back to epic rides that people are building race courses on and Cape Epic, Whiskey, Trans-Provence, Kennebec Pass Enduro, Whole Enchalada, etc. These are the rides you would do with your buddies if you were traveling there, but now they are race courses. Almost every event in this category, XC or Enduro is un sanctioned.
Everyone is going to be surprised when they cross that finish line at a USAC race and who do they see, ??! Lance Armsstrong taking urine samples for the cat 4 race!!!
Apparently the UCI blinked (or kicked the can down the road).
http://www.uci.ch/Modules/ENews/ENewsDetails2011.asp?id=OTE5OQ
Whilst ” U niformly C orruptly I ncompetents ” were kicking ” Rule 1.2.019 ” into 2014 with the left foot , they were using the right foot to kick USADA & WADA ” with a reminder of the fiasco that took place at the ” Tour de Suisse ” , those ” Disappearing EPO samples ” that tested UNDER 80 !
thursday , he who walks with his foot in his mouth , unleashed the following controversy onto an unsuspecting and NOW TOTALLY Disinterested Cycling Community !
” THERE was no COVERUP “! Shouting from the rooftops , only woke us up to another gaff /example of incompetence , we have come to expect from the Aigle tag team duo !
http://www.3wiresports.com/2013/04/13/armstrongs-2001-swiss-tour-no-cover-up-suspicious-tests/#comment-5166