Let me preface this by saying that I am not complaining about USA Cycling's new categorization process out of bitterness because my upgrade request was rejected. I do not think I am currently racing at a level to warrant a Pro license. I also do not think I am racing at a Cat1 level. I would say I am racing at a SemiPro level, but since SemiPro is now Pro.... wait... or is it?
Before I get into the heavy bitching, let's lay some groundwork. Just so we're all on the same page, here are the old Expert and new Cat1 upgrade requirements. Keep in mind that theoretically these should be the same.
Upgrade requirements:
Old Expert: (These would me more clear if the terms "or" or "and" were used.)
Expert men riders may be eligible to be upgraded to Semi-Pro after a combination of achieving these minimum race results: two top-five finishes at USA Cycling National Mountain Bike Series (NMBS) events; three top-three finishes in American Mountain Bike Challenge (AMBC) events; four top-three finishes at a State or Regional Championship event. Overall finish times are factored into upgrade requests. Riders must submit their upgrade requests either online or to the Mountain Biking Region Manager for their state.
...
A rider who feels he/she has advanced too quickly or is otherwise no longer competitive in his or her category may ask for reclassification by submitting a written request to NORBA identifying his/her results and reasoning. Such a request must be directed to the rider’s Mountain Biking Region Manager and include the current license and a $15 re-issue fee.
New Cat1:
Category 1 riders may be eligible to be upgraded to Pro after achieving a combination of these minimum race results:
• Two top-three Category 1 (rider ability) finishes according to finish time (including all age classes in Category 1) at USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Calendar Category 1, 2 or 3 events.
OR
• Three top-five Category 1 (rider ability) finishes according to finish time (including all age classes in Category 1) at USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Calendar Category 1, 2 or 3 events.
Differences: (Ignoring NMBS vs. AMBC vs. National Calendar and assuming "Overall finish times are factored into upgrade requests" is a retarded way of saying "including all age classes in Category 1")
1) 2 top 5 / 3 top 3 became 2 top 3 / 3 top 5 at national events.
2) You can no longer be reclassified by submitting a written request.
3) State or Regional Championships no longer count for bubkis, only USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Calendar count.
The first difference is similar enough to not be much of a change, but the last two differences make an upgrade significantly more difficult.
It's working, for now:
Now that we got that out of the way, let's first talk about the size of the Pro field. USA Cycling rearranged the categories for mountain bike racing in order to make the Pro field larger and more competitive. It worked. I have read numerous Pro race reports that have mentioned "OMG!! there were [large number] of racers in the Elite race, MTB racing is back!!!". Maybe MTB racing is back, but the large numbers are a direct result of the changes USA Cycling made specifically to increase the number of racers in the Pro field.
The actual problem:
The Pro field has historically been small because the upgrade requirements were too strict. The fields are larger now because they have had a one time injection of SemiPros. So right now, in 2009, USA Cycling's attempt at increasing the size of the Pro field has been successful. The problem is, if SemiPro and Pro are now the same category, shouldn't the requirements for racing in this category be the same as they used to be for racing as a SemiPro? In other words, if you turn SemiPros into Pros, then moving forward shouldn't the old requirements to become SemiPro now be the same requirements that now make you a Pro?
Oops, solution is only temporary:
Well, as we showed at the beginning of this post, the requirements for an Expert/Cat1 to move to the next level are no longer the same. From now (2009) on, the Cat1 class is just going to get faster and faster, since the requirements for an upgrade are more strict than they were when SemiPro existed. At the same time, the Pro class is going to shrink back to the same size it was before since the upgrade requirements haven't been relaxed at all.
(I can't find the old Pro upgrade requirements anywhere, so for the sake of this blog entry I'm assuming they are very similar to the current ones, based on the fact that the current requirements are stricter than the old SemiPro requirements. Maybe the old upgrade requirements were super-strict, and the new ones are a compromise between the old SemiPro and Pro requirements. Let's pretend that is not the case since it doesn't really support my arguments.)
At the time of re-categorization, SemiPros can choose between becoming a Pro or a Cat1 racer, after that SemiPros are Cat1. I say this because the old upgrade criteria for a Cat1 to move to the next level will no longer get them to the next level, and because USA Cycling states that (after the one time re-categorization) Cat1 is a combination of the old Expert and SemiPro classes. This means if you're racing at a SemiPro level before re-categorization, you're Pro. If you're racing at a SemiPro level after re-categorization, you're Cat1. This seems like it would make the Cat1 field more competitive. Wasn't the whole point of this to make the Pro field more competitive?
Summary: (skip to here if you find the above to be unbearably boring)
The root of the small Pro field size problem were the strict upgrade requirements in place. By giving all SemiPros a one time upgrade to Pro, but not relaxing the upgrade requirements, you are temporarily fixing one of the symptoms. The problem still remains. In a few years, we'll be right back where we started, except the Cat1 class will be faster.
I know, I know, most boring post ever, right? No pictures, no insults or self deprecation; BORING. Hang in there though, tomorrow we'll look at a real life example by breaking down the race results for one of the recent USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Calendar races. This should show us exactly what it takes to become a Pro under the new classification system. There will be names, numbers, and lap times; I know my readers (both of you) love those kinds of things.
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Dude this post is actually pretty smart. I'm kind of pissed that I didn't realize how dumb the upgrade change is was myself. So there's like 12 races in the entire country that can count toward a pro upgrade, and only 2 are hittable from New England? So ZERO cat 1's will upgrade to pro this year unless they get on a plane, drive forever, or manage to get top 3 overall at those events. Yikes.
ReplyDeleteWhy not race in the Pro/ Cat 1 open? If you do well wouldn't that get you an upgrade?
ReplyDeleteNo Cat 1's Need Apply.
ReplyDeleteOnce all the Semi-Pros who got the Pro upgrade during the grace period over the winter got in there they shut the fucking door on you cretins.
It's like immigrating to America. You get in, then start being racist toward anyone who got there after you.
Cat 1's are lazy, but they want our jobs, and odd cooking smells emanate from their homes.
-t