Hopefully BRAC will listen to the racers. Not just the elite 1-2s Masters, but the racers that are out there racing and spending money on racing. Yep, actually listen to Cat. 5s, 4s and 3s...
Could not agree more. Simpler is better -- just get back to senior categories and open master's categories.
And if we can't keep it simple, then just go "all in" and have a separate master's license with separate categories, so master's racers can be separated based on ability and not age. Why have a 35+4 with 45 guys and a 45+4 with 55 guys when you could just have a single "Master's B" race with close to 100 guys?
I still follow pro cycling, just less enthusiastically and more skeptically. I've got better things to do, like train!
I would caution against looking back at any period of time as some "golden age" without doping. In the 60s Jacque Anquetil scoffed at the idea that you could win the Tour clean, and he refused to take drug tests.
I didn't read it that way. I thought he was supporting age groups in general, not a further breakdown of cats within the age groups. Are you suggesting we do away with the masters AGE groups, you know, so we don't dilute the race day?
The real problem here was when we went from 35 plus, 45 plus, 55 plus and started to add age/ability catagories like 35 3's, 45 4's, 35 4's. BRAC made a bad call adding those new "special snowflake catagories for men", but the masters in those groups were a loud bunch. That was a sort fo a gateway drug for lower end masters guys to get exactly what you suggst, the "everyone deserves a medal". 35 3's has not grown the sport, I am sorry. It has taken guys out of the 3's, the 35 Open, and even the 45 open, because guys realized it was an easier option and they could do better.
I am a masters guy and I think we need to move to 40 plus and then simplify the whole thing, down to just ages, like 40 plus, 50 plus, 60 plus. OR at worst add a 40 plus cat 4 for guys who are new and over 40.
this sounds an awful lot like the "everyone deserves a medal" type of argument. If your life commitments, ability to train, recovery, etc keeps you from being competitive at a 2, then downgrade according to the rules and race as a 3. Or a 4. I can understand the safety concern, but on the other hand you fail to acknowledge that the additional categories that you want are diluting the race day and make it difficult for promoters to run a fiscally feasible race.
Don't know, don't care.
Hopefully BRAC will listen to the racers. Not just the elite 1-2s Masters, but the racers that are out there racing and spending money on racing. Yep, actually listen to Cat. 5s, 4s and 3s...
Could not agree more. Simpler is better -- just get back to senior categories and open master's categories.
And if we can't keep it simple, then just go "all in" and have a separate master's license with separate categories, so master's racers can be separated based on ability and not age. Why have a 35+4 with 45 guys and a 45+4 with 55 guys when you could just have a single "Master's B" race with close to 100 guys?
I still follow pro cycling, just less enthusiastically and more skeptically. I've got better things to do, like train!
I would caution against looking back at any period of time as some "golden age" without doping. In the 60s Jacque Anquetil scoffed at the idea that you could win the Tour clean, and he refused to take drug tests.
Men and women together? Mix in the juniors and 70+ too.
These are great ideas people. I hope BRAC is listening. /s
Nope.
I didn't read it that way. I thought he was supporting age groups in general, not a further breakdown of cats within the age groups. Are you suggesting we do away with the masters AGE groups, you know, so we don't dilute the race day?
The real problem here was when we went from 35 plus, 45 plus, 55 plus and started to add age/ability catagories like 35 3's, 45 4's, 35 4's. BRAC made a bad call adding those new "special snowflake catagories for men", but the masters in those groups were a loud bunch. That was a sort fo a gateway drug for lower end masters guys to get exactly what you suggst, the "everyone deserves a medal". 35 3's has not grown the sport, I am sorry. It has taken guys out of the 3's, the 35 Open, and even the 45 open, because guys realized it was an easier option and they could do better.
I am a masters guy and I think we need to move to 40 plus and then simplify the whole thing, down to just ages, like 40 plus, 50 plus, 60 plus. OR at worst add a 40 plus cat 4 for guys who are new and over 40.
this sounds an awful lot like the "everyone deserves a medal" type of argument. If your life commitments, ability to train, recovery, etc keeps you from being competitive at a 2, then downgrade according to the rules and race as a 3. Or a 4. I can understand the safety concern, but on the other hand you fail to acknowledge that the additional categories that you want are diluting the race day and make it difficult for promoters to run a fiscally feasible race.