Newbie Here

Seth Hammond

I have some questions for you serious MB racers:

How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
narrow?

Do you block all passes you can?

How about in mixed-class racing? It's understandable to race your peers,
but everyone on the course?

G.T.

Seth Hammond wrote:
> I have some questions for you serious MB racers:
>
> How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
> narrow?

I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
faster riders by.

>
> Do you block all passes you can?

I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
faster riders by.


> How about in mixed-class racing? It's understandable to race your peers,
> but everyone on the course?
>

I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
faster riders by.

Greg

Scott Gordo

On Feb 7, 2:25*pm, "Seth Hammond" <lesliesethhamm...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> I have some questions for you serious MB racers:
>
> How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
> narrow?
>
> Do you block all passes you can?
>
> How about in mixed-class racing? *It's understandable to race your peers,
> but everyone on the course?

A few thoughts:

If you're in first place racing a World Cup event in Switzerland with
200 yards to go and there's a guy behind you trying to get around, I'd
say that you've got pole position and, short of raising your hands
from the bars and mauling him, he's got to get around you and
shouldn't expect any favors.

If it's a battle between 23rd and 24th place at the local loop, I
think it's quite silly to give an obviously faster guy a hard time and
prevent them from their chance at charging to the front. In that case,
"on your left" should suffice. A personal example: I had a tendency to
jackrabbit to the front, blow my wad in the first 10 minutes, and
spend the next hour shelled, panicked, and slightly insane. A friend
would start slow, wait for guys like me to fry themselves, and
methodically move through the singletrack pack. It was a calculated
risk that didn't always pay off for him, but when it did he deserved
to win. If every idiot who cooked themselves like me tried to wedge
him off the trail, well, that just doesn't seem right now does it?

If you're riding, say, up a technical uphill and don't want to disturb
your forward motion or move into a bad line, the guy behind can either
wait until you're in the clear or use his superpowers to get around
you.

When I used to race, I'd find myself riding with the same three or
four guys for most of the race, swapping positions every so often.
Generally I'd settle in with guys who were roughly as fast (read as:
slow) as I was, and do something akin to drafting where you'd sort of
let the rider in front of you pull you forward (psychologically). Even
though mtb racinging is pretty mano-a-mano, you can work with other
people.

/s

Seth Hammond

"G.T." <getnews1@dslextreme.com> wrote in message
news:13qmp7re44rbgc1@corp.supernews.com...
> Seth Hammond wrote:
>> I have some questions for you serious MB racers:
>>
>> How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
>> narrow?
>
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.
>
>>
>> Do you block all passes you can?
>
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.
>
>
>> How about in mixed-class racing? It's understandable to race your peers,
>> but everyone on the course?
>>
>
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.
>
> Greg
>
>

I'm not sure, but I think I'm beginning to get your drift.

Seth Hammond

"Scott Gordo" <blubberpuss@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:8516f94e-0e58-4f89-8e5e-082c6957d588@y5g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
On Feb 7, 2:25 pm, "Seth Hammond" <lesliesethhamm...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> I have some questions for you serious MB racers:
>
> How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
> narrow?
>
> Do you block all passes you can?
>
> How about in mixed-class racing? It's understandable to race your peers,
> but everyone on the course?

A few thoughts:

If you're in first place racing a World Cup event in Switzerland with
200 yards to go and there's a guy behind you trying to get around, I'd
say that you've got pole position and, short of raising your hands
from the bars and mauling him, he's got to get around you and
shouldn't expect any favors.

If it's a battle between 23rd and 24th place at the local loop, I
think it's quite silly to give an obviously faster guy a hard time and
prevent them from their chance at charging to the front. In that case,
"on your left" should suffice. A personal example: I had a tendency to
jackrabbit to the front, blow my wad in the first 10 minutes, and
spend the next hour shelled, panicked, and slightly insane. A friend
would start slow, wait for guys like me to fry themselves, and
methodically move through the singletrack pack. It was a calculated
risk that didn't always pay off for him, but when it did he deserved
to win. If every idiot who cooked themselves like me tried to wedge
him off the trail, well, that just doesn't seem right now does it?

If you're riding, say, up a technical uphill and don't want to disturb
your forward motion or move into a bad line, the guy behind can either
wait until you're in the clear or use his superpowers to get around
you.

When I used to race, I'd find myself riding with the same three or
four guys for most of the race, swapping positions every so often.
Generally I'd settle in with guys who were roughly as fast (read as:
slow) as I was, and do something akin to drafting where you'd sort of
let the rider in front of you pull you forward (psychologically). Even
though mtb racinging is pretty mano-a-mano, you can work with other
people.

/s

-----------------------

My son is the racer, or was. He was leading in class points before a recent
race. The promoter decided late in the game to add a Short Track race. One
mass start was a fustercluck, but my son worked his way through until a
backmarker crowded him off the track and out of the race. My son lost it
and tackled the guy at the end of the race, but it was broken up by others
before a punch was thrown. He was disqualified from the race and the
series, as well as every race the promoter runs - which is most of the races
on the lower right coast and Florida where he lives. My son has effectively
retired from racing. Oh, for the days of AJ Foyt the pit brawler. Dale
Earnhart was no slouch either. Oh well, these are the days of political
correctness, I guess. He should have kissed and made up.

MattB

Seth Hammond wrote:
> "Scott Gordo" <blubberpuss@gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:8516f94e-0e58-4f89-8e5e-082c6957d588@y5g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
> On Feb 7, 2:25 pm, "Seth Hammond" <lesliesethhamm...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> I have some questions for you serious MB racers:
>>
>> How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
>> narrow?
>>
>> Do you block all passes you can?
>>
>> How about in mixed-class racing? It's understandable to race your peers,
>> but everyone on the course?
>
> A few thoughts:
>
> If you're in first place racing a World Cup event in Switzerland with
> 200 yards to go and there's a guy behind you trying to get around, I'd
> say that you've got pole position and, short of raising your hands
> from the bars and mauling him, he's got to get around you and
> shouldn't expect any favors.
>
> If it's a battle between 23rd and 24th place at the local loop, I
> think it's quite silly to give an obviously faster guy a hard time and
> prevent them from their chance at charging to the front. In that case,
> "on your left" should suffice. A personal example: I had a tendency to
> jackrabbit to the front, blow my wad in the first 10 minutes, and
> spend the next hour shelled, panicked, and slightly insane. A friend
> would start slow, wait for guys like me to fry themselves, and
> methodically move through the singletrack pack. It was a calculated
> risk that didn't always pay off for him, but when it did he deserved
> to win. If every idiot who cooked themselves like me tried to wedge
> him off the trail, well, that just doesn't seem right now does it?
>
> If you're riding, say, up a technical uphill and don't want to disturb
> your forward motion or move into a bad line, the guy behind can either
> wait until you're in the clear or use his superpowers to get around
> you.
>
> When I used to race, I'd find myself riding with the same three or
> four guys for most of the race, swapping positions every so often.
> Generally I'd settle in with guys who were roughly as fast (read as:
> slow) as I was, and do something akin to drafting where you'd sort of
> let the rider in front of you pull you forward (psychologically). Even
> though mtb racinging is pretty mano-a-mano, you can work with other
> people.
>
> /s
>
> -----------------------
>
> My son is the racer, or was. He was leading in class points before a recent
> race. The promoter decided late in the game to add a Short Track race. One
> mass start was a fustercluck, but my son worked his way through until a
> backmarker crowded him off the track and out of the race. My son lost it
> and tackled the guy at the end of the race, but it was broken up by others
> before a punch was thrown. He was disqualified from the race and the
> series, as well as every race the promoter runs - which is most of the races
> on the lower right coast and Florida where he lives. My son has effectively
> retired from racing. Oh, for the days of AJ Foyt the pit brawler. Dale
> Earnhart was no slouch either. Oh well, these are the days of political
> correctness, I guess. He should have kissed and made up.
>

People need to play fair, and they need to leave the race on the course
IMO. When it's done it's done. If you have a problem with how someone
acted on the course then discuss it with an official afterwards.
So too bad about your son. Maybe he can write a nice letter to the
promoter saying he'll never do that again and he'll be able to come back
next year.

Matt (I just kick 'em when they try and pass, especially G.T.)

Marz

On Feb 7, 1:25*pm, "Seth Hammond" <lesliesethhamm...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> I have some questions for you serious MB racers:
>
> How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
> narrow?
>
> Do you block all passes you can?
>
> How about in mixed-class racing? *It's understandable to race your peers,
> but everyone on the course?

Like they both said, don't block just to block, if the guy behind is
obviously faster than you then let him past, but if you're sprinting
for the finish and the guy who's be following you for the last lap is
trying to get past then get them elbow's out and get defensive.

Letting someone past just means you stay to the righthand side of the
trail and keep it going in a straight line. Don't suddenly slow and
try and get out of the way, in most cases the guy behind already
know's how he's going to get past you and he just wants you to carry
on as you were.

When you let someone past be aware that the rider may be using you to
block other fast riders behind him. I've seen riders leave it to the
last second to blast past slower riders, just before entering some
tight single track. This puts you between him and his chasers with the
idea being he can build up a gap before they can get past you.

Also see if you can stay with a faster rider after he passes you, even
if it's for just a couple of hundred yards. You may learn something
from his riding and you'll put a small gap on anybody you're racing
against.

JD

On Feb 7, 12:07 pm, "G.T." <getne...@dslextreme.com> wrote:
> Seth Hammond wrote:
> > I have some questions for you serious MB racers:
>
> > How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
> > narrow?
>
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.
>
>
>
> > Do you block all passes you can?
>
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.
>
> > How about in mixed-class racing? It's understandable to race your peers,
> > but everyone on the course?
>
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.
>
> Greg


Troot, mon.

JD

Mike Vandeman

On Thu, 7 Feb 2008 12:07:27 -0800 (PST), Scott Gordo
<blubberpuss@gmail.com> wrote:

>On Feb 7, 2:25*pm, "Seth Hammond" <lesliesethhamm...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> I have some questions for you serious MB racers:
>>
>> How do you feel about allowing faster riders by you when the track is
>> narrow?
>>
>> Do you block all passes you can?
>>
>> How about in mixed-class racing? *It's understandable to race your peers,
>> but everyone on the course?
>
>A few thoughts:
>
>If you're in first place racing a World Cup event in Switzerland with
>200 yards to go and there's a guy behind you trying to get around, I'd
>say that you've got pole position and, short of raising your hands
>from the bars and mauling him, he's got to get around you and
>shouldn't expect any favors.
>
>If it's a battle between 23rd and 24th place at the local loop, I
>think it's quite silly to give an obviously faster guy a hard time and
>prevent them from their chance at charging to the front. In that case,
>"on your left" should suffice. A personal example: I had a tendency to
>jackrabbit to the front, blow my wad in the first 10 minutes, and
>spend the next hour shelled, panicked, and slightly insane. A friend
>would start slow, wait for guys like me to fry themselves, and
>methodically move through the singletrack pack. It was a calculated
>risk that didn't always pay off for him, but when it did he deserved
>to win. If every idiot who cooked themselves like me tried to wedge
>him off the trail, well, that just doesn't seem right now does it?
>
>If you're riding, say, up a technical uphill and don't want to disturb
>your forward motion or move into a bad line, the guy behind can either
>wait until you're in the clear or use his superpowers to get around
>you.
>
>When I used to race, I'd find myself riding with the same three or
>four guys for most of the race, swapping positions every so often.
>Generally I'd settle in with guys who were roughly as fast (read as:
>slow) as I was, and do something akin to drafting where you'd sort of
>let the rider in front of you pull you forward (psychologically). Even
>though mtb racinging is pretty mano-a-mano, you can work with other
>people.
>
>/s

Racing -- of ANY type -- is stupid.
--
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

Shawn

Mike Vandeman

-- is stupid.

Damn. Reloaded my newsreader after an HD crash. Gotta reset my filter.


Shawn

TM

"Seth Hammond" <lesliesethhammond@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:61180nF1skpm9U1@mid.individual.net...
> -----------------------
>
> My son is the racer, or was. He was leading in class points before a
> recent race. The promoter decided late in the game to add a Short Track
> race. One mass start was a fustercluck, but my son worked his way through
> until a backmarker crowded him off the track and out of the race. My son
> lost it and tackled the guy at the end of the race, but it was broken up
> by others before a punch was thrown. He was disqualified from the race
> and the series, as well as every race the promoter runs - which is most of
> the races on the lower right coast and Florida where he lives. My son has
> effectively retired from racing. Oh, for the days of AJ Foyt the pit
> brawler. Dale Earnhart was no slouch either. Oh well, these are the days
> of political correctness, I guess. He should have kissed and made up.
>

Sounds like the promoter did everyone a favor. If he wants to 'tackle', he
should play football. Everyone else showed up to race bikes and go home.

Slower riders are a part of the game from beginner to pro and it is always
the responsibility of the faster rider to make sure the pass goes smoothly.
It's a skill that every successful racer has developed and your son should
as well.

Seth Hammond

"TM" <lkjd@lkjk.com> wrote in message news:EMXqj.1$RI.0@newsfe06.lga...
>
> "Seth Hammond" <lesliesethhammond@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:61180nF1skpm9U1@mid.individual.net...
>> -----------------------
>>
>> My son is the racer, or was. He was leading in class points before a
>> recent race. The promoter decided late in the game to add a Short Track
>> race. One mass start was a fustercluck, but my son worked his way
>> through until a backmarker crowded him off the track and out of the race.
>> My son lost it and tackled the guy at the end of the race, but it was
>> broken up by others before a punch was thrown. He was disqualified from
>> the race and the series, as well as every race the promoter runs - which
>> is most of the races on the lower right coast and Florida where he lives.
>> My son has effectively retired from racing. Oh, for the days of AJ Foyt
>> the pit brawler. Dale Earnhart was no slouch either. Oh well, these are
>> the days of political correctness, I guess. He should have kissed and
>> made up.
>>
>
> Sounds like the promoter did everyone a favor. If he wants to 'tackle',
> he should play football. Everyone else showed up to race bikes and go
> home.
>
> Slower riders are a part of the game from beginner to pro and it is always
> the responsibility of the faster rider to make sure the pass goes
> smoothly. It's a skill that every successful racer has developed and your
> son should as well.

He's ridden competitively for 12+ years, and last year turned Pro, so I
guess his passing skills are well practiced. He was again the points leader
in his age group of 41-43. He's ranked as high as 10th in the nation. He
hollered out, "Passing on your left" and at first the other rider moved to
the right - then suddenly swerved back left as my son began his pass.

Corvus Corvax

On Feb 7, 3:29 pm, "Seth Hammond" <lesliesethhamm...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> My son lost it
> and tackled the guy at the end of the race, but it was broken up by others
> before a punch was thrown. He was disqualified from the race and the
> series, as well as every race the promoter runs
[...]
> Oh well, these are the days of political
> correctness, I guess. He should have kissed and made up.

Objecting to assault is "political correctness"? Good for the
promoter.

CC

Corvus Corvax

On Feb 7, 3:07 pm, "G.T." <getne...@dslextreme.com> wrote:
>
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.
[...]
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.
[...]
> I no longer race because of all the obnoxious dickheads who don't let
> faster riders by.

What he said.

Far better to let the guy past you and then hang right off his rear
wheel for the next mile, singing. Drives people nuts. If you can't
stick with him, he belongs ahead of you anyhow.

CC