> I'm tired of being treated badly by Death Ride. I did it every year since '94 but missed out in
> 2002. This year they required me to be sitting in front of a fast computer at 10a on a Wed to
> register. Now I'm invited to a lottery where I have no idea if I can share expenses with friends
> or have to go alone. I wonder how many reserved spots they have for the hotel keepers in the
> Chamber of Commerce this year?
>
> It's a business and I'm being processed. Who needs it?I
It's got to be a tough one for the organizers. No matter what, you can't get around the fact that
far more people want to ride the event than will be able to. So do you price the event to demand,
continuing to raise the fee until supply of spaces=number of riders willing to pay the price? If it
were being run as many businesses, that would be how the price was determined. So obviously they're
not charging all that the traffic will bear, and thus are doing a service for those who couldn't
afford to ride if it were done otherwise.
In your case, you've made it a regular part of your cycling life, and look forward to it every year.
But what about the person who's been trying to ride it for some time, but has even less chance to
get in because those who have ridden it at least once in the past three years have a much better
shot at a ride (because they give past riders preferential treatment)? Isn't there something to be
said for spreading the DeathRide experience to as many people as possible?
No easy solutions. Regarding the hotel keepers, it does make some sense to have assurances that
available rooms will be made available to those who are actually riding. And it is, of course, a
Chamber of Commerce event, done primarily for the tourism industry of Alpine County. The fact that
it's a cycling event is incidental. It's all about bringing in bodies and money. And there's nothing
really wrong with that, either.
There surely must be other models of events like this; expeditions so special to many that far more
people want to enter than can be allowed to. How have they been handled? Any examples that most
people would agree to be more fair? But ultimately, if something more fair is found, my guess is it
will be something where the definition of "fair" is determined by *everyone* feeling cheated, not
just people in certain categories.
--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com