We've been hearing some rumors (from pretty reliable sources)
that the Natz course at the Presidio was in trouble because of government
permissions. The good news is the problem has been resolved.
I got the following email today (11/18/99):
"Dear Dave-- The Presidio venue was in jeopardy, but all is well
now. There was a disconnect between the Presidio Trust and
the GGNRA. As you may be aware, the land is being transfered
from the GGNRA to the Presidio Trust. All the proper inter-departmental
paperwork was not done. Those two agencies got it together yesterday.
So we are okay now. Galeforce did all the right things from the start,
just for the record. So rest easy. The Presidio is a go."
-- Rick Sutton, race director, Galeforce Sports
More buzz:
Check your license
Do you have a USA Cycling license? If not, you'll need one to
compete at CX Natz or Super Cup--a valid USCF, NORBA, USPRO, or NCCA license.
The good news is you can buy one at the venue. But, buyer beware!
If
you want to win a championship medal, you must have an annual license
(one-year), not one-day. One-day licenses are available for a nominal
fee, as at most USCF events. However, a little-known clause in the USCF
rulebook makes one-day members ineligible for championship medals.
You can race, but you won't be recognized for the win, just as foreign-licensed
riders are ineligible. So make sure you get that one-year license--and
bring some extra cash, because they cost more than the one-day variety.
[Actually, that rulebook entry isn't completely clear, but USCF regional
rep Jan Luke has confirmed this
rule is in effect.] (11/22/99)
Buzz 3:
Whither the MTB?
Some of you may have noted that UCI regulations essentially ban mountain
bikes from CX competition, Requiring drop bars and tires 35c or narrower.
Many have wondered how these rules would apply at CX Natz.
Tom Simonson, one of our Surf City
race officials, sent along the following:
Subject: Flat bars at nationals?
"Several people asked me about using flat bars at the CX nationals.
I checked with Randy Shafer, the Chief Ref, and he confirmed that flat
bars are permitted. The ban on flat bars is a UCI rule, so
they will be banned only at the events run under UCI rules e.g. the Elite
Women and Elite Men/U23 at the Supercup race. -- Tom." (11/26/99)
Slide Show: Preview
images of the venue by Dennis McGovern
Dennis McGovern, our CX
photographer, visited the course and took pictures of several sections
to give a flavor of the venue. They are approximately in order of
the circuit, but they don't necessarily represent the direction the course
will run (actually it will run one direction for Natz and the other on
Sunday for Supercup). Dennis also added some digital "marker tape"
to indicate the course outlines in each section.
Click an image to begin the slide show.
Dennis' comments: "Dear Dave--I made it out there.
Got lost. Didn't bother with the map and thought since I lived in the City
I would know right where it is. I did but did not trust myself and got
in some hill riding. The course is marked, but I have no idea which
direction to go and there were some parts I could not figure. Seems like
several curbs to cross. It is fairly up and down. Not steep, but
diffcult and bumpy. Think about the bumpy section where I saw you stack
(ouch--Ed.) at Watsonville. I think mud could be nasty. I think big
tires are probably the call either way. --Dennis."
Back to top
Kevin Merrigan has been racing cross longer than almost
anyone on the NorCal scene. Over a career of fourteen years he has amassed
an impressive list of palmares, including a podium finish at the
'97 senior natz, and he has continued this year with a win in the first
Surf City race of the season. As he prepares for this year's championship
in his hometown, he got to pre-ride the course with some other local cross
studs. After a recent Surf City race, I caught up with Kevin to get
his thoughts on what will likely be his last ever cyclocross race.
Dave Carr: Kevin, you went and pre-rode the course?
Kevin Merrigan: Clark [Natwick, national team CX coach]
and I, Shari Kain [Polo Sport] and Mary Hearn [Fisher], we
went out there the Wednesday before the first Surf City, October 20th.
There was a dinner for the Bicycle Community Project and the Presidio Trust.
They had an auction. Robin Williams was supposed to show, but he didn’t.
He just gave a bike and they auctioned that off.
Anyway, before that, Rick
Sutton and all the Galeforce guys were out there [at the course], they
had everyone come out and they had some champagne, we pre-rode the course.
We did this loop part of the course right in front.
DC: I understand the site is kind of a bowl.
KM: Yeah, like a bowl. The guys were standing up on this kind
of shipping dock right in front and you can see everything from there.
DC: The start-finish and officials will be on the dock?
KM: Yeah. The start-finish area is really short area. It’s in
this parking lot, it’s less than 200 yards long. 75 yards across and 200
long. And they’re going to have 200 yards for the start, boom, up onto
a grassy slope, really bumpy, across grass. Then down, hairpin 180 degrees,
and then up, and there are barriers at the bottom so you have to get off,
up then they’ll have [the first] pit right there.
DC: So it’s a lot of around and back?
KM: Yeah, it does a lot of snaking back on itself, because
they’re limited for space. Clark said they had a whole another bowl in
the Presidio, across Lincoln, I’m not sure, away from Letterman Hospital.
But they had that whole section nixed because the Park Service is doing
some restoration there. So instead of that, they’ll be doing an out and
back on a road [to add length to the course.]
DC: It sounds like it’s going to be pretty tight fitting
everyone onto the course.
KM: Tight, yeah. It’s definitely bumpy grass on a lot of the
stuff, but there’s very little elevation gain. Clark says it’s technical,
but I don’t know, I don’t think it’s going to be very technical. It’s going
to be fast. Start position, and super fast. It’s going to be tight.
And the majority of the
off-road stuff is under eucalyptus groves, a lot of limbs and acorns on
the ground, a lot of gopher holes. It’s really rough right now, but they
[haven’t finished the course yet]. The DFL [cross team] guys showed up,
Devlin and five more of them, and we had a group of 10 going around with
Shari Kain, Mary Hearn, and I, Clark, and the DFL crew. There’s flags
out at the course, blue and yellow, and it’s already flagged off, so those
[DFL] guys might have it beaten down by now, to a point where you can distinguish
it. I could remember it if I went out there.
[The course] has very little
elevation gain. 15 meters--15 feet maybe. Clark brings us down into
the sunken parking lot, there’s this rough, eucalyptus strewn side-hill
and it’s sketchy, then it goes boom!, into a big dip at the bottom.
I think they’re going to have like the “No Fear” zone, because Galeforce
is into that spectator thing, like the Sea Otter, World Cup…
DC: Like the Disco Fly-over at the World Cup.
KM: Yeah. They wanted to put something like that in there, like
jumps and berms, but some people have said no, that’s not what it’s all
about, in cross we’re on [skinny tire] bikes, so…
DC: So it is a cross course.
KM: Yeah.
DC: So this will be the last cross race of your career?
KM: I’m done. This will be my last race. I’ve been
racing for fourteen years in cross. It’s like, this morning I’m like, “Do
I even want to go out and race?” It [Surf City] was a hard course
today and I was suffering.
Back to top
