Losing Lafayette stinks. I just loved that race. That banked hairpin with the off-camber wide line that threw you into the bales -- perfect. Every lap, turn three was a strategy session. And terrific photo opp's at the apex of turn 2.

BUT, it was partly OUR FAULT. My wife and I did a little shopping that day at the party store next to the McDonalds near the finish line. It was a MORGUE. So was Mac's. I remember thinking that the downtown businesses couldn't be too happy about losing the income. The same for Martinez, another great town course that was also cancelled this year.

WE NEED TO SHOW OUR APPRECIATION OF MUNICIPALITIES BY PATRONIZING THE LOCAL BUSINESSES (and not just their restrooms)!!! Talk to them; let them know that we are here for the race, and how much we appreciate the event. I have a little cafe in Modesto that I go to every year during the crit. The proprietor remembers me (not just by the smell), and I talk to him about racing, etc... I get my beverages there, and lunch in the afternoon. And I'm sure he will think of the Modesto Crit as an event that brings in customers, even if his numbers are in fact diminished.

Quote:A measurable part of the problem was the Spring Hill RR scheduling their event on top of ours – we went to the race scheduling meeting and had the Lafayette crit on the calendar for months before they came along – this should have never been allowed to happen. End result – no more Lafayette crit.

I also do not believe that a concurrent road race can extinguish a crit like Lafayette, which I'm sure Casey would confirm. The close proximity of Lafayette to the Bay Area racers and the popularity of the course would ensure the numbers. Additionally, you could feature multiple age/cat groupings with the massive census. There is such a saturation of 3/4 and masters riders in the East Bay, that you can't help but sell out multiple fields.

Quote:That blows! Besides the fact that I can ride to that course, I really liked it. Not too many real downtown crits anymore. And I loved the hairpin turn...

Quote:That's a bummer.

Yeah, the lack of the Lafayette crit really blows! It's a great event. Downtown crits are by their very nature expensive and labor intensive to put on. A measurable part of the problem was the Spring Hill RR scheduling their event on top of ours – we went to the race scheduling meeting and had the Lafayette crit on the calendar for months before they came along – this should have never been allowed to happen. End result – no more Lafayette crit. So if we can take anything away from this – technical downtown crits are too few and far between – support and respect them as best you can moving forward.

Martinez was a good technical course…

Wente Crit. It's so straight forward and non-technical yet somehow it is lol.

Wall Point wrote:Unfortunately we are not doing the Lafayette crit this year. City fees became too high

That's a bummer.

Wikipedia on Lafayette:
According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $118,974, and the median income for a family was $147,928...The average home price was $1,284,900 in 2005.

Which makes this a sad example of R4L's First Law of Bike Race Economics (of which Lafayette had been an exception). There's a Peets downtown isn't there?

Just for kicks 500 of us should go there on the originally planned date, staggered in 45 minute intervals, riding around in circles, while keeping as far to the right as practicable. And not spending a blessed cent. Everyone wears a t-shirt that says "X for mayor" in big block letters where X is the name of the guy who jacked the permit fee.

Whups, thread hijack. Already said, but details: Nevada City because of the top speed on the descent and turn 1 and 2 and the narrow parts later and all the gear-picking that goes on and come on, all those hay bales are a tipoff. Cats because if you don't shift clean, you're going to dump it on the hill, and even if you get that the stomp up the hill is dicey and you'll have at least one lap where you need to go around a thrown chain, plus there are some little tricks you can do with lines and gearing, plus the last turn is really fast (but are the seams really a problem?) Morgan Hill is a lot like Cats and the downhill is kind of like a ski run.

R4L

Wall Point wrote:Bunny,

Unfortunately we are not doing the Lafayette crit this year. City fees became too high – that combined with another promoter moving in our date last year after we had it scheduled has buried the event.

That blows! Besides the fact that I can ride to that course, I really liked it. Not too many real downtown crits anymore. And I loved the hairpin turn...

Kevin

Trapeze netting...that's awesome. I once described your course as the bike racing equivalent of the circus act where the motorcycles drive inside a steel cage ball.

Or maybe it's the mini-golf course of norcal racing. Can you have us ride into a windmill, and come back out on one of three randomly selected roads? If you veer ever-so-slightly right, you have a better shot of coming out near the finish line on the prime lap.

greenjersey wrote:Zebraman . . . I already added your race. You deserve love, er, something, for that course. It's just not right. Crashes in every field that I watched or raced in that turn. Strangely, I am drawn back there this year. Can I resist?

Resistance is futile, Greenie.

The good news: We had no hospital crashes in Napa last year. In fact, the worst injury we had was from a warm-up lap collision between two very famous 55+ masters. (You know who you are).

This year we're requiring all racers to wear rubber baby buggy bumpers to prevent accidents and keep themselves safe.

In truth, we're going to have a trapeze net surrounding the "Crazy P." (Well, hay bales, actually).

Bunny,

Unfortunately we are not doing the Lafayette crit this year. City fees became too high – that combined with another promoter moving in on our date last year after we had it scheduled has buried the event.

Zebraman . . . I already added your race. You deserve love, er, something, for that course. It's just not right. Crashes in every field that I watched or raced in that turn. Strangely, I am drawn back there this year. Can I resist?

Golden State - Not raced there but I understand last year they threw in a 180. Someone confirm.

Chico Downtown, if that is technical due to number of turns you would have to add Hanford and Dinuba but that would only leave wide open courses like Early Bird, Memorial Day, Dash for Cash, EBC, Sierra Nevada/Folsom (same course, different directions) as non-technical.

Merco and Merced are marginally technical. They have tight turns and narrowing but they don't make my legs sing like acourse with a hill or 180. Perhaps a definition is needed? Ooh, how about a difficulty rating system? That would be cool.

Also, add the Giro . . .

i don't see the lafayette crit yet

Have I failed, friends, to create the most technical crit in the region?

Jeez - The Napa River Velo Gran Prix is only .45 miles long with four 90-degree turns and a 270-degree Crazy-P!

Must I add a hoop of fire and a pendulum of doom? Wild rabid dogs, an oil slick, a clock tower sniper and ten deadly plagues??

Kyle wrote:
Merced crit. (possibly)- the one lane section behind old court house can be technical.
also turn 2 (even with the new course, it still narrows)! Every time I have done this race, always an accident or close call or two ( in front of me...) and folks sliding around.

Benicia in turn three lots of people can exceed the limits of tire gription once you go over the crown of the road.

my favorite technical courses are Chico Criterium and Burlingame. the Vacaville GP is a bit technical with its almost 180 right turn but its the hill that pumps up the wattage.

Watsonville crit. - It has a small hill, a valley gutter right before a the first real turn and a nasty left hand hairpin in turn 2.

Merco crit. (possibly)- It has that narrow area where it bottlenecks down from two lanes to one between turns 2 and 3.

Merced crit. (possibly)- the one lane section behind old court house can be technical.

Golden State? I haven't raced it in a few years, but I sure wouldn't classify it as technical. has the course changed?

Cherry Pie (hill and 180)
Napa River Velo Grand Prix (p-turn 240?)
Golden State Criterium (u-turn)
Nevada City Classic (very hilly)

Off the top of my head:
Tower District (u-turn)
Land Park (that crazy new set of turns off the old peanut shaped loop)
Cat's Hill (that damned hill)
Santa Cruz (u-turn, hill, narrow backside)
Ronde van Brisbeen (u-turn)