I rose up off my ass and got pre-preregistered for the 2016 Trans-Sylvania Epic earlier this week. I was surprised to see a total of 94 people jumped at the chance for the super early bird price, despite some of the details such as dates and stages and whatnot were unknown...
or maybe not so surprised because the race has done a great job building its reputation as THE Singletrack Summer Camp.
One of the big changes for 2016 will be going from seven days of racing down to five. Sunday, May 29 through Friday, June 3, with the racing starting on Monday and ending on Friday. Reason? They (the promoters) realize it can be a bit of a hardship to be away for the amount of time it takes to do a seven day stage race. There will now be plenty of time to travel on both ends, and when you get home, the grass won't be waist high... and your family might still recognize you.
BTW: I fully support this decision and have been wanting it for years now. Huzzah.
Other changes? Glad you asked.
The short but vomit-inducing individual time trial on day one will be replaced with a more standard length, head-to-head course. The longer stages that have left people shelled are going to shorten up as well. The 40+ mile days will be replaced with less-deathy 35-36 mile routes. As much as I loved the 42 mile Cooper's Gap and Tussey Ridge, I have to admit that the "just kill me" thought would go through my head every 20 seconds for the last 10 miles. There's just a lot of brutal technical riding up there in Central PA. Fun riding that comes with more than its share of bumps, bruises, lacerations, breaks, sprains... you know? The sometimes side effects of mountain biking. A little less riding means that racers should be slightly less worn out and more on their game when they encounter this:
Anyhoo...
This is just one of those races that have been placed on my must-do-every-year list. It's everything I love about mountain biking; technical terrain, great people, distances that don't have me crawling on the floor at the end of the day, crisp weather, my extended family... warm happies all around.
Stop thinking about it, and just sign up already. Well, soon anyways.
Yeth, this post is terribly timed. As of right now, you can't sign up. Pretty soon though, all the details will be in place and those spots that weren't already pre-grabbed will be up for the taking. I highly suggest you jump on it.
I'll do my best to try and remember to post something when the registration is FULL-ON open.
Mmmmmmmmkay?
Posts
2 comments:
why are races being "dumb down"? I know someone that did La ruta this year, and they are down to 2 days, the third day is just 60km mostly road which is completed in 2 hours. I ain't flying and paying all that money to race just two days, that's idiotic. If I'm going to train, save money for a race, and then spend time to get there, it better be a damn good race... the 100 milers are worth it, for you're on the saddle for a good 8 hours with some fantastic times before and after the race. So, three days of enjoyment for 8-10hours of driving... worth it.
But, if these 7 day races go down to 4-5 days, I really question if its worth it. Especially if there is a lot of training, cost to fly, and hotels etc...
I love 7 day races, like bcbikerace.com it was a goody and I hear they just improve every year adding more, not reducing more...
race organizers have to be careful of that...
I would definitely not say it's "dumbed down." TSE is one of the most technically demanding stage races out there. Plenty of stage races in North America are 5-6 days now. PMBSR, ST6, BE, Moab Rocks is 3...
I'm happy with the five day format, and considering that the seven day race you mentioned is close to twice the price for a couple more days?
I love BCBR, but as long as the experience ends up being worth it, no matter the price or duration, I say go for it.
Post a Comment