Actually, that title is slightly misleading - what I’m actually talking about is USCF vs. WISPORT. For as many years as my cycling memory goes, this battle has been waged with each side claiming to have moral high ground. From listening to partisans on both sides, you would think there are two completely different schools of thought on how bike racing should be approached in regard to organization, preparations, commitment, and expectations. This is true to an extent, but to barrow heavily from a prominent politician, there is more that unites us than divides us.
I guess my point isn’t for USCF racers to not think of WISPORT racers as squirrely, needy, undertrained, overreaching, crashaholics. Nor for WISPORT racers to think of USCF racers other than pompous, arrogant, doped up, jobless, non-social, jackasses. These caricatures might just be spot on so why try to bend reality. My point is to get both sides to see the natural beauty in the other events and participate in them, often. Both MN USCF and WISPORT calendars have gaps that could easily be filled by racing in the other organization’s events. Take these opportunities to diversify your racing portfolio and see a small town you may have never been to before.
Both of these organizations have tried unsuccessfully misguided attempts to limit or stop the other from participating but those efforts have fell short. We here at BikeThrow.com support any affiliation (or lack there of) which promotes bike racing. If you have not raced in another affiliation’s event, talk to people who do them regularly or give them a try.
Comments 9
I was the Red cherry on top in the firehouse 50. IT wasnt the podium though. What was it?
Posted 20 Nov 2007 at 6:10 pm ¶I dont do wisports no more.
Jordan and I did a fair amount of both this year, and they are both great fun. You can have a bad experience in any race. MCF has stronger competition. WISPORT has shorter road races, with no loops.
Ironically, I’ve heard more than one squirrelly rider complain that others are squirrelly. Don’t simply assume you show people a safe wheel. Ask your friends and teammates to give you an honest opinion. You may be the one others are complaining about.
Posted 20 Nov 2007 at 7:07 pm ¶The best WIsport races are Oceola, Fredrick, Chris Kerr, Firehouse. I did the Mouston RR a couple times on a family trips to the dells. Thats also a good one with some steep rollers. I’d go back if they lengthened it to 2 laps. IT really has some vertigo for a WIsport. 45-50 ish for the mph. Feels like Duluth. I should get out for them more next year. doubling up on weekends can help USCF riders gain valuable fitness. Your not talking 4 hour death marches, more like 1.5 hour warm ups for say- the capital crit the next day.
Posted 20 Nov 2007 at 9:05 pm ¶Im not sure why people dont do more Wisports and granted some of them can be scary (firehouse). I love the Chris kerr race which is almost like a crit with nasty rollers and the lead group averaging 27 mph. No categories so anyone can ride which makes things a little more interesting at the start. However, unlike the USCF races youre not stuck with the same riders every race. I think both the USCF and Wisport shoud be commended for doing RR’s. Like others Id do more Wisports if they increased the length.
Posted 21 Nov 2007 at 10:05 am ¶I’m sorry. What is WISPORT?
Posted 21 Nov 2007 at 10:18 am ¶My bad! http://wisport.org/
Posted 21 Nov 2007 at 10:19 am ¶does anyone remember a dust-up back in the mtb day, when there were only cross country races,… abra(or something likethat) vs. norba?
Posted 21 Nov 2007 at 10:22 am ¶Yeah, I’ve seen the site. Can you just bring me up to speed about what type of racing it really is? Is it kind of like ABR in Illinois? Is it just for beginners? I’m looking at some of the results and I’m not seeing many big regional names, which doesn’t make that much sense to me. If there are gaps in the calendars that the other respective calendar could fill, I would assume a lot of racers would try to exploit that. Yet few seem to. So what’s the deal?
Posted 21 Nov 2007 at 10:50 am ¶WISPORT is basically citizen racing. Many years ago group of WI cit promoters decided to create a loosely coupled organization to pool resources and promote “avg joe” competition. The cit races are very much like 10k runs a town has in conjunction with a local festival - one mass start, age categories, trophies/medals for winners. They seemed to flourish in the northern part of the state because there is no real metro area where racers can not get consistent USCF racing from a heavy concentration of clubs. These races don’t require officials, prize money, or an all day commitment from volunteers. This gives them more staying power over a USCF road race which may require volunteers to sit on a corner for five hours (to go with hours of driving there and back).
Back in the good ‘ol days, when an elite rider showed up, they would usually win quite easily. This created tension with the dedicated cit racers, especially when two or more showed up and used those immoral “blocking” tactics. I’m not sure the cit racers really even knew what that meant but it was a rallying point. Over the past ten years, more cat 1/2’s have been participating in these races, making the “race for the win” much more competitive. One point I think USCF riders actually really like is the distance. You don’t need to beg your girlfriend/boyfriend to spend all day on the course holding bottles for you. The fields are also large enough for a more tactical race than the typical 80-100 mile 20 person field.
With the good comes the bad though. You are racing with some people who are well above their threshold and the oxygen is not coming fast enough to the brain (although this happens in uscf races too). Some of the courses do not have the geographic barriers for thinning out the chaff, so it can get sketchy. That said, the reputation is way worse than reality. There is a way to race them safely though, you just need to place a little less trust in your fellow riders than you may normally would (think of Timmer on the track).
If you’ve got large aspirations, spending the summer doing 30 mile cit races will not get your ready for the big time. But, if you are looking at a 3-4 week window with only blackdog TT’s on the calendar, maybe you should take a trip accross the border.
Posted 21 Nov 2007 at 11:52 am ¶Post a Comment