Wednesday, July 15, 2009

The 2009 Chico Hill Climb Time Trial Series!

Hi Everyone!! Hey, just wanted to give you a head's up that the 2009 Chico Hill Climb Time Trial Series is coming up soon - the 1st race in the Series is the Cohasset Uphill Time Trial held on Sunday, September 6th, 2009 (okay, so maybe it's not THAT soon, but it'll be here before ya know it!!):

Hi Everyone! So, we are doing a Fall/Winter Hill Climb Time Trial Series this year in Chico, with the climbs and dates below. There was a similar Series done years ago here in Chico - 1981 or 1982 - by Tom Devol and Jeff Smith, who owned Cyclesport bike shop at the time. And, of course, now there is that almost-famous Low Key Hillclimb Series in the Bay Area every fall. In any case, we decided to have our own and revive the old Chico Series.......with a couple of route changes. Below is a list of the tentative events with dates. It should be mentioned that these dates could change depending upon Galland Cross, the Cutty Series and other event dates this fall/winter. And, of course......the weather! Rain will not cancel - but snow and ice will.

2009 Chico Hill Climb Time Trial Series:

How does it work???

Below are each of the 10 Hillclimbs in the Series. Each climb has been given a rank based upon feedback from some well-known riders in the area (and climbers in particular - yes, I know - everyone is different, but this is just a low-key have-fun series, so no big whoop). Hors Category & Category 1 climbs are the hardest, with Category 3 being.......let's not say easiest.......let's say........not quite as hard as Category 1! Points will be awarded to the top finishers in each Hill Climb Time Trial - the folks with the most points at the end of the Series, wins the overall title. The Point Breakdown is as follows:

Hors Category Climb = 40-36-34-32-30-28-26-24-22-20-18-16-14-12-10-8-6-4-2-1-1-1-1
Cat. 1 Climb = 30-26-24-22-20-18-16-14-12-10-8-6-4-2-1-1-1 (In other words, 1st place in a Cat. 1 TT gets 30 points, 2nd place gets 26 and on down the line - every person who competes in the event gets at least 1 point).
Cat. 2 Climb = 24-20-18-16-14-12-10-8-6-4-2-1-1-1(The winner of a Cat. 2 climb gets 24 points, 2nd place gets 20 points and on and on.)
Cat. 3 Climb = 20-16-14-12-10-8-6-4-2-1-1-1

Also, EVERY competitor who starts and finishes an event receives an additonal 3 points PER event.

And here are the Time Trial courses, the tentative dates, and their listed difficulty category:

Cohasset to the Store (from Nicalog) - Sept. 6th - Cat. 2
Forest Ranch - Sept. 27th - Cat. 1
Honey Run Rd. (from Covered Bridge) - Oct. 10th - Cat. 1
Pentz Road (from Spring Valley School) - Oct. 17th - Cat. 2
Cohasset to Gravel (from Nicalog to the end of Cohasset Road) - Oct. 24th - Hors Category
Centerville (from Covered Bridge to the gravel) - Nov. 7th - Cat. 3
Neal Road - Nov. 15th - Cat. 3
Table Mountain (Wildflower Side) - Nov. 21st - Cat. 1
Clark Road (from intersection with Durham Pentz) - Dec. 12th - Cat. 2
Humboldt Road - Dec. 27th - Cat. 3

10 Climbs, approximately 18,000 feet of climbing in total, held over a 4-month period from September through December. Consistency will be key in winning the Overall Series.

Participant Categories - the following categories will be offered for the Series event(see below) The winner in each category will receive the 2009 Chico Hillclimb Champion Trophy, along with Bragging Rights.........as well as any stuff we can get to give away as prizes:

Category "A" Men
Category "B" Men
Women's Category
Clydesdale Men (No no, I'm not gonna weigh you - just show up and tell me and I will give you a yes or no answer.....however, I'm looking for about 200 pound body weight or more)
Mens 50+ Category
Mens 60+ Category
Womens 40+ Category
Womens 50+ Category

As usual, sandbaggers are strongly discouraged (A Sandbagger would be a Category "A" rider entering a Category "B" event). Also, if there's a lot of folks in one particular category, we may split those up into sub-categories, if needed. In turn, if nobody - or very few folks are in one category, we may eliminate it and add an additional category where the numbers allow it.

This Series is FREE - so come on out and take advantage of some, or all, of these Time Trials in the Fall/Winter of 2009! Hope to see you out there - and I will have more details, maps and information as we get closer to the events.

Rodney............
Team Chico & R.A.C.E. - Rodney's Amateur Cycling Events
Chico, CA
www.ChicoBike.com