The 2012 Chico Time Trial Series....................

Hi Everyone! Well, with the time change coming up this weekend(March 11th, 2012) we will also be starting up the new 2012 Chico Time Trial Series! This will be one big Series - with flat Time Trials ranging in length from 6-miles up to 33 miles.....and possibly longer distances, if the riders want it. It's just you against the clock! Right now, we have flat courses mapped out for 6-mile, 10-mile, 16-mile, 18-mile, 25-mile and 33-mile Time Trials. Points will be awarded based upon length of the Time Trial, and the Time Trial's part in the annual Omnium Bicycle Races. This Series will go from March 2012 to October 2012. Total count for the Series could be as high as 40+ events, depending upon the energy of the event promoter.......and, obviously, the riders.

For more information on Time Trial Bicycle Races, please visit the following link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individual_time_trial

New this year - we will be utilizing the new R.A.C.E. website almost exclusively for keeping track of times & points for the riders. You will now have the ability to check on your past times on the various courses, and easily find where you are in the Overall Standings. During 2012, we will also be entering in the Time Trials from the past 5 years held in and around Chico. The new website is at www.RaceChico.com - a HUGE Thank You to Chris Iufer for building the new website! Thank you, Chris!

Some upcoming Time Trials in March 2012 include the following:

Saturday, March 10th - The Field of Dreams 12.5 Mile Time Trial - 9:00AM (1st event in the 2012 Chico Time Trial Series - a 20-point event)

Thursday, March 15th - River Road 10-Mile Time Trial - 6:00pm (10-point event in the 2012 Chico Time Trial Series)

Saturday, March 17th - The Cottonwood Road 9.5-Mile Time Trial - 2:00pm - Stage #2 in the Cottonwood Omnium (20-point event in the 2012 Chico Time Trial Series)

Thursday, March 22nd - The Aguas Frias 10-Mile Time Trial - 6:00pm (10-point event in the 2012 Chico Time Trial Series)

Thursday, March 29th - River Road 10-Mile Time Trial - 6:00pm (10-point event in the 2012 Chico Time Trial Series)

Saturday, March 31st - The Oro-Chico 15-Mile Time Trial - 2:00pm - Stage #3 of the Oro-Chico Omnium (25-point event in the 2012 Chico Time Trial Series)

THE 2012 CHICO TIME TRIAL SERIES INFORMATION:

1. Like previous years, there will be more than 1 course used for the Time Trial Series, and the courses will be scattered around the Chico & Butte County area. Some of the courses we will definitely be using this year include:

River Road 10-Mile Time Trial
Aguas Frias 10-Mile Time Trial
Aguas Frias 25-Mile Time Trial
Field of Dreams 12.5 Mile Time Trial
Midway Time Trial
Cottownwood 9.5 Mile Time Trial
Oro-Chico 15-Mile Time Trial
Meridian 10-Mile Time Trial
Nelson Loop Time Trial
Troxel 6-Mile Time Trial
Lassen 16-Mile Time Trial
7-Mile Lane 25-Mile Time Trial
Wheelock Time Trial
Ord-Ferry Time Trial
and many many others.
Shoot me an e-mail if you'd like a particular local course utilized - ChicoCyclist@gmail.com .

The idea is to get a feel for the various flat Time Trial routes, roads, distances and wind conditions around the area.....and just to challenge yourself a bit. GREAT training for triathlons, bicycle races or just to get/stay in shape! Most of these Time Trials will be of the 10-mile variety on Thursday evenings at 6:00PM - however, there will be quite a few that are thrown in on weekends.....and some Thursday evening Time Trials will be of the 16, 18 and 25-mile variety. The weekend Time Trials will be of various distances. ALL of these Time Trials will be flat to fairly flat. Most of the Time Trials will be held on an out-and-back course - and all of the Time Trials will count towards the 2012 Chico Time Trial Series. Late spring and summer will see some early-morning Time Trials on various weekdays as well - of the 6-Mile and 10-Mile varieties. The final race in the Series will be completed in early October 2012 - and the Awards Ceremony for the Series will take place in mid-to-late October 2012 at an establishment to be determined. There was some talk a few years ago of doing the classic 50-mile & 100-mile Time Trial courses on a weekend. I am very open to this idea - so, just be warned. ;)

***NEW for 2012 - We will be doing "some" point-to-point flat Time Trials this year. All volunteers who help me start the riders off at the Point-to-Point Time Trials will receive an additional 3-point bonus in the 2012 Series...and my undying gratitude!!

2. ALL riders MUST sign in - you just need to sign in at the registration table at the start in order to enter the event. No racing license or entry fee required. Registration will normally open 30 minutes prior to the start. And, as usual in these Time Trials, we will be going in 1-minute intervals. Again, donations are always accepted and extremely appreciated - but all of the events are FREE. Just come on out and test yourself - and see if you can improve your times on the various courses as the year goes on - I just want you out there on your bicycles! This Series will prove to test your Time Trial ability over a variety of courses and weather conditions........but, most of all, will just be for fun!

3. Rain and wind will NOT cancel the Time Trials, unless specified by the Race Director. However, crudy air conditions(ex. - 2008's Humboldt Fire) could cancel them. In addition, I will be on vacation at some point during the summer, so we would not have a Time Trial during that particular time/week.

"Misery" Points WILL be awarded this year at the Time Trials - these are just extra points awarded for adverse conditions......which, for this series, could/would include rain, high winds, or heat.

4. Helmets are MANDATORY! So, please....please.....wear your helmet. AND - Yes, Aero Equipment is allowed! So.....wear an aero helmet! Or just a regular one. No hairnets though please. ;)

5. VERY likely that the Time Trials will also be a part of some of the Omniums taking place in 2012. The Omniums would include some of the following: The Rumpstomper, Devil's Kick, Oro-Chico, Nutcracker, Field of Dreams, Rodneyums, Cottonwood and others. An example of an Omnium would be a Thursday Night Time Trial, the Friday Night Criterium and a Saturday Road Race. An "Omnium" is just a stage race using points rather than time - and you do not have to complete one stage in order to do the next stage. You garner points for each stage depending upon how you did in the stage.......and, in the R.A.C.E. Omniums, the MOST points wins(many Omniums reverse this and have the least amount of points winning).

6. All are welcome - you don't have to do the Series - just come on out and give one or two of these events a shot! It's amazing what kind of workout you can get during a Time Trial! It's just you against the clock - No pack riding, no field or prime sprints - just you and the watch. Lots of folks have gotten their starts in bicycle racing and triathlons by doing bicycle Time Trials - and some amateur bicycle racers race ONLY Time Trials - so this is a good opportunity to just give it a shot to see what you think. Don't worry - all abilities and all kinds of bicycles are welcome out there.

7. Points are used to calculate the Overall Standings in this particular Series(makes it easier for the promoter - sorry!). The point breakdown works like this........For a 10-mile Time Trial, the points awarded go 10-8-6-4-2-1-1-1-1. So, 1st place gets 10 points, 2nd gets 8 points, 3rd place gets 6 points and so on and so forth. For a 25-mile Time Trial, the point breakdown would go 25-23-21-19-17-15-13-11-9-7-5-3-1-1-1. So, you get the idea - the point breakdown is dependent upon the TT distance.

HOWEVER, some Time Trials that are part of the various Omniums will have "bonus" points awarded to it. For ALL of the Time Trials, an additional 3 points will be given to each participant who completes each event. You MUST complete the event in order to get the points.

And, like I said above, "Misery" Points WILL be awarded this year at the Time Trials - these are just extra points awarded for adverse conditions......which, for this series, could/would include rain, high winds, or heat.

The rider with the MOST points at the end of the Series in their respective Category wins the Overall Series Title - and the 2012 Chico Time Trial Series Championship Trophy, plus whatever goodies we can give you. Points will be broken down by Category. Once you enter and finish an event, you are entered in the Series. Results - and Current Overall Standings - will be out within 24-hours of the completion of each event and posted on our website at www.RaceChico.com, Facebook, Twitter and to my blog at www.ChicoBike.com(I will usually only post the Combined Results on the blog - most of the stats will be on our new website). Photos and videos of each of the events will be posted to Flickr & YouTube. If you'd like your name added to the R.A.C.E. e-mail list, just send me an e-mail with the "ADD" in the subject line and e-mail to ChicoCyclist@gmail.com.

8. The following Categories are eligible for a 2012 Chico Time Trial Series Championship Trophy:

Category "A" - Advanced & Intermediate

Category "B" - Intermediate & Novice

Category "C" - Novice-Intermediate & Novice

Women's Category

Men's Masters 50+ Category

Juniors (ages 16 & under)

Merckxian - This Category is for those NOT using Aero equipment in the Time Trials - this includes frames, wheels, helmets, helmet coverings, shoe covers, handlebars, skinsuits, etc. The closer you are to an "Eddy Merckx" style of bicycle(from his professional RACING days), the better(yes, drillium is accepted - AYOR. ;).

***In addition - The rider who has the MOST points in the entire Series at the end will receive the "Grand Champion's" Plaque as well.

These are the Categories which all qualify for a Series Championship Trophy. If nobody - or very few folks are in one category - we will have to eliminate it and possibly add an additional category where the numbers allow it. Additional Categories could include various Age Categories, Tandem Category, Cruiser Category - and even a "Running" Category if runners are interested!

As usual, sandbaggers are strongly discouraged (A Sandbagger would be a Category "A" rider entering a Category "B" event). And, as usual, the Series Organizer reserves the right to re-classify you at any time(within reason and with plenty of notice). So, if you are just demolishing the Category "B" field, it is a sure bet that I will upgrade you to Category "A". And, remember, YOU always have the choice if you want to upgrade - just let me know!

Also, you may ONLY enter 1 Category PER event. So, tell me at the start of the event which Category you would like to race. YES - you can be a competitor in multiple Categories IN the Series.......BUT, you can only enter 1 Category PER Time Trial. (So, one week, you might want to enter the Merckxian Category......but the next week, you may decide that you want to be in Category "B" for that particular Time Trial......that is A-Okay).

9. Finally, remember - these Time Trial events are essentially for practice and exercise - we have fun out there and get a great little workout in, and we get to work on some quality cycling. But, overall, they're no big whoop....no World Championship/Olympic medals or million dollar contracts on the line. So, with that in mind, just treat 'em as such - a good training event to try some new things, gain some good fitness.....and maybe even get into a sanctioned race at some point in time. Or not. Just have fun with it. We'll have trophies and hopefully some prizes for the Series winners/placers - and definitely loads of fun....and pain and suffering. ;) But remember - it's all in good fun and fitness. You will have the ability to see how you are improving during the course of the season - most of the Time Trial courses will be used multiple times during the season. Finally, this Series is not associated with any clubs, so you don't have to be a member of any club to take part in any of these events.(Sorry - get asked that question all the time). Just come on out and take part in these FREE events, get in a GREAT workout and have a good time!

Hope to see you out there!

Rodney............
R.A.C.E. - Rodney's Amateur Cycling Events
Chico, California
www.RaceChico.com
www.ChicoBike.com
~Grassroots Bicycle Racing Events~