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Cross on the Rock DOUBLE HEADER Island Champs at Beban Park. October 15

The KONA Kup at Bowen Park. October 16

Race #4 and #5 of the Cross on the Rock Race Season-Year #6

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CROSS ON THE ROCK

Vancouver Island Cyclocross

Technical and Race Guide

Race #4 and #5: Island Championships at Beban Park in Nanaimo.

October 15, 2011 and KONA KUP at Bowen Park in Nanaimo. October 16th, 2011

Index

  1. Weekend Schedule
  2. Beban Park Race Venue
  3. Bowen Park Race Venue
  4. Accommodations
  5. Directions to Beban Park
  6. Directions to Bowen Park
  7. Event Categories
  8. Registration and License Information
  9. Event and Series Rules
  10. Entry Forms

.If you can help out at all during the weekend….PLEASE don’t wait until the day of the race and then ask, “Hey where can I help out”?....that is nice….but we need to PLAN ahead…..

For Saturday at Beban Park you can contact Peter at: Peter McCaffery [pakamac@gmail.com]

For Sunday at Bowen Park you can contact Corey at: Corey Piket [cpiket68@hotmail.com]

Even if you can’t commit but want to help out…bring a rake and help after with raking and tear down. THANKS and good racing Karma will be yours!

Heads up that Lambert is sending their Pro Mechanic to help out for both days so if you need a hand with something on race day….find the Lambert Guy….THANKS LAMBERT!

1. WEEKEND DOUBLE HEADER SCHEDULE

Event Schedule for Island Championships at Beban Park. Saturday October 15th.

Registration will open at 10:00

There will be a kids course set up and we can have races after the women’s races or around 1:00.

AGE CATEGORIES: Age is at the end of 2011.

MEN TIME Poss. LAPS WOMEN TIME Poss LAPS
Under 12 25 2 Under 12
12 TO 15 30 4 12 TO 15 25 2
16-19 45 7 16-19 30 4
20-39 50 8 20-35 40 7
40-49 45 7 35+ 40 6
50 40 6

EVENTS: Each category will have a separate start between 1 to 2 minutes apart.

Time Categories Duration
1 11:00h Men under 12 Men 12-15 Women 12-15 Women 16-19 20'/+ 1lap
2 1200h Men 50+ Women 20-35 Women 35+ 40'
3 1300h Men 16-19 Men 40-49 45'
4 1415h Men 20-29 50'

This schedule should give a bit of time between races to pre-ride. Remember at our races you can NOT pre-ride during someone other races…..or you will not be racing in your own race that day….’cause we will DQ you! Respect!

Absolutely no pre-riding during other athletes races!

SATURDAY NIGHT SOCIAL AT OAK BAY BIKES

The plan is to have the doors open at 8PM we will have beer, wine, snacks and a DJ. We're really hoping people will come out for a drink and check out the new shop.

Sean and Corey

Schedule for KONA KUP at Bowen Park, Sunday, October 16th

10:00am-1:55pm Registration Open. Up to 20 minutes before your start.

10:15 (must be registered) Beginner pre-ride with Normon Thibault

11:00-11:35 Beginner Race (race approx 30min for 1st person)

12:00-12:45 Intermediate Race (approx 40min for 1st person)

1:00-1:50 Master’s and Women’s Race (approx 45min for 1st person)

2:15-3:15 Expert Race (60 min for 1st person)…

Awards soon after.

Pre-Riding: Course open for pre-riding before the first race.

You can also pre-ride RIGHT after previous races as long as you DO NOT PASS any rider still racing OR cross the finish line.

Absolutely no pre-riding during other athletes races!

There is NO pre registration at these events. There is also NO BANK machine, visa, MC, Amex or diners card. Bring old fashion cash and everyone will be happy!

NOTE: THE “GRACE PERIOD” IS OVER… Bring your license or pack some extra Cash (only $10 extra). NO EXCEPTIONS! Put it in your wallet NOW

2. Beban Park Race Venue

Cross on the Rock Race #4 :: Island Championships: BEBAN PARK:: October 15, 2011

Venue ::Beban park is one of the largest parks in Nanaimo and located pretty much in the center of town. It was the site of our first cross race in 2004, our first BC Cup race in 2005 and the National Championships in 2006. Beban park has many facilities including a pool and skating rink. The park has several areas that are good for warming up: off course. Registration will be in the RED BARN. Same location as last year. There is lots of parking for our race and it will not be an issue. Please park in the general parking by the Ice Rink or by the golf course or tennis courts. If you are parking at the golf course PLEASE do not park right in front of the golf course so that people using it can park close to it.

Beban park is under 15mins to the B.C. Ferries Departure Bay terminal and under 20 minutes to Nanaimo Airport and the Duke Point Ferry terminal.

Club and Sponsor Tents

We will have an area for sponsors to have their tents set up on the opening straight away. We will also have an area for clubs and/or individuals to set up tents for warming up or working on bikes in the second part of the opening straight away.

Course Description:

We have come up with a challenging course that will test all of your cyclocross skills. Course measurements indicate that it is around 3k in distance but final distance will depend on how exactly it is marked for the race. We have changed the course slightly from last year to make it flow a bit better and a bit shorter…..we will see how it goes. The course has the following features: the BMX track, 1 set of stairs, and one set of barriers. We look forward to racing on it again and having you guys race on it.

We will try to have the course pre-marked the day before the race and on race day we will have the course REALLY well marked. The race starts on pavement. We will have a proper starting grid and call riders at random as it is separate from the rest of the series.

Course description from the start:

The start on pavement will only be used for the start loop and is a big horseshoe with half being pavement and half a dirt road. From the start loop you turn right and you enter the “Big Field” and into a slight right hand turn. This heads into a left hand sweeper and then another right turn. From there you travel to the far corner of the field and down a slight hill. After negotiating a left turn around an off camber section you head slightly up hill ad back across the field. A right turn puts you at the first entrance to the double sided pits. You travel slightly down and around a large pile of dirt and up to a gravel walkway that heads down to the BMX track section. Hopefully by this point the starting selection and field have started to thin out a bit. Down the gravel path you head into a wooded section. This will be tight! A few quick turns in the woods and you are faced with a short sand section and a right turn in the parking lot of the BMX track. A short stint in the grass and you are heading across the parking lot towards the start ramp of the track. Remember a 60+ year old lady made it around this track no problem during our 2004 event BUT it did claim two middle aged men racers so BE careful and PRACTICE this section. We will complete the first “U” of the track (complete with jumps (you can choose to get air or not!) and a short bit of the 3rd straight (whoop de doos) before heading out of the BMX track. Around the back side of the track (we have taken out the small log hop over from 2004) and then you have a recovery flat gravel path section. Across the parking lot and into a short grass section with a few turns. Around (counter clockwise) the concession stand and back up the driveway. Next you will cut across an off camber grass section and negotiate a tricky downhill in front of the bleachers. From there you hook up to a flat grass section and then into our stair run up. At the top of this hill is the 2nd side to the pits. From here you proceed up to the entrance to the VIX area and wind past some of the barns. You enter the sand riding ring and when you exit there are a few more turns before you blast down the pavement to complete your lap or your race.

3. Bowen Park Race Venue

Cross on the Rock Race #5 (Series Race #4) :: KONA KUP: BOWEN PARK:: October 16, 2011

Venue :: Bowen Park is one of the largest parks in Nanaimo. Located less than 2 k from down town. Easy to get to from south, north, east and west…..hilly….grassy……..hmmmm…not sure what else to put in here…..food close by….??

We will not have a building but there will be quite a few tents that you can put stuff under if it is raining. Dress for the weather.

Course Description:

Corey Piket from Oak Bay Bikes in Nanaimo has come up with a challenging course that will test all of your cyclocross skills. Course measurements indicate that it is around 2.5k in distance but final distance will depend on how exactly it is marked for the race. The course has the following features: Long road section. Switchback Climbs. Dirt path decent. 2 sand sections (1 short and 1 longer), 1 set of stairs, LOTS of GRASS. Barriers….well we are not 100% sure on the barriers yet….we will lay things out and see if we can find a good spot for them or not. We look forward to racing on it for the first time and having you guys race on it.

The race starts on pavement. We will call the first 25 (3 rows) of riders from series standing and then random.

4. Accommodations

The Howard Johnson Harbourside Hotel is proud to be the host hotel.

The Howard Johnson Harbourside Hotel is conveniently located in downtown Nanaimo and is just minutes away from both Bowen and Beban Parks. COTR has arranged a $69.00 cyclocross rate for both events.

Please mention that you are with the cyclocross race when making you reservations.

The phone number for the hotel is 1-800-663-7322

Our email address is hojonanaimo@shaw.ca and our web address is

www.hojonanaimo.com

In regards to having your bikes in your hotel room, we would ask that common sense be used. Please do not scratch the furniture or walls and please make use of the rags and bike wash station that will be set up for you just outside the lobby entrance. No dirty bikes are permitted in the hotel at any time.

5. Directions to Beban Park

For maps and more detail, please use www.mapquest.com

Directions to Beban Park

From the Mainland:Please check www.bcferries.com for up to date sailing times. You might want to consider making a reservation.

From the Departure Bay ferry terminalyou can ride or drive to the race venue in under 15 minutes from the Departure Bay terminal.

  1. Leave Terminal and take the first right up Brechin Road Hill
  2. Travel up to the second set of lights at the Island Highway. (If you are riding travel across the Island Hwy via the crosswalk and pop onto the E&N Trail and turn right. If you are driving turn right onto the Hwy.)
  3. BY BIKE: Turn left at Dorman Road where the Fire hall is. Turn right at Labieux Road and cut through the park until you locate staging in the middle of the park.
  4. By CAR: Turn left on Bowen Road and turn left at the entrance to Beban Park after the first set of lights. Park after the soccer field and across from the pool parking.

From the Duke Point ferry terminal.

  1. Follow the Duke Point Hwy to the junction (north) with the Island Hwy.
  2. Take the Comox-Cambell River exit onto the Nanaimo Parkway.
  3. Follow this to the Northfield Road Exit and turn right off the Hwy.
  4. Take the next Left onto Bowen Road.
  5. Turn into Beban Park and look for parking on your right after the tennis courts.

 

From Duncan/Victoria or the Nanaimo Airport

  1. Follow the Island Hwy North to Nanaimo
  2. Take the Comox-Cambell River exit onto the Nanaimo Parkway.
  3. Follow this to the Northfield Road Exit and turn right off the Hwy.
  4. Take the next Left onto Bowen Road.
  5. Turn into Beban Park and look for parking on your right after the tennis courts.

From Parksville/Courtenay or Comox Airport

  1. Follow the Island Hwy South & stay on the Hwy - turns into Nanaimo Parkway.
  2. At the Northfield Road exit turn left.
  3. Take the next Left onto Bowen Road.
  4. Turn into Beban Park and look for parking on your right after the tennis courts.

6. Directions to Bowen Park

For maps and more detail, please use www.mapquest.com

The park is SUPER-EASY to access by riding from the departure bay ferry terminal. You could easily do it with your main bike and your spare wheels tied to your nap sack. You could also do it if you are skilled with a 2nd bike pushing it with your hand on the stem. There is one short uphill and downhill from the ferry…..if you are not comfortable pushing your bike you can easily walk these…..otherwise it is completely flat.

Directions to Bowen Park

From the Mainland:Please check www.bcferries.com for up to date sailing times. You might want to consider making a reservation.

From the Departure Bay ferry terminalyou can ride or drive to the race venue in under 10 minutes from the Departure Bay terminal.

  1. Leave Terminal and go straight down Stewart Avenue
  2. Travel up to set of lights at the Island Highway. TURN LEFT.
  3. Turn right at the next set of light. Comox Street.
  4. Turn right on Wall street.
  5. Turn left into the parking lot at the bottom of the Wall street hill.

From the Duke Point ferry terminal.

  1. Follow the Duke Point Hwy to the junction (north) with the Island Hwy.
  2. DO NOT Take the Comox-Cambell River exit.
  3. Instead travel straight into the heart of Nanaimo and right on through on the old Hwy.
  4. Turn left on COMOX street.
  5. Turn right on Wall street.
  6. Turn left into the parking lot at the bottom of the Wall street hill.

From Duncan/Victoria or the Nanaimo Airport

  1. Follow the Island Hwy North to Nanaimo
  2. DO NOT Take the Comox-Cambell River exit.
  3. Instead travel straight into the heart of Nanaimo and right on through on the old Hwy.
  4. Turn left on COMOX street.
  5. Turn right on Wall street.
  6. Turn left into the parking lot at the bottom of the Wall street hill.

From Parksville/Courtenay or Comox Airport

  1. Follow the Island Hwy South & stay on the Hwy - turns into Nanaimo Parkway.
  2. At the Northfield Road exit turn left.
  3. Take the next RIGHT onto Bowen Road.
  4. Follow Bowen road through all the traffic lights until you hit Wall Street.
  5. Left on Wall street.
  6. Left at the parking lot at the bottom of Wall street hill.

7. Event Categories

ISLAND CHAMPS: See categories in the Schedule above or the entry form below.

Aside from the Island Championships, which is an age-based category system, our series is basically ability-based with a division by age. Fastest racers in Expert and Open Women’s. All others divided into either beginner or above 40 years of age or below 40 years of age. For a more in depth description read below.

Starting racing in one category does NOT mean you have to race that category for the rest of the season. You can try out other ones. We have had people race beginners for the first time and then a masters race later in the day and then continued racing in masters. Same with Intermediate to Expert. We want you in the category that best suits your ability and competitive level.

BEGINNERS:This is someone that is new to bike racing. New to cross racing. Young. Old… Does not really fit into any of the other categories…..putting their toe into the water….trying it out. As with all of our categories if you are TOO fast we will give you a gentle nudge.

KIDS: Some of our events will have kids races for KIDS….meaning under 12. Run bikes. Half Lappers etc. IF your kids are up to it they can race the beginner category… if they get too fast for that they can move up to Intermediate. Kids over 12 can race Beginner or Intermediate but the kids races will probably be too easy/short for them. If you are unclear on what category to race…let me know. Speaking of kids racing and kids cross you might want to check out this bike from KONA. A 24 inch Jake. This bike has not been offered every year so if your kids needs a new bike OR this bike might fit them in the future…you might want to buy it now! http://konaworld.com/kids.cfm?content=jake_2-4

INTERMEDIATE AND EXPERT WOMEN: OK we have tried to do this for a number of years and it is NOW or Never….(or later and not Never). We REALLY want to do an intermediate women’s category this year. WE NEED WOMEN TO COME OUT AND RACE. In order to do these two categories we need to have at least 10 girls in each category…..if we don’t see that at the first race we will merge the women’s categories into an OPEN Women’s category for race #2 and beyond. Get your girls out! Intermediate women will race with the intermediate men. Separate start behind the men. Open women will race with the Masters Men….before the Masters men. Separate start. We need 10 girls in each category…….we hope we can do it!

MENS MASTERS: OK Boys…..this is one of the MAJOR Changes for 2011. We have chatted about this for a while. We are not at the point where we can have a 50+ masters category BUT we are going to do two things this year. First, COTR Master races for this year will be 40 plus (age as of the end of 2011). IF you are over 40 and not quite fast enough to race Expert this is your category. We will also recognize the first Masters that is 50+ in the results as well as hopefully series overall. Masters will all race together as usual with one start and points will be given out as one category with the Masters that are 50+ having a highlight in the age column. If you were one of the few people that were 35-39 last year racing Masters and aren’t 40 this year….you will have to make a move to intermediate or to Open men.

SINGLE SPEEDERS: In a perfect world we would be as big as Portland and Seattle and be able to have categories for everyone……not perfect yet. While Vancouver Island is the Belgium of Canada we are still small in numbers at our series. BUT we would like to recognize the nutcases that do cross on Single Speeds. We will give it a try this year and see how it works out. For 2011 if you want to race against the single speeders of Vancouver Island in cross you need

to race Intermediate category. We will have an indication on the results (and you need to tick the box on the registration…..clear head….clear head) that you are a single speeder. IF you beat all your other single speeders on the day. We will give you a 6 pack of Phillips beer….don’t drink and drive.

INTERMEDIATEMENS: You have graduated up from Beginners. You are not old enough to race Masters. Getting Faster but not quite fast enough to race Expert….this is your category. Keep in mind that this is a fun and competitive category BUT if we find out you are TOO fast or you are SANDBAGGING….well we will “politely” ask you to move up to Expert. If you were racing Intermediate last year but are over 40 years old this year…..best to move to Masters.

EXPERT: If you have raced Pro, Expert, Cat1, Cat2 or have finished in the top half of a Cat3 field…..Any age you should probably be racing Expert. Any Gender. Any Speed…….Races are a bit longer and a bit faster. If you have won a few Intermediate men’s races or are coming out to race our series after winning a world championships or something like that in another cycling discipline…this is probably your category. IF you find you are really too slow you can move down….if you are too fast in another category you can move up.

8. Registration and License Information

THERE IS ONE THING THAT YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER and that is YOUR CYCLING BC LICENSE! PUT IT WITH YOUR BIKE. PUT IT IN YOUR WALLET. PUT IT IN YOUR CAR….WHERE EVER YOU WILL NOT FORGET IT. IF you forget your license….NOTHING can save you……so don’t ever argue with our registration person. IF YOU FORGET YOUR LICENSE you WILL be paying an extra $10 to race. I don’t care if I have known you for 15 years…..it does not matter….to race you have to have your license OR you have to have $10. NO EXCEPTIONS. NONE! Ok I think the point has been made.

  • Please try to bring exact change
  • Entry fee is $20 for All categories
  • EXEPT $10 for beginners
  • FREE for Kids for the KIDS
  • RACE PLEASE BRING YOUR CYCLING B.C. LICENSE OR ELSE YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY $10 MORE (FOR RACE DAY INSURANCE).
  • There will be no pre-registration for this or any of our events.
  • All registration will be done on-site up to 30 minutes before each event.
  • For Beginners the race entry fee is $10 with or without a cycling BC License. No license needed to race in Beginner category but if you have one please bring it.
  • Sorry a Masters Cycling BC, Triathlon BC or other cycling association license does not cover you for this or any of our series events for this year.
  • Learn to race cyclocross clinic is Free for all registered racers in any category.  NOTE: You must be registered before you do the clinic

9. Event and Series Rules

  • Our number 1 priority as a series is to have fun, competitive races. We don’t like “attitude” at our events….we just want everyone to have some hard racing….but basically be able to share a parking lot pop afterwards with someone you just out sprinted for 10th place.
  • In our opinion in order to have fun races everyone has to be on a level playing field….that means some rules.
  • One rule that we have explained before but we should probably include in all the race bibles is with regard to pits and outside assistance. As it stands the rule is this. If you have a mechanical or problem on the course…such as a flat you proceed the direction of the course to the pits to receive help….change of wheel etc. You can not cut the course to the pits as that would not be completing the distance. Nor can you go backwards on the course to the pits if you have passed the entrance. If you cut the course or receive outside assistance outside the pit than we will rank you with a NOR which means Not Officially Ranked.
  • You are fee to continue in the race but you will not be in contention for prizes or points at that race. We also expect that if you cut the course etc. or receive outside assistance and we don’t see you then you would let the timers know after the race to rank you NOR. Fair is fun….fun is better.
  • Good sportsmanship and fair play are our number one rule!
  • These races are designed to be fun “club” level events. This is not to say that they will not be challenging or competitive BUT we are not as serious as some other events out there.
  • Riders must posses a current Cycling BC license or pay for a one day Cycling BC license ($10 at our events). Beginners exempt.
  • All events are open to any type of bike; road, mountain or cross. A cross bike should be your first choice followed by a mountain bike….road bikes will not enjoy our courses…  UCI cyclocross bike rules do not apply in our events. Run any tire width you like, flat bars are fine….if you have any questions please let us know.
  • Call up at the first series event at Cumberland is RANDOM to give everyone an equal chance of getting the front line and also making it so you don’t have to go to the line so early. From event #2 onwards call up for up to the top 25 will be based on series points for those ranked and then random for all remaining racers.
  • All riders will finish on lap following the leader finishing the race.
  • Other than these specific rules regular cross rules and common sense will dictate everything else.
  • The race organizer and or official have the final say in everything!
  • At Cross on the Rock events racers are not pulled if they are lapped by the leaders of their event.
  • All racers finish on the lead racer’s lap so you are never more than one lap down nor do you race much longer than the leader of your race. IF you do not finish on the lead racer’s lap then you will receive a DNF.

Points are distributed as follows:

  • 2 Points will be given out to any finisher 25th and beyond.
  • The rider must finish the entire race and cannot be a D.N.F.
  • The last race is double points and thus will be double the above point break down.
  • Series Awards are given for the top 3 in the following categories: Expert Men and Women, Intermediate Men and Women and Masters.
  • AS a BONUS this year we will also be giving out a series prize to:

Top Single Speeder in Intermediate

Top 50+ Masters racer in the Masters Category

  • Series prizes will be presented at the last event at ….you must be there to claim them as we do not do mail outs.

Bonus:

PAST WINNERS of the BEBAN RACE

2007 2008 2009

Beginner Women Sue Handel Amanda Wakeling Rita Wania

Beginner Men Paul Thompson Tim Watson Michael Brinton

Intermediate Men Matt Dawes Matt Dawes Steve Doreen

Masters Men Steve Bachop Steve Bachop Bob Welbourn

Open Women Bobby Taylor Lisa Ludwig Kristen Magnusson

Expert Mat Hewitt Russell Anderson Craig Ritchey

PAST WINNERS of the BOWEN RACE

2009 2010

Beginner Women Charlene Hay Julie Lance

Beginner Men Mark Allison Dustin Heise

Intermediate Men Dylan Tremblay Jeff Drew

Masters Men Graham Cocksedge Justin Mark

Open Women Kristen Magnusson Dawn Anderson

Expert John Fokkema Craig Ritchey

Special Thanks to for Beban and Bowen Parks:

Nanaimo Parks and Recreation

The Nanaimo BMX Association

The Vancouver Island Exhibition Association

Nanaimo and District Equestrian Society

Our Local Bike Shop Supporter: Oak Bay Bikes Nanaimo.

Our Host; Nanaimo Parks and Recreation.

Any Questions?

Feel free to contact me at this e-mail address.

Normon Thibault at normont@islandnet.com

www.island-multi-sports.com

Cross on the Rock is brought to you by our awesome sponsors:

Sanctioned by:

Cycling BC

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