Carl Spackler wrote:
but I just get the feeling that guys aren't willing to do hard stuff as much as in the past
Maybe sorta for some people, but I think that's self-selection. Every gravel race I've done is as as hard or 3x worse than any masters or P12 road race. Do Levi's and see what you think after climb up King's Ridge with front group--can assure you there's nothing fun about that! Same could be said for Diablo Challenge. It's "fun" for many but like the saying goes, if it's timed it's a race for pointy end.
More so I think it's also declining interest in the same scene, with same people, on same course, while new and different competitive opportunities present themselves. I read (or am potentially misremembering) that CX is the fastest growing USAC licensed discipline. That vibe is much closer to gravel than road racing, and crits are like a different sport entirely. Much lower barriers to participation, stigma and guys like Kayle.
True, but unlike say Copperopolis you can do Levi's or the Diablo Challenge and not climb at the pointy end without feeling like the one guy all alone who was dropped. I'd guess that a large number of the guys at the pointy end at Levi's or Diablo are also doing Copperopolis, Mt. Hamilton, etc. The difference is that there are of course hundreds more (minimum) at those other events.
But then again, the beauty of those events is that they can be fun for anybody. The question remains though. Where are the younger people? For instance, when I first did the district TT in Sattley in 1985 there were around 50 entrants in just the elite race. At that time I think that maybe they had 35+ and 45+, but that would have been about it. This year, 5 in P/1/2. But then again, they weren't stupid enough to put the Berkeley Hills RR on the same fucking day in 1985.
Regarding 'cross. I think it has that same advantage that Levi's, Diablo Challenge, triathlon, your local 10k, etc. have. You can do a race with varying levels of fitness and have a fun experience without worrying about being the one guy off the back chasing alone. Bike racing will always weed those people out based on the reality of how bike racing works. It will always be smaller than those other choices for that reason alone. What I don't get is why it seems that the proportion of people who ride bikes is less and less choosing road racing.
Like Kennedy said "We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things,
[7]not because they are easy, but because they are hard; because
that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because
that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and
one we intend to win" That is why _I_ race bikes. Because it's HARD. Because it's a challenge. Why does it seem that a smaller and smaller percentage feel that way? Or is my perception wrong?
I wonder if the "vibe" in cross racing and MTB racing at the elite levels is any different than road racing. At those levels it's not okay to be off the back. In other words, is it so much the event/venue (cross/mtb/triathlon/10k) as it is the level of competition that you participate at.
I don't know. Lots of rambling there. I don't have any answers, just guesses and questions.
And to get back on topic. Kayle is in fact a douche. :-)
Kevin
http://kevinmetcalfe.dreamhosters.com My Strava