Cat 5?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Chris Mayhew on November 10, 2011 at 6:38am

Not for 'cross. When they instituted categories cat 4 was the bottom. Cat 5 for road only came out ~15 years ago.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Adam Holt on November 10, 2011 at 8:22am

Out west (Oregon) we've got the following cats with the (est) road equivalent

Cat A  - Pro/1/2's

Cat B - 3's

Cat C - 4/5's

Beginner - Beginner

It's not scientific, but it seems to work.  I race B's - and though I'm probably nowhere near a Cat 3 Road Racer, I've got enough offroad experience to keep from finishing DFL.  And you can cat up or down as necessary - if you want to move up, no problem.  If you bit off more than you can chew, you can cat back down.  It really is a pretty good system, albeit with a little overlap.  But still, it works!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by BeardedBIker on November 10, 2011 at 8:30am

I think, at least in my opinion, we need something similar out here (New England), i.e. something for beginners. The Cat 4 races are filled with fast guys on 'cross specific bikes and training plans... Admittedly, many people can do just as well on an MTB, but it is a bit of a hard sell to get a newbie, likely a MTB convert, to start at the BACK of the pack (staging done by points), at 8:00am (typical Cat 4 start time), to give cyclocross "a try" when there's a good chance you'll get lapped and maybe pulled in 30 minutes.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Adam Holt on November 10, 2011 at 8:40am

There's another thing I forgot.  The top 18 guys in points get to stage first.  After that it's done randomly by number.  Everyone has a 3 digit race number.  There are signs in the staging area labeled 0-9.  If you're number 209 (you keep the same number all season), you go over to the group by the "9" sign.  Once the points leaders are called up by name, then they call up groups by number, which are ordered randomly before the day begins.  The "9's" may be first, last, or somewhere in the middle, depending on what order the digits were pulled out of the hat that week. 

And the best part is the fact that Deschutes Brewery - one of the series' largest sponsors, gives out a 6 pack to everyone (of age) who's number started last that day.  So if you're a "9", and get the last callup on a particular day - and subsequently start behind 100 other dudes - at least you can look forward to a sixer! 

• ▶ Reply