Thread: My first Omnium
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Old 03-01-10, 05:51 PM
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bitingduck
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I think it's largely the result of Roger being there full time (way back when it opened he must have been working 18 hour days) and having a lot of good ideas for getting more people on the track and keeping things consistent. Most of the afternoon and evening things on the schedule have been there almost since the track opened, but the turnout has steadily increased. 4 years ago a busy tuesday or thursday night session was 35-40 people. Now we're getting close to 100 sometimes (and as long as everyone is following the workout it's pretty safe and runs well).

The clubs program seems to have been a huge hit, and I think was responsible for a lot of the increase last year and this year. Clubs can rent the track (at certain times), including bikes and instruction, for 2 hours for a pretty reasonable fee. The instruction gets all the riders who are there certified to ride the track (as long as they ride ok), and then members can show up for any regular sessions. It's quite a good deal for the clubs because it's a good team thing, plus it's really fun riding. It's good for the track because it introduces a lot of people to it who might not otherwise think it's available to them. Tuesday and thursday nights are great because it's a predictably good interval workout plus motorpacing, and it doesn't matter what level you ride at. The way it's organized lets everyone from total beginners up to elite riders get a good workout all at the same time.

(and there sort of is a facility like that on the east coast: T-town, but it does suffer from winter. They're way ahead of us when it comes to getting people to come out and watch racing).
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Last edited by bitingduck; 03-01-10 at 05:55 PM.
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