"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Annoying Trend?

Anyone else seeing this at your races?

The Chief Ref at a recent series of races started each race with 30 seconds of silence, and then the verbal command of "On your marks, Go!" (Marks? What the...?)

He said he saw this at a World Cup Mountain Bike Race and liked it, so he's doing it at road events.

To me, as an announcer, it's the most boring way to start an event. It removes all excitement from an event, and it serves no purpose in road cycling.
In MTB races? Sure, it prevents someone from rolling out early and getting the hole shot.
In road events, it should be "Riders Ready, GO!"

or ridersready.net Just....you know....

I'd prefer (esp for a crit)
"Damned fools - Start your engines, GO!"

They still say riders ready here in Minnesota. "On your marks" does sound kinda.... weird?

I'd prefer (esp for a crit)
"Damned fools - Start your engines, GO!"

Or for cat 4 and 5 crits:
"For those about to die, we salute you! GO!"

There's one promoter in these parts who always tells the Cat5's "Remember, you're Cat5's. That means you suck."

They still say riders ready here in Minnesota. "On your marks" does sound kinda.... weird?

They do, but it strikes me as a safety move and in that context a good idea.

Ready folks? (yes)

Start signal (can we go back to a revolver?)

Id prefer, "measure guads, get on bike, win"

There's one in many of the TN races that just says, "OK GO!" almost some times seemingly in the middle of the conversation - that's annoying!

Mostly they just say on the whistle and blow a whistle.

There's one promoter in these parts who always tells the Cat5's "Remember, you're Cat5's. That means you suck."

Chris has some damn funny pre-race speeches for the 5's.

MTB races were very dangerous the first few hundred meters for me. Maybe "it" was used to settle everyone down before the release of the lemmings. Adrenaline is through the roof just before a start.........I agree, just say GO!!

I dunno, I think a LeMans start would make crits very interesting... especially with road shoes on!!!

the cheif official at my first race said "try not to run into eachother, now get the hell out of here I'm sick of you all." and stepped out of the way.

Chris has some damn funny pre-race speeches for the 5's.

Yeah he does. When I first started, I didn't like the guy, but now I think he's great. I hope he can keep it going.

I just can't picture Clair grumbling "on your marks". What has the damn world come to!

You know what's getting a little old is announcers saying "keep the skinny side down and the helmet side up" as you head into the first turn.

I think EventServices is in a crabby mood lately. Must not be riding enough.

Or too much. (blasphemous, I know.)

Here, they line up 6 people with starters pistols. There's often firecrackers or balloons. Someone is cackling a countdown into a LOUD, distorted PA, everyone there is counting or banging and generally raising a rucous and BANG! we're off.

That's how every race should start.

Great stuff.

Whenever you count down a start, racers are gone by the time you say "Go!", like "3, 2, 1... oh, they're already gone".

At Tour of PA and at Harlem (different promoters, I think some shared staff/officials, not the same announcers), they'd shoot the start gun in the middle of some nondescript sentence. Like "Okay, we're ready for our start! The racers will be doing someteen miles today around *BANG!* the something park.... and they're off!"

Guys were literally unclipped etc at the first stage of Tour of PA. But no one jumped the gun.

cdr

Of course, IMO - if it's a race where being clipped in and moving up w/in the first 100 meters is important, the race is too short :P

dang, we have boring starts.

"this is the cat X race, 25 miles, we have some primes we'll announce and ring the bell... riders ready... (whistle or "go")"

We have one ref who uses a blank pistol. I thin everyone else just blows a whistle.

ES: You announcing any of J's races this weekend? Troy Classic and Tour D' Burg?

It should always be "riders ready" or else my blogsite won't make sense! (see below)

No, I'm going to France. Please make sure J knows that!!! ha ha ha

One race, we as a group (this is Intro Men's collegiate) did a pre-lap. We went a little faster than expected, and as we all flew down the descent, the race unofficially started there.

"Keep going!!!! Your racing!!!!"

dang, we have boring starts.

"this is the cat X race, 25 miles, we have some primes we'll announce and ring the bell... riders ready... (whistle or "go")"


This last week 3 races (Superweek) all similar:

"this is the cat 4/5 race(?looks at us for confirmation), 25 laps(?checks lap counter), free lap until 7 left, pit is around the corner. Lights on the pace car - yellow means caution, red means race has stopped. You might hear a double shot too...we're not sure. we might have some primes(?looks at announcer who gives blank stare)...no?(blank stare continues)....OK, No, you don't get anything. Oh, don't forget guys,this is supposed to be fun.


ridersreadygo"