We had a similar decision made for two of our area's stage races. The director said it was to cut travel costs, but looking at the rosters I would say less than 5% of the field comes form out of state with the majority travelling in the 1-4 hour range. It doesn't help that both courses are kind of sketchy to start out with and riding in the IAB's over bumps/corners/train tracks is going to be sketchy.