PedalTrout

The BNS Road Committee has decided to adopt ability-based categories instead of age-based categories for the 2010 race season. This system is similar to the way the mtb races have been done for a few years now, apparently with great success. We're hoping that it will encourage more recreational riders to try road racing and make the races more challenging and interesting for the "veterans". Here's the final version of the new system:

Ability-based Categories for BNS Road Racing, 2010 Season

Rev 4. March 27, 2010

General notes

• Ability categories are gender-neutral
• Women have the option to race in a women’s’ category (F)
• One category per pack, and everyone in a category races for the same prize, with the following exceptions:
  1. Category F: If there are insufficient riders to form their own pack, they will ride with one of the ability packs (probably C) but will be given separate placings.
  2. Youth categories: Young riders (under 17 years old) will ride with the appropriate ability pack (probably D) and each category will be given separate placings, male and female.

• Initial category choice: At the first race of the season, racers will place themselves into the category that best suits their riding ability. The guidelines below will be available at registration to help racers with their choice.

• Changing categories

· Moving up: People can freely move up a category from where they raced in previous races. The BNS Road Committee will not administer a formal system of graduating people from one category to another, but may ask a rider to move up a category if they are repeatedly dominating a category.

· Moving down: To move down from the category chosen at previous races, racers must write a letter to the BNS Road Committee (email to the BNS Road VP and race committee) asking to move down a category. This must be done at least 48 hours prior to an event, not five minutes before because a rider doesn’t feel well that day.

· Female riders who have chosen to ride in an ability-based pack at previous races may choose to ride in the Female category without prior notice and permission from the BNS Road Committee.

“A” category

• Senior elite racers
• Average speed approx 38 km/h
• Distances up to 120 km or about 3 hours of racing. (this is just approx, would depend on the course)

“B” category

• Strong riders with racing experience but who are not “elite”
• Will likely include top male and female masters of all ages and strong 23 – 30 year-old (“senior 4”) riders
• Strong U23 riders may race in this category
• Average speed approx 34 km/h
• Distances up to 100 km or about 2.5 hours of racing

“C” category

• Experienced riders who are new to racing, preferably with experience riding in a group
• People who usually get dropped when racing in masters racing
• Average speed approx up to 32km/h
• Distances up to 80 km or about 2 hours of racing

“D” category

• People who want to try road racing but have very little experience
• Usually under 30km/h and no more than 1 to 1.5 hours of racing.

“F” category

• Women who choose not to join one of the ability categories
• If numbers are sufficient they will form their own pack; otherwise they will start with one of the ability packs (probably C) and ride that distance, but will be given a placing separate from the category C riders

Youth categories

· U-13, U-15 and U-17 riders will have their own categories, male and female

· They will likely ride with the D category pack, but will be given their own placing separate from the D riders

This was approved with revisions by the BNS Road Committee on 21 Feb 2010.

Hmmmm...what is meant by "gender-neutral"??? I notice the unusual (possibly incorrect) use of this term in BNS's description of categories in mtb racing as well. Under the mtb category descriptions that can be found on the BNS website (http://bicycle.ns.ca/members/2010_Application_MTB_Notes.pdf), BNS will keep track of the "genders" separately through the season.

I feel my "gender" is quite ambiguous. I don't feel terribly masculine nor do I feel terribly feminine thus I feel my gender is quite ambiguous. But it's good to know that BNS is going to keep track of my "gender" for me after I race in whatever category I choose to race in.

Ohhh wait a minute...Since BNS is stating that the "F" category includes "women" and "females" then I'm going to assume they are referring to "sex" and not "gender" as they are not saying that "feminine" people have the option to race in a women’s category (f) but rather "women" have this option. BNS must mean "sex" when they are saying "gender". So in fact they must mean that all categories except the "F" category can have male, female, and intersex competitors. But wait a minute...what if you consider yourself a woman but are in fact intersexed? Are you then able to race in the "F" category???

It's all so confusing!!! Damn BNS for getting me in a tizzy and actually promising to keep track of my gender if I race in a BNS sanctioned event. :)

Seriously though, I do like the ability-based category idea for sports that don't have an overwhelming number of people competing in them. However, BNS might want to clean up their instructions/descriptions a bit. Also, the mtn bike category description on the BNS site refers to Sport Nova Scotia's policy for treating men and women equally at events. BNS needs to ensure that this policy is indeed adhered to. I know of at least one event last year that gave out cash prizes to men in the "A" category but did not give any cash prizes to the women in the "F" category. There were 3 women competing in the "F" category in this instance.

Just pointing this stuff out...not trying to start anything.

Sherry

Feel free to create a policy and submit it to the BNS Board of Directors for review.

Also, feel free to make claims of unfairness on the part of organizers regarding prize distribution. This is the first I've heard of it so its a little late in the game to be talking about what happened last year...

If you think it will help maybe we could do chromosonal screening or something, Enid went on about "XXY" something or other, she lost me after 'chromosone'....

Good luck at not trying to start anything.

I think the best way to solve this issue is to do away with all categories. Except for kids under 17 we should just have one start. Will that make Sherry happy?

I was indeed trying to only point out what had been questioned of me from women considering taking out a BNS race license this year. My point is that if you're going to create a "policy", you may want to examine your wording to make sure that subsequent interpretations are clear. I was trying to be fascitious in trying to get this point across in the hopes that it would be acted upon as I know of the issues concerning "gender" and "sex" in the sports world. Just because BNS is on a lower competitive level does not mean that they should just throw together a "policy" without some sort of double and possibly triple look at the exact wording by someone who may know a little more about the particular policy issue. Don't get me wrong, Randy, I was not trying to make this an issue of pointing fingers at any one particular individual. Just trying to point out that an organization such as BNS should be a little more careful. Heck, if you were indeed the person behind writing the "Mountain Bike Category policy" then it would have been as simple as you showing what you wrote to Enid before publishing. Not saying she's smarter than you (although she is pretty smart), just saying that she may have a different perspective.

And no, I'm not looking for some chromosomal screening or something to to take place. In fact, I believe the current category set-up provided by BNS is great and actually removes the possibility of some contentious issues. For example, if BC had a similar set-up (i.e. one based on ability and "sex-neutral") during the time that Michelle Dumaresq was competing, maybe some of the nasty stuff that resulted with her situation could have been avoided. Again, I just think that the wording of BNS's "policy" should be looked at.

On the issue of when I brought these items to light, I will begin with the "Mountain Bike Category policy" posted on the BNS site. I did not even know this "policy" existed until a woman who was contemplating taking out a BNS race license this year pointed it out to me a few weeks ago. Again, I thought to bring it up right now as it would be very simple to change a bit of the wording and repost this "policy". "Policies" can be and are often edited/changed.

As for why I didn't bring up the prize situation last year, again I did not know what BNS's current policy was for 2009 as the categories changed. It wasn't until I read a few weeks back the "Mountain Bike Category policy" posted on the BNS website. Since it does note that those in the "F" category are to receive equal prize money if cash is awarded in another category, I thought to point out that this policy wasn't adhered to last year. Again, I was hoping that BNS would do something as simple as possibly sending this "policy" to race organizers so they could note the proper procedures this year.

Randy, please note that I was not trying to judge you or any individual in particular. Geez Louise, don't take things so personal. I appreciate all the work you have done and will probably do in the future for BNS (as well as mountain biking in general). In particular, I appreciate the hard work that you and the 2009 BNS mountain bike committee did in determining new categories to make for a better mountain bike racing environment in Nova Scotia. I personally think that these categories seem to work great. It was just the minor detail of wording in the "policy" as well as informing organizers of the current "policy" that I wanted to point out.

As for me creating a new policy and submitting it to BNS, I would certainly be willing to edit the current "policy". As I said above, I think the current "policy" is great, just a little editing is needed. In fact, if the current BNS VP of Mountain Biking would like to send me an editable copy of the "policy", I will definitely show what I think could be edited to make it more easily interpreted.

Finally, I would like to apologize for my first post. I was trying to be a bit fascitious in the first part of my post and thought that the smiley face at the end of it communicated this feeling. By starting the final paragraph by stating that I liked the ability-based category idea before I suggested what I thought BNS could do, I thought this opener was a good way to communicate that I was just making some suggestions and not judging any one individual in particular. Again, I apologize if anyone took that post as an attack on the work that they have done for BNS and its members.

As Tommyboy would say,
Peace.

Sherry

I'm pretty much done with BNS other than helping out with the Mountain Bike XC series so you should direct your queries to the appropriate person(s) within BNS. Posting them on here does 0, and yes, people will take them personally when posting within the context of an online forum such as this. It is no wonder that what few volunteers BNS has are usually questioning their use of time being better spent elsewhere.

As for Enid, I can't challenge her on these issues. Lets have a look at the 'ol bookshelf...Failing Boys? Issues of Gender and Achievement, Girls Will Be Girls: Raising Confident and Courageous Daughters, Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity, Reflections on Gender and Science, Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls....

I try to argue with her but I always lose! I think her masters thesis was something about women or something.

When it comes to online suggestions I think most people out there are like me, we ignore them. Check out all of the awesome online suggestions to improve the downhill scene over the years.

Suggestons are like assholes, everybody's got one.

I've got my own thoughts about the road categories. Will I post them online? No.

I actually tried to contact the BNS president earlier this week on another matter and he didn't respond. I used the BNS website contact thingy. I then tried to track down the BNS president through facebook where I did get a reply. He told me that he didn't receive the message through the BNS thingy. That incident left me wondering about the best way to get in touch with BNS BODs.

Public forums can draw attention to issues. I wouldn't say that most people ignore suggestions just because they're posted online. I actually thought that the discussions on the downhill scene that included suggestions were enlightening at times. Why can't a person make a suggestion in a public forum? What's so inappropriate about it?

I wasn't trying to be an "asshole" when I made a couple of suggestions to BNS. Looking at my "ol' bookshelf" here, I see titles such as Sport and Gender in Canada by White and Young, Masculinities, Gender Relations, and Sport by McKay, Messner, and Sabo, Sports in Society: Issues and Controversies by Coakley and Donnelly, etc. In addition to what I read, my latest accepted peer reviewed journal article that is currently in print is titled Mountain Biking is for Men: Consumption Practices and Identity Portrayed by a Niche Magazine. As well, my PhD research examines gender identity and sport. Along with what I read and do research on, I'm also the professor for Sociocultural Issues of Physical Activity and Sports, a third year kinesiology course at Dal. Basically my interests and work are what made me decide to point out some possible problems with BNS's "policy" on race categories. I wasn't intending to be an "asshole" by making a couple of simple suggestions on an open forum.

Randy, in no way was I trying to criticize you personally or embarass you. Heck, you're doing a pretty good job of embarassing yourself with the subsequent comments you have made on this open forum. "Lookin' like a fool with your pants on the ground!"

Sherry

Sorry Sherry, but honestly, posting anything on here is so far removed from the possibility of seeing something positive come out of it its about as useful as pissing into the wind. I used DH as an example because I have seen so many 'ideas' and complaints but around 1% constructive people show up and do something about it. Thats all. Sure, it attracts interest, but in the end nothing comes of it, I mean, other than the choir nodding their heads and saying 'see, BNS IS a bunch of wankers who just blah blah blah...."

Making suggestions on an open forum are great for discussion but don't do anything. I'm not kidding here.

I don't know what comments I should be embarrassed about.

Sorry, I can't help you with your attempts to contact BNS, like I said, I have about as much interest in being involved as the next guy/girl these days. But hey, Dave Wharton is back and you know how much he loves policy and procedure so you guys could probably come up with something that does a better job than what we have now. He's the registrar so you should be able to get ahold of him pretty easily.

Sorry if I went off the gun a little back there. Good luck with whatever.

port and Gender in Canada by White and Young, Masculinities, Gender Relations, and Sport by McKay, Messner, and Sabo, Sports in Society: Issues and Controversies by Coakley and Donnelly, etc. In addition to what I read, my latest accepted peer reviewed journal article that is currently in print is titled Mountain Biking is for Men: Consumption Practices and Identity Portrayed by a Niche Magazine. As well, my PhD research examines gender identity and sport. Along with what I read and do research

The reason I mentioned those books was just to give an insight into Enid's background to show how I would have a hard time fully understanding certain concepts. But thanks for the reading list.

Funny you mention Dave W. I think it was during his second round of BNS duties that he had Sue working on the gender equity policy. Maybe I should hunt him down with my concerns.

Maybe we should both always defer to Enid. She's definitely faster than us both...she's probably smarter too :)

I can still beat her on a climb.

I did not read all of the posts above because they were just too long. Skimming was enough.
Anyway, we have to have a female category because of prize equity rules at the CCA level.

The main goals of this policy change are to make the races more fun for everyone and to bring more riders out to the races. If you think we're on or off track with these goals please submit a respectful comment to one of the following volunteer BNS Road committee members:
Eric Weaver (VP Road)
George Henley (Male athlete rep)
Kaarin Tae (female athlete rep)
or to your club president who should attend the committee meetings or appoint an alternate.

I'd just like to point out that BNS is a volunteer organisation and if anyone thinks they have something positive to contribute, please join one of the committees or the board. BNS is not a tyranical dictatorship in a guarded tower somewhere, it's us.

Happy riding everyone!
kaarin

Kaarin,

Please note that I did send you a respectful comment via the forum topic you started. Listing 3 names without email addresses or phone numbers does not help much for comments to be made outside of the public forum method as the BNS website response/question thingy doesn't seem to be working (as noted above, I tried using this method already earlier this week).

Also note that you should do more than just skim comments to your original post before making the comments you made in your last paragraph. I know exactly what BNS is as I spent many years serving as a BOD member and was in fact one of those people who worked towards females receiving equal prizes to those received by males. I have complete and utter respect for all those folks who have and are volunteering their time for BNS. As noted in my previous comments, I just wanted to point out a couple of issues with BNS's category policy to make for better clarity and possible enforcement of such "policy". I in no way was criticizing the new category formats of both the road and mountain bike sectors. If you read my comments in full, you would see that I actually agree that the ability-based format is a great idea.

Sherry

I can still beat her on a climb.

Give her time...she be kicking your sorry little old butt up the hills one day soon.

I agree that the wording is probably something that can be improved on. I did the best that I could come up with at the time, such is the life of a volunteer in a volunteer run organisation.

Hey Sherry, your best bet is to conact Tamara @ Sport Nova Scotia . Hopefully she can put you in touch with whoever. Hopefully DW doesn't cancel the road and mtb series when he finds out how wrong our policy(s) are.

Hi Sherry,
I gotta admit that you're right, I should have read your comments in full before posting, but it was either read the comments or get to WR on time, and I chose to post a quick reply that was not personal to anyone's comments in particular, and then ride. I should not have posted the comments without actually reading your posts. I got as far as your preface to the constructive comments and became discouraged because it just seemed like more dragging BNS volunteers through the coals for trying to make things better. Anyway, I will read your comments in full when I am more awake and hopefully we can improve the category system.
kaarin

Good suggestion with Tamara. You never know what DW might suggest...maybe he will withhold all licenses until the policy(s) are correct

I will follow up later on this week...too much marking to do right now...Kaarin knows what that's all about.

Kaarin, getting to the WR on time is definitely the correct choice. Riding is indeed what its all about! How'd the WR go? I was wondering about the valley weather as it weren't so nice up here in northen NS.

More enforcement of policy- that's exactly what we need!

Yep, bureacracy and striking of committees is doing wonders for The Scene. I think some people won't be happy until theres only 4 or 5 people left in BNS. Be a lot more manageable, anyway. Honestly, its Bicycle Nova Scotia, maybe 150 members in a provine of 1 million, who gives a rats ass? YELLOW LINE RULE! Y-E-L-L-O-W LIINNNEEE RULLLE! Ha ha. We're lucky we're not in NB right now, but then again, they can always travel to New England or Quebec.