BC Masters Cycling Association

The Obree Way; Part I

Admin2 — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 17:16:25 +0000

We have 4 items in our possession:

A book; The Flying Scotsman. An autobiography. Eye-opening to any bike rider.

A DVD : The Flying Scotsman. A film based on the autobiography.

A watch: The Hour. Limited edition time piece and wrist watch. Unique design.

A book; The Obree Way. A training manual. Unique approach.

Graeme Obree

The limited edition watch is Number 44 of 100; designed by MJW/Jones of London, UK, with assistance from Graeme Obree. It comes with a card signed by both Graeme Obree and Crispin Jones.

The final book is also signed by Obree, it was the first book shipped to Canada the very first day it was released from the UK publisher.

With such close connections to Graeme Obree, it is not possible to be objective when reviewing his training manual; The Obree Way.

To overcome this lack of objectivity and to get a literary perspective on the book, our Editor-in-Chief will provide some balance, and his perspective concerns the literary qualities.

It is a book, after all, meant to be read.

From our Editor-in-Chief:

Dear Graeme;

Why didn’t you contact me before publishing your book?

I could have pared down your verbosity, crystallized your scattered brain and made sense of your rambling thoughts.

Turned your stream-of-consciousness talk at the kitchen table into mainstream parlance.

(We could still have done the editing at your kitchen table).

Your awkward stick drawings could have been polished into professional illustrations.

I would have found ways to neatly create paragraphs for ease of reading.

I could have re-sized the book to less than half of your current manual.

And at least made an attempt at finding scientific basis for your assertions.

I know; you are not aiming for literary status.

No more than Graham Greene aimed for the World Hour Record.

Polished is just not you. Making it mainstream and clear are not your traits.

And if I edited your manual, people would just say it was an easy read.

It should be as difficult as your advice. Quirky and original. And forget about science.

Thanks editor . Good to get your jaundiced eye out of the way.

Part II of this review will appear later and deal with Obree’s training advice.

Are his methods useful to us masters?

Stay tuned.

Safari and Mac users

Admin2 — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 18:10:15 +0000

We are reporting a hunting accident. Sort of.

Due to coding incompatibility with some Safari web browser versions, such users are advised to submit Classifieds entries, as well as Organizer race submissions, using either Internet Explorer or Firefox.

Alternately, you may submit all info to : admin@bcmasterscycling.net

We are gamely pursuing solutions, and will let you know if we can target the problem and get a clear focus of the offender.

If successful, we will report back with a BULLS EYE update.

Birthday Announcement

Admin2 — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 04:57:47 +0000

Calling on all Masters cyclists and BCMCA supporters to acknowledge this birthday:

Tony Hoar is 80 years young February 15.

Best wishes are pouring in from all over the world.

Here are a couple of the most recent tributes:
Tony Hoar – Cyclist Extraordinaire, man of many talents and interests.
You introduced Master’s Racing where there was no upper age limit.
Thanks to your vision, many novices embrace the thrill of racing and
seasoned racers are able to continue. Your stamp made for a great sense
of occasion. One might not expect an international racer would expend so
much energy at the grassroots.

Thanks for bringing Master’s Cycling into being. It has changed our
lives. Happy Birthday to a man of tremendous wit and charm.

Love,

Marianne McGrath and Jim Holtz

Cor blimey, Tony. 80! Really??

And this one just in:

Dear Tony,

Happy 80^th Birthday on February 15^th .

I sympathize with you today. I know how it feels becoming an octogenarian.

Here at Buckingham Palace we are preparing for London 2012.

Should be exciting.

Wish you could join us for a Bitter-shandy on the balcony.

Watch the Start and Finish of the Road Race.

And wave to the crowd when Cavendish wins.

Luv and Regards,

Elizabeth

Anyone, royalty or not, is welcome to pay tribute to Tony by leaving a comment below.

Peddling your Old Gear and Ware

Admin2 — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 06:11:49 +0000

The Classified Ads section has been created for old and new BCMCA members who wish to peddle their old equipment. Their own cycling gear, that is.

For 2012, this service is open to all current as well as previous BCMCA members; even those who were members years ago. We honour all riders who once boasted BCMCA affiliation.
Or who thought, and could swear, they were members.

You may post both FOR SALE and WANTED ads for free, but you all need to Register and Log in in order to use this service. We need to establish a credible exchange of money laundering and goods.

For riders who have never been BCMCA members, and who have no wish to become one of a very select species; you are free to post WANTED ads only.
You are also required to Register and Log in.

If you are so young and foolish that you simply don’t qualify for membership yet, you can warm up by begging for good deals from those old enough to have too much cycling equipment.

The overall use and availability of Classifieds will be reviewed at the end of the year, it remains to be seen if this open access is of benefit to all.

Letters From Our Esteemed Foreign Correspondents

Admin2 — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:58:41 +0000

Letters from our Foreign Correspondents will arrive twice monthly starting early next month.
Our new website needed a regular and solid feature for the Master cyclists and avid readers. This is it.

I searched for writer qualities based on my work with The New York Times Literary Review panel, where I recently resigned. Poisonous and vicious tongues say I was demoted to the Obituary section. That rumour is utterly fictional, totally fabricated and untrue. The truth is.., ah, never mind.

The esteemed Foreign Correspondents will provide their own perspective on a Master Cyclist’s life.
They may be personal or general, to-the-point or hard-to-pin-down.
They may write about issues that hardly connect with cycling, or they may offer us facts about their
cycling shoes that you never knew existed.

They may give us big, fat, juicy lies – that are closer to the truth than any fact-finding mission can provide.
Or they may just give us the facts, and we have to make up the rest of the story ourselves.

They are one of us, and we look forward to reading their Letters as they arrive in the mailbox
from the far corners of the world:

Stuart Lynne: 1st week of March, May, July

Nipper Kettle: 3rd week of March, May, July

Peter McCaffery: 1st week of April,June, August

Bill Riley: 3rd week of April, June, August

They deserve our recognition.
Register and sign in, so that you may comment profusely on their contributions.
Or send their Letters to other cycling enthusiasts using the online email function.

OPEN Member Forum

Admin2 — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:19:23 +0000

The Member Forum requires a small explanation;

Contributors are required to Register and Log in with their name and known identity.

Those who wish to remain anonymous and surf the opinion of others are welcome; you will learn a lot.

You just miss the opportunity to provoke your sprint-finish nemesis with a good verbal jab.

And we will miss your erudite contribution and deep analysis. Without knowing how deep you really are.

There will be some very important discussions initiated during the season. You may want to keep informed.

The easiest way is to sign up with the Forum- dedicated RSS feed.

If you have Google Reader or similar web feed subscription, click on the RSS logo on the bottom right side of the Forum page.

I am always attracted to words like Really Simple, etc., even if the word Syndication throws me off.

No moderators are assigned; it is assumed that all contributors take the high road.

Web Admin will only take action if the Office of the Provincial Ombudsman calls.

The Member Forum is not closed to non-Members. Far from it.

It is only named this way to give the impression of exclusivity and restricted access. We welcome everyone.
It is OPEN to anyone with a considered opinion – provided they appear with online display of their identity.

But, the right be heard does not automatically mean the right to be taken seriously.

Welcome back, Masters

Admin2 — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 16:41:44 +0000

Your new BCMCA Website has been delivered.
Just a little bit of pain. Nothing compared to a Hill Climb.
And it only took 9 weeks. It just felt like 9 months.

To be clear; the visual appeal, construction, fancy links and all that netherworld of binary code that created the website,
these are created and delivered by Troy Laughren from DigitalAuthority.com,
troy@digitalauthority.com

Please send him a great Thank You and express your appreciation. He can de-code even your most cryptic messages.

As for features and content – or lack of features and missing content – my neck is on the Guillotine.
Please provide your comments, gripes and suggestions to:
admin@bcmasterscycling.net
I may be difficult to persuade , but fear not; I can easily be replaced.

For any BCMCA info relating to club financial and policy matters, please send email to Gay Wise:
info@bcmasterscycling.net

We are more than honoured to have 4 Foreign Correspondents as regular contributors to our web site.
They will mail their Letters to us during the season; all literate, but not necessarily literary.
From different corners of BC, please welcome the omniscient Peter McCaffery from Vancouver Island, the always energetic Stuart Lynne from Vancouver,
the world-famous Mayor of Greenwood, Nipper Kettle, and the straight-laced legal expert Bill Riley.
To my personal relief, Bill has agreed to avoid words that confuse me; such as heretofore and notwithstanding.
They always force me to re- read the same paragraph. And the preceding paragraphs.

Duane Martindale has promised to be smugger and mugger than ever over in the photo department, and where would we be without his Results Service?
Should the occasion call for a more international illustration, we have obtained the personal approval of renowned cycling photographer Jared Gruber
to use many of his images on our web site. Check him out at www.flickr.com/smashred, and www.gruberimages.zenfolio.com.

… 4 Foreign Correspondents, one of whom is a Mayor of a major BC city, and 1 international photographer on this tiny regional and unassuming web site…

But we also want your cycling-related photos and stories; please post a link to your web albums, Flickr account, or any photo site that you use, on our Member Forum, and make use of this Forum for anything you want to share with us, or for info and feed-back from other members.

You will all have the opportunity to chime in with anything and everything in our Member Forum, but please note that we are civil and grown up. All posts must be identified by name or known Nickname. No anonymous posts; they will be removed. Please register with your name and established/known moniker.

The same goes for Classifieds; all ads must include name and contact number. Only members can post items For Sale and Wanted, non-members can post Wanted ads only, with name and contact number.
Again, the easiest way is by registering with your full name and known Nickname the first time you choose Sign-In identification, or your post must include your name.
The email functions related to Member Forum, Classifieds, Organizer submissions and forwarding other posts, are truly professional. Thanks again to Troy.

Additional RSS feeds are available, with separate syndication/RSS for home page news (bottom right corner) and Member Forum posts, as well as Twitter and Facebook buttons.

The space at the top of the Home Page, called Shift Up, is reserved for the Editor-in-Chief (website babysitter). Unassailable space.
His/her contribution will be highly volatile, predictably unpredictable, and never constrained by time or space. Keep your eyes peeled.

Race Organizers are now able to self-publish helpful information to riders using online submission anytime, and all race organizer forms are available for download and printing from the Organizer Resources page.
Local maps, weather and accommodation functions have been added, and are info service tools available to all organizers who provide the correct details.
All race information has been standardized for easy reference on one page.

There are two separate Event/Race information links/pages:
Event Calendar; includes non-BCMCA events and is less detailed, Upcoming Races; only BCMCA races with details as published by Organizers.

A separate section is devoted to Member Proposals; these are changes approved by the Technical Committee in response to your suggestions.
Please start discussions on the Member Forum to present nascent ideas and to gather member feedback prior to submitting proposals.

Our President, Bill Yearwood, has been instrumental in making this process take flight; his frequent view from above must have given him a good perspective.
He didn’t know if the website would fly or enjoy a soft landing, but had the courage to hand the cycling stick (cyclic) and team lever (collective) to an inexperienced co-pilot. No major crash, so far.

Please bookmark the address, sign up for RSS feeds, and check for frequent updates.
Send the link to all your cycling contacts, and we invite all master riders to become members and sign up for as many events as possible.
We want your enthusiasm, and the Race Organizers look forward to your support.
Website info will expand gradually as event details are confirmed, and online Membership registration is being investigated.

BCMCA will this year introduce a new “race“ format for all riders who wish to have a less competitive event, but still join the excitement.
Riders may be novice, less experienced, coming back from injuries, or simply not feel like racing hard that day. Very flexible arrangement allow us all to take a mellow approach whenever we want, but still enjoy the camaraderie. No points or medals, but finish time and food. The road format is called Fondo Class.

The BCMCA Board of Directors are committed to providing great racing for all levels, as well as creating social events at a very reasonable cost.
Please join us as both members and participants – and enjoy your youthful pursuit.
It will be a great season, for all kinds of master riders.

Sincerely,

Olav Stana

Event Calendar vs. Upcoming Races

Admin2 — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:25:13 +0000

The EVENT CALENDAR is designed as a monthly overview of races and events of interest to Master riders.
It will include both BCMCA races as well as NON-BCMCA events.
Colour-coding is used to identify each type; BLUE for NON-BCMCA and RED for BCMCA races.

Larger events, such as Gran Fondos, will be listed without additional details and contacts.
Charity and community events will be listed with contact information as requested and supplied by the organizer.
The organizer of such events must provide relevant info to admin@bcmasterscycling.net

Clubs that organize races that include masters categories separately, but are not sanctioned by BCMCA, are encouraged to provide basic race and contact information to the same admin email.

Their events will also be listed in the Event Calendar BLUE section.

The UPCOMING RACES schedule is reserved for BCMCA sanctioned races, which means that the organizer is covered by BCMCA Insurance, and provide names of parties to be covered on the COI to Bill Yearwood.
Check the picture link on the top right-hand side of the Home page.
Each rider needs a basic Citizen License from CyclingBC, after initial trial without any License.
There is no need to be a member of BCMCA, but an additional $5 per race entry is paid instead.
This also applies to the new non-competitive Fondo Class.

These races are also POINTS races for the season-long aggregate standings.

Each organizer is responsible for submitting all relevant race info and participant details
to the web admin through the online submission.
Where no info is available on the Upcoming races page, but are listed on the Event Calendar; this simply means that the Organizer has not yet submitted and confirmed race details.
As the season progresses, please check back for additional details and potential changes.

The columns on the RIGHT side of the page will display the Weather info and Map location of each upcoming race – provided the Organizer has given this info to the Web Admin.

Should riders not find all the info they need; please contact the individual race organizer directly.
Neither BCMCA, nor Web Admin, will have additional race details.

Technical Committee

admin — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 22:55:47 +0000

To all BCMCA Members

From Olav Stana

I am not a lawyer. Thankfully.

Regardless, here are some explanatory notes to the motion below, and future proposals:

This motion is meant to assist and simplify implementation of your suggestions and ideas that will benefit BCMCA and its members. A final version of this motion will be presented at the AGM in September, and if adopted, will be posted on the BCMCA website, along with this explanatory note.

There are two types of proposals:

Any member proposal calling for changes to BCMCA by-Laws, governance and board issues is called a statutory proposal, and will only be dealt with as a motion and voted on at the AGM.

The motion below is one such item, as it becomes part of the BCMCA by-laws, which paves the way for quick and easy resolution of the second and more common type, called technical proposal. Any other issues that you wish to see implemented, such as race formats, fees, TT standards, age grouping, etc, are all technical proposals, and can be dealt with under the guidance of this Motion.

A proposal is not an idea to be circulated for opinions, not meant to solicit general feed-back from members or the technical committee, and not a discussion paper.

You are encouraged to discuss issues with other members prior to submitting a proposal. A proposal is your final, condensed and specific idea that you wish to see implemented. All proposals, both statutory and technical, must be sent to the BCMCA president, who in turn will forward a copy to all board members on the technical committee.

Members of the technical committee will communicate internally for the evaluation, decision and implementation process, as well as seek appropiate guidance. They will respond to you as soon as practicable.

The motion is designed to create continuity as well as renewal of the technical committee. Please make it easy for all concerned when submitting your ideas by listing short and simple reasons for your proposal, and then give details of what specific idea you wish to see implemented. If you have several proposals, please submit them separately.

Please check the BCMCA website for updated information and decisions. If you have suggestions for modifying the motion below, please send your contribution to Olav Stana: stana@telus.net. Your suggestions must be received by August 30. For all your other brilliant ideas, please polish them up for a specific proposal after the AGM.

Motion: To establish a BCMCA Technical Committee

Whereas BCMCA does not currently have a standard process for dealing with Member Proposals Whereas BCMCA Members have valid ideas and suggestions they wish to see implemented

Whereas BCMCA will benefit from evaluating and implementing these ideas

be it resolved that BCMCA establish a Technical Committee to receive, evaluate and implement Member Proposals:

The Board of Directors appoint 5 BCMCA members to a Technical Committee.

A minimum of 2 Technical Committee members must also be BCMCA Board members.

Appointments are made annually after each AGM and open to 2 consecutive re-appointments,

(maximum 3 consecutive years), with re-appointments available after 1 year hiatus.

A minimum of 3 Technical Committee members must vote on each Member Proposal.

Each Member Proposal is categorized accordingly:

A. Statutory Proposal; transferred to AGM for Membership vote

Statutory relates to By-Laws, Board structure,Governance,etc.

B. Technical Proposal; decision is rendered as received

Technical relates to race formats and structure,race organization,event fees,etc.

Technical Proposals:

Accepted with immediate implementation
Accepted with a time-limited trial period.
Accepted with next season implementation.
Accepted with modification(s).
Rejected with explanation.

Statutory Proposals: Transferred to the AGM Agenda for Membership vote.

All proposals are sent to the BCMCA President. Each proposal must deal with one specific item. Several separate proposals may be submitted. Members of the technical committee may not vote on their own technical proposals, but may vote on any statutory proposals/ motions at the AGM. AGM agenda and year-end reports must be posted on the BCMCA website.

Any BCMCA member may request that a rejected proposal be added to the next AGM agenda, and voted on by the membership. All Motions and proposals will be posted on the BCMCA website with explanatory decision.

New Fondo Class

Admin2 — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 04:34:36 +0000

Background:

Many Master riders wish to participate in organized events, but find current offerings inadequate.

Some are inexperienced, some are less competitive, some are struggling with injuries, some are coming back from medical problems, some are simply having a bad spell, some would like a break from racing hard.

They all want to belong and participate at their comfort level. They want to share cycling experiences, and BCMCA need their enthusiasm.

Based on a Technical Proposal from Olav Stana, a new Fondo Class has been created for the 2012 season.

This will be available at all mass start events.

Individual start events, such as ITT and individual start Hill Climbs are not affected.

Minimum liability insurance is required, as for all other participants, such as Citizen License from CyclingBC.

It is an OPEN category event start for all Australian Pursuit RR and CRITERIUM races.

It is named Fondo Class

Any rider , any age can enter this class at any time.

No numbers are worn. Members who normally race with numbers simply ride without for this event.

No Points or Medals are awarded.

Total time is provided to the best of the Race Organizers ability.

No mingling with numbered riders during RR events, no sprinting with numbered riders at the finish.

Same registration fee as usual as all benefit from food and facilities.

Mass start 1 Minute after 70+ Age Group for RR

Mass start as first group in Criteriums, with reduced distance and time.

Bill Yearwood,

BCMCA Technical Committee