What's New for 2015???

Well...in a nutshell...LOTS! 

1. First, we're adding two new rides to the mix for 2015: 

We here at the Rocky Mountain Cycling Club (RMCC) are always dreaming of new rides, especially EPIC ones! We sit at home, late at night, staring at Colorado state maps, conjuring up new (and sometimes sadistic) ways to "connect the dots" and challenge our club members. We're constantly searching for the next BIG ride!

Well, the search for the next BIG adventure continues for 2015. And we've conjured up several new, EPIC routes for this upcoming season that will hopefully pique your interest.  For 2015, the RMCC presents: 

• The Colorado High Country Double Century
• Colorado Classic Double Century
• Mountains to Desert/Telluride 200
• This is the first non-RMCC-sponsored event to join the Colorado Triple Crown. This amazing event is sponsored by the Just for Kids Foundation in Telluride, CO, We graciously welcome them to the Triple Crown!

Please look for the postings on this blog about these new events.

2. Second, we're "relaxing" some of the rules regarding pre-qualification for the Colorado Triple Crown events. 

Since the inception of the Colorado Triple Crown in 2009, we've required riders to "prequalify" for these extremely challenging rides. The reason behind pre-qualification is simple. Since the RMCC runs these events with minimal volunteer support, we need to be sure that participants have both the physical and mental fortitude to complete these rides. Pre-qualification is the best way to do so!  For many prospective participants, however, pre-qualification is a major barrier to participation. So, to continue to encourage participation, ensure event integrity, and ensure rider safety, we are making the following changes to our pre-qualification requirements for the 2015 season...

To pre-qualify, registrants must complete one of the following events in the previous 24 months: 

1) Any Colorado Triple Crown event

2) A mountainous double century (or longer) event in another part of the country (time required for verification)

3) One of the RMCC-sponsored 300 km brevets in less than 14 hours

4) Successful completion of another extreme endurance event of at least 12 hours duration:

• Ironman Triathlon < 14 hours (time required for verification)
• 50+ mile mountainous running ultra-marathon < 12 hours

Participants who have not met the pre-qualification requirements listed above can still register, but they will need to ride with a personal support vehicle (which is allowed and encouraged) until they can demonstrate that they can complete at least one of the Triple Crown events within its designated time limit. After registering, these riders will need to e-mail me with the name of their support person.

As in previous seasons, RMCC membership is still be required to participate! 

3. Registration

1. Fees. Participants can expect a small increase in registration fees for the Colorado Triple Crown events in 2015 ($50/event). So where does this money go? Believe it or not, the RMCC really don't make any money for running these events. Our goal is to encourage participation, NOT turn a profit. But the fees that we charge to participate in these events barely cover our expenses of actually running these events (e.g., reimbursement for mileage, food, and sometimes motels for volunteers, etc.).  If we do have extra revenue at the end of the 2015 season, we will use these extra funds to subsidize the production costs of Colorado Triple Crown cycling kits for those riders who successfully complete the series and purchase a Colorado Triple Crown cycling kit at then end of the season! 
2. Dates. Registration for the 2015 Colorado Triple Crown events will open on March 1, 2015. Please pay attention to this blog and the RMCC website for more details in the weeks ahead. 
3. Withdrawal. For those members who have registered and need to withdraw from an event, they can do so up to 3 weeks prior to the date of the event. After 3 weeks, refunds will not be granted. 
4. Transfers. For 2015, registration fees will not be transferrable between events. So please plan ahead!

4. Volunteers

We are 100% dependent on volunteer support! Since 2009, RMCC president, Charlie Henderson, has been essential for supporting these rides. Without Charlie's help, we simply could not run this series in its current format. Over the past few seasons, other individuals--usually family members of other Triple Crown participants--have volunteered time to provide event support. Thank you to all of you!!!

For 2015, we are looking for more volunteer help.  I'm not going to lie! Volunteering for one of these events is a long day...usually between 12-20 hours! And it usually involves getting up well before the crack of dawn. But volunteering can be quite a bit of fun too! For 2015, we will provide the following incentives to volunteer:

1. If a rider volunteers for an event, he/she can participate in another Triple Crown event for free.
2. If a rider volunteers a family member to provide event support, that rider gets to ride for free. Those riders will receive a refund for their registration fee. 
3. Volunteers who provide SAG/driving support for the event will be reimbursed for their mileage  accrued during the event (at the current Federal rate). We will also reimburse for volunteer food/snack purchases accrued during the event. 

Notes:

1. Please note that personal support vehicles do not count as volunteer SAG for these events. 
2. If Charlie is unavailable to volunteer and we are able to secure another volunteer for an event, then that event will be ridden in brevet format (i.e., without support). Please be aware of this!

5. Triple Crown Kits

For 2015, we will re-designing our very distinguished Colorado Triple Crown kit to perhaps include some lighter colors. We will start working on the new design in the months ahead. Please stay posted!

Well...the road to 2015 begins now. Bring it on!! (If only it was that flat!) 

Mark

e-mail: mvlowe5@comcast.net