Irish XC came to a turning point last night and I am confident to say that it took a decidedly wrong turn that will damage the sport for years to come.
The below is a summary of the issues that I tried to discuss at this years AGM. Although these areas were clearly listed in the handout we all received under the heading 'list of motions' I was told afterwards that none of the below constituted a motion.
These items were pushed over to be discussed at the XC race coordination meeting where the main focus was tweaking an already decided and awarded NPS format and no motions were discussed. This meeting was not chaired correctly, motions were not voted on and members were ignored. Because of this I have to write this rather than have an open and democratic discussion and I will also be raising a formal complaint with Cycling Ireland regarding the chairing of this year's AGM.
Overview
XC racing has been struggling along as a sport for the past few years with a number of shining stars, race events and riders alike, having been mere flashes in the pan with no effort by the commission to understand or nurture these successes. The response to one top elite riders as he effectively retired from XC at this AGM was a shrug and a 'moving on....'. No reason why was asked or this trend of a fading elite class discussed.
After seeing what it was like to race for two years, pure frustration with the lack of standards drove me off my bike and I attended as many races as possible to try and build a clear picture of what needed to be done. At a fundamental level we have a fading elite class with zero riders coming through from the junior categories. We are dominated by the Masters and Sports categories and have a very limited number of spectators or supporters and zero key sponsors. Top riders are awarded with damp fivers, events lack atmosphere and many courses would not survive a shower of rain. Somehow an increase in numbers in these categories by 25% over the past year is being heralded as a massive success for the sport. This 25% is, I am in no doubt, a direct result of trail centres coupled with the bike to work scheme and the excellent work done at the development races. Unfortunately this only proved to grow the two over subscribed categories and have done little to raise the standard or prestige of the over all sport or events.
Sponsorship and Standards
Working closely with a large number of sponsors this year gave a great insight into how the sport is perceived off the track. The big message I got back here was lack of communication, lack of standards and overall a lack of cohesion. Sponsors will only invest in a product and today the NPS is perceived as a disparate number of races with no clear synergy or brand where riders and spectators alike will not know what to expect on the day until they arrive. Numbers, spectators and riders, are inconsistent; there is a lack of community and atmosphere off the track. The NPS has a lot to learn from CX, DH and club racing.
The overall feedback, from a sponsors and spectators perspective, was that the XC NPS was nothing more than standing in a damp field for 2 hrs. This perspective is one of the major barriers to developing the sport on all fronts and without a strong attractive image and brand top athletes and high performance juniors will look elsewhere.
We raised more sponsorship for one event in 2010 then would be required to raise the bar massively for the whole NPS and I was willing to sit and discuss how to achieve this with the commission and clubs but was not given the opportunity. I was also asked to come onto to the commission in some capacity in 2011. An offer I will be rejecting based on how the commission conducted itself at this year's AGM.
Number of Races
Although a mature sport, the NPS stills seems to be in the infancy of its life-cycle. Effectively meaning it needs constant tweaking every year to keep on some sort of consistent path. This is why I had asked that the format and number of races not be decided until after the AGM or at least hold a post NPS meeting to receive constructive feedback from experienced riders and organizers.
Although great to see new clubs getting involved, the XC NPS race coordination meeting lacked any strong input or leadership from parties with the race or event experience, both national and international, required to understand what we have today and grow the NPS product and brand rather then just growing the number of races.
The NPS format and brand is not yet strong enough to support an 8 race series. The work done to date and the success it has led to needs to be understood, secured and promoted before we expand the series. We are moving forward on the single presumption that an upward curve will continue upward.
An 8 race series will dilute numbers, profit and prestige. Riders will cherry pick their 5 races and maybe ride a sixth if they don't get the results required. This is no way to award an NPS title for one our countries Olympic sports. Dealing with how you feel on the day, the possibility of a mechanical, having to sacrifice other components of your life is what separates good riders from great riders and is as important as the guy you have to beat on the day. Ignoring this is further tarnishing the lack lustre prestige of the NPS.
Top level riders in all categories voted with their feet at this years AGM. A limited number of the top athletes of the sport attended the AGM with even fewer attending the prize giving. This proves what I had been told all year, that riders compete because it is the NPS and there is little alternative. The success of the K-Capital Cup and its impact on the NPS is further proof of this in previous years.
I am locking this thread as I have no interest in a forum discussion around these issues – this is what the AGM was meant to be for.
I will not be racing any NPS race in this country until the above issues are addressed but will always be available to clubs who need support or advice in running events in the future.
The below is a summary of the issues that I tried to discuss at this years AGM. Although these areas were clearly listed in the handout we all received under the heading 'list of motions' I was told afterwards that none of the below constituted a motion.
These items were pushed over to be discussed at the XC race coordination meeting where the main focus was tweaking an already decided and awarded NPS format and no motions were discussed. This meeting was not chaired correctly, motions were not voted on and members were ignored. Because of this I have to write this rather than have an open and democratic discussion and I will also be raising a formal complaint with Cycling Ireland regarding the chairing of this year's AGM.
Overview
XC racing has been struggling along as a sport for the past few years with a number of shining stars, race events and riders alike, having been mere flashes in the pan with no effort by the commission to understand or nurture these successes. The response to one top elite riders as he effectively retired from XC at this AGM was a shrug and a 'moving on....'. No reason why was asked or this trend of a fading elite class discussed.
After seeing what it was like to race for two years, pure frustration with the lack of standards drove me off my bike and I attended as many races as possible to try and build a clear picture of what needed to be done. At a fundamental level we have a fading elite class with zero riders coming through from the junior categories. We are dominated by the Masters and Sports categories and have a very limited number of spectators or supporters and zero key sponsors. Top riders are awarded with damp fivers, events lack atmosphere and many courses would not survive a shower of rain. Somehow an increase in numbers in these categories by 25% over the past year is being heralded as a massive success for the sport. This 25% is, I am in no doubt, a direct result of trail centres coupled with the bike to work scheme and the excellent work done at the development races. Unfortunately this only proved to grow the two over subscribed categories and have done little to raise the standard or prestige of the over all sport or events.
Sponsorship and Standards
Working closely with a large number of sponsors this year gave a great insight into how the sport is perceived off the track. The big message I got back here was lack of communication, lack of standards and overall a lack of cohesion. Sponsors will only invest in a product and today the NPS is perceived as a disparate number of races with no clear synergy or brand where riders and spectators alike will not know what to expect on the day until they arrive. Numbers, spectators and riders, are inconsistent; there is a lack of community and atmosphere off the track. The NPS has a lot to learn from CX, DH and club racing.
The overall feedback, from a sponsors and spectators perspective, was that the XC NPS was nothing more than standing in a damp field for 2 hrs. This perspective is one of the major barriers to developing the sport on all fronts and without a strong attractive image and brand top athletes and high performance juniors will look elsewhere.
We raised more sponsorship for one event in 2010 then would be required to raise the bar massively for the whole NPS and I was willing to sit and discuss how to achieve this with the commission and clubs but was not given the opportunity. I was also asked to come onto to the commission in some capacity in 2011. An offer I will be rejecting based on how the commission conducted itself at this year's AGM.
Number of Races
Although a mature sport, the NPS stills seems to be in the infancy of its life-cycle. Effectively meaning it needs constant tweaking every year to keep on some sort of consistent path. This is why I had asked that the format and number of races not be decided until after the AGM or at least hold a post NPS meeting to receive constructive feedback from experienced riders and organizers.
Although great to see new clubs getting involved, the XC NPS race coordination meeting lacked any strong input or leadership from parties with the race or event experience, both national and international, required to understand what we have today and grow the NPS product and brand rather then just growing the number of races.
The NPS format and brand is not yet strong enough to support an 8 race series. The work done to date and the success it has led to needs to be understood, secured and promoted before we expand the series. We are moving forward on the single presumption that an upward curve will continue upward.
An 8 race series will dilute numbers, profit and prestige. Riders will cherry pick their 5 races and maybe ride a sixth if they don't get the results required. This is no way to award an NPS title for one our countries Olympic sports. Dealing with how you feel on the day, the possibility of a mechanical, having to sacrifice other components of your life is what separates good riders from great riders and is as important as the guy you have to beat on the day. Ignoring this is further tarnishing the lack lustre prestige of the NPS.
Top level riders in all categories voted with their feet at this years AGM. A limited number of the top athletes of the sport attended the AGM with even fewer attending the prize giving. This proves what I had been told all year, that riders compete because it is the NPS and there is little alternative. The success of the K-Capital Cup and its impact on the NPS is further proof of this in previous years.
I am locking this thread as I have no interest in a forum discussion around these issues – this is what the AGM was meant to be for.
I will not be racing any NPS race in this country until the above issues are addressed but will always be available to clubs who need support or advice in running events in the future.