UCVC points championship

Dan and I came up with the latest crazy idea to keep ourselves riding bikes for months on end. We proudly present the "UCVC Points Competition" --the name is provisional; we haven't found a sexy name other than the "UCVC Brioche Competition."

The idea is to have a series of weekly rides, on Saturdays, from this weekend until October. Every ride is assigned a certain number of points, based on distance and difficulty. Every person who comes to the ride earns the points assigned to that ride. The person who accumulates the most points by the end of the series becomes the championship winner. Dan and I will keep track of the points. THE FIRST RIDE IS THIS SATURDAY! See the schedule and other details below.

At the end of the season we'll have a dinner/awards ceremony, an *Ibex* champion jersey made especially for the occasion, trophies for everyone who accumulates at least 500 miles,... the whole shebang. Details are below. The schedule of rides is below too.

I am perfectly aware that this is one of those "grand plans" that don't take off in this beloved club of ours. I wanna give it a try anyway. I think there is a void in terms of activities organized by the club that we can fill.

The idea is actually not that crazy. In fact, it's inspired by the practice of neighborhood clubs in Spain, Italy and France. In Spain we call it "cicloturismo." (Rough translation: "cyclotourism." In spite of the name, it does NOT involve sightseeing, visiting places of cultural interest, or eating brioches out of a basket while your ride.) This championship is for people who don't compete, but still wanna feel the rush of riding fast in a pack. Or for people who do compete, but just feel like going out for a recreational ride once a week or once in a while.

Neither Dan nor I are sure that we'll be able to make it to every ride (we might be racing some weekend, or out of town) but we hope that the project gets some traction soon and some other person can lead for us in our absence.

I'll post this permanently on the website when I find the time.

Schedule:

An asterisk (*) means that we need to drive

-May 3: Metropolis (~35 miles). 4 points.

-May 10: Schererville (Starbucks) (~50 miles). 5 points.

-May 17: Monsters of the Midway (Volunteering, not racing. Racing doesn’t carry any points.) 10 points.

-May 24: Highland Park (~70 miles). Optional alternative: Bike the Drive (May 25). 7 points.

-May 31: Metropolis (~35 miles). 4 points.

-June 7: Schererville + short extra loop (~70 miles). 7 points.

-June 14: Italian coffee bar, Evanston (~40 miles). 4 points.

-June 21: Barrington ride* (70 miles). 8 points.

-June 28: Schererville (Starbucks) (~50 miles). 5 points.

-July 5: Fort Sheridan (70 miles). 7 points.

-July 12: Argonne ride* (70 miles?). 8 points.

-July 19: Schererville + short extra loop (~70 miles). 7 points.

-July 26: North suburbs route (basically the Team Judson route). (~100 miles). 10 points

-Aug 2: Metropolis (~35 miles). 4 points.

-Aug 9: Schererville (Starbucks) (~50 miles). 5 points.

-Aug 16: Barrington ride* (70 miles). 8 points.

-Aug 23: Schererville + long extra loop (~100 miles). 10 points. Note: Chicago Triathlon! Don’t use the path.

-Aug 30: Italian Coffee Bar, Evanston (~40 miles). 4 points.

-Sept 6: Highland Park (~70 miles). 7 points.

-Sept 13: Schererville (~50 miles). 5 points.

-September 21: North Shore Century (100 miles) Leaves from Evanston. 10 points. (Extra 5 points if you ride from Hyde Park to Evanston.)

-September 28: Apple Century Ride* (100 miles) Note: need to drive to Michigan. 10 points.

-October 4: Schererville (~50 miles). 5 points.

-October 11: Time Trial: bike path, from 55th to 72nd and back. 4 points.

-Dinner and awards ceremony (some time the following week)

-October 18: Champion Honorary Ride (the winner gets to ride to Metropolis in the champion’s maglia). No points.


Details:


-Italian, French and English are all official languages of the campionato.

-Every participant in a ride will earn the points assigned to the ride, as long as he or she follows the established corso, all the way. Two or three UCVC folks will keep track of the points.

-The winner of the championship is the person who accumulates the most points. In case of a tie (highly unlikely after such a long series of rides) the champion is the person who wins la course contre la montre (TT, see the calendar above).

-Everyone is welcome to participate —of course riders of Team TATI too! We only ask that you are able to ride safely dans le peloton. However, only members of UCVC can get points and sweet awards (sorry). The definition of UCVC member is on the club’s website.

-At the end of the campionato we will have a dinner/award ceremony and we will give the winner a UCVC maglia rossa (maroon jersey) especially designed for the occasion and a trophy. We might also give certificates to various categories (the least-young person, the best anecdote, the guy with the cutest Spanish accent, etc) and cycling swag... It depends on the resources that we can either spare from our budget or forage out there.

-Every eligible participant who accumulates at least 500 miles will receive a trofeo.

-Pénalisationnes: Minus 2 points for anyone who doesn’t stop at a red light (messengers and people in a hurry don’t get a waiver).

-We believe in gender equality. So, given that this championship is based purely on participation and guys don’t have an advantage over gurls, we won’t have a separate winner by gender. Unless… a male and a female are tied in points and the time trial needs to break the tie. In that case, there will be a winner award for the both the ragazzo and the ragazza, regardless of who wins the TT. (Exception: if Devon is the ragazza, she’ll have to win the TT.)

-Bad weather cancellation: On verra (in English, TBD).