A couple weeks ago, USA Cycling revised some of its upgrade requirements that will go into effect in 2013. The major changes are:
- Riders no longer need to complete upgrade requirements in a 12-month window. In other words, any points accrued for a category change from 2012 onward will last forever (until the rider gets the upgrade, of course).
- The upgrade to Cat 2 from Cat 3 requires 30 points instead of 25.
- The upgrade to Cat 1 from Cat 2 requires 35 points instead of 30.
The full list of cyclo-cross and road upgrade requirements can be found here.
The major implication I see from these new rules is that those who want to upgrade will have a more manageable path to get to the next category. I imagine that this will result in deeper Cat 3 fields and slightly deeper Cat 1/2 fields. I think this is good for cycling as a whole as it will better distribute the racers amongst the categories.
That being said, I highly doubt this will have any effect on the “top-end” of each category. The mandatory upgrades have the same guidelines as before (i.e. “X points in 12 months results in a mandatory upgrade”) and even still, these guidelines are not strictly enforced, meaning that the top-end of each category will have the same guys (or gals) seeking wins and points towards the regional Best All-Around Rider (BAR). I would rant about how stupid BAR competitions are (excluding Cat 1 and Masters), but I really don’t feel like spending the mental energy and I’m pretty sure most of you agree with me anyway.
Summary: All in all, from these new upgrade requirements, I foresee a better distribution of racers in each category but the quality of competition in each category remaining about the same.
I feel like the new requirements will lead to a lot of people being in the wrong category. USAC could have made the points good for 18months or 2 years instead of 12 months but forever is just ridiculous. This will just lead to more people OTB!
Getting dropped off the back is good for your character!
Some dudes are stuck at CAT 3 and will be able to get into CAT 2 now which will expand the CAT 1/2 races. But yes, will not change who wins those events. And this does zero relevant to the Masters categories. Going from CAT 4 to 3 is really unchanged given that one can do that with zero points and just finishing x-times with the bunch.
Right, I’m totally with you there. Just more pack fodder!