Why we're all of that ;- ) (a bit long, was RSN ... my last newsgroup)

--- "Sly D. Skeez" wrote:

XC skiing really does attract "good" people.
Compared to alpine
skiing, you don't have to worry about leaving your
skis outside when
you head indoors. Yeah, occasionally a pair gets
ripped off, but
compared to DH, the problem is minor. The racers
give an inch and
there's usually no bitching after races as compared
to bike races.
Even though I've bike raced for years and met some
great people, the
bike race crowd in general seems to have more egos
and attitudes than
skiing. I think the newsgroups reflect that.

Jay Wenner


I'm not usually into such back-patting, but I really
do think it's well-deserved in this case. I've been
subscribed to RSN since something like 1994, and I
think that the "helmet wars" are about the closest to
a flame war that RSN has ever seen, and even then,
much of it was conducted tongue-in-cheek, and
seemingly always with respect for other posters' right
to exist and to have an opinion.

I wonder if the environment in which XC training and
racing is conducted has something to do with people's
manners. It's not that easy of a sport to train for
or to do, and sometimes it's just plain miserable
(weather, missed your wax, drought years, etc.). You
have to have a certain sort of inner gumption to put
up with this. XC races ultimately come down to how
you do compared to your own expectations and goals (or
occasionally your buddies), often in a dynamic and
unpredictable setting.

All that said, I'm not sure that any of it really
differentiates XC from bike racing. Without slamming
bike racing, here is what seems to differentiate it
from XC: a suspicion of outsiders (possibly justified
by the fact that people who you don't know, with
unknown and untested skills in a pack, could really
hurt you in a race), a quickness of temper in the pack
(probably also bred by the fear that someone else's
unpredictable move could result in your injury), an
arms race mentality regarding equipment (if you don't
have the latest gear at a bike race you're a geek; in
XC it just means that you're Jeff Potter ;- ).

Two other things tend to breed this "me first"
mentality. First, bike races are competitions between
many small teams (cliques), and bike race strategy can
best be described as "chess on wheels" (or somewhat
less charitably, "honor among thieves") with
constantly shifting situational ethics and alliegances
based on what will give you or your teammate the best
energy break or strategic result. If you're not on a
strong team, you are definitely working the situation
to benefit yourself. This is a natural consequence of
how bike races work with regard to terrain, wind,
breakaways, etc.

However, another thing that's not so natural is the
custom of prize money even down into the recreational
categories (for USCF riders). I think this results in
a "big fish in a little pond" mentality. I remember
seeing Cat 4 racers and Masters, who in the big scheme
of things really don't rate that highly, bitch and
moan bitterly to race promoters about how crappy their
race is because they aren't offering a big enough
purse for their division (rather than expressing any
gratitude to the promoter for putting the race on in
the first place). This tends to breed a "what's in it
for me" mentality. There are also social implications
since the same small group of usual suspects collects
the prizes at the end of each race. What happens is
that the winners just stick around long enough to
collect the goods (and they do tend to get to know
each other), but everyone else, not having any reason
to stick around, just splits. So there is less
development of social connections at the recreational
level (the level where there are larger numbers of
people who might have some time to do things like run
clubs, coach juniors, put on races, etc). XC races
typically take a little longer to sort out the winners
in the various categories, which provides time for
people to take off their hats and sunglasses and get
to know each other, and to bond as a community.

So, returning to the topic of why we don't have flame
wars, I think it boils down to a commonality of having
selected a sport that requires or promotes
individuality yet cooperation and respect. XC tends
to select for people who subscribe to a "me and my
crazy friends that I do this with" outlook. And that
generousity tends to also include the ability to let
other people have their quirks and opinions.

But I think that as XC racing gets (we always hope)
more popular we should keep this community aspect in
mind, and try to make decisions with regard to club
structure, races, prizes, etc., that will provide
opportunities for social interaction and common
experience. For example, XC racing in Utah is growing
by leaps and bounds, I think largely because of some
great social traditions: pre-season dryland training
groups, a great race calendar supported by an
incredible group of volunteers (something else notably
absent in the bike racing world), post-race parties
while results are posted, and well-attended camps and
clinics (and the people who organize them).

I guess I could have saved this whole discussion by
saying simply: "we work and play well with each
other."
I attribute my wordiness to excitement: the days are
getting cooler, and snow is in the forecast for this
weekend! It's going to be a good season-- I KNOW it!
(maybe it's this faith that we all have in common,
eh?)

signing off, and thanks for your time-
Chris

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