RIDE REPORT - UMM Short Course Pre Ride

What a beautiful day to be outside. The group pre ran the UMM short course minus the mystery events. There were a few stops along the way; one to try out a bike tow system, one a pit stop at the parks fine toilet facilities; one to let Ryan pull cactus out of my butt and one because Steve wasn't sure what, "Turn left at the trail junction" meant. We kept a good pace and even with the stops the overall time was 2h 5m.

Couple of thoughts on event prep:

Multi Trail Use - Emphasis must be focused on the multi use nature of the trails. Most of the single track is very fast. Safety must be paramount to competition. This is the first event of this nature at Usery Mountain Regional Park and our ability to come back and do this again next year will be based on the success of this venture. Courtesy and communication are the rules of the day.

Trail Warning Signs - The recommendation will be to put 'warning signs' on sections of the trail where there are blind corners, 90 degree turns and other hazards. This will warn participants as well as other trail users of potential dangers.

Transition Bags - The course will feature a bike finish. This means that participants will need to return to the TA to retrieve any gear they might leave. We may be able to assist both participants in retrieving gear and volunteers' with wrapping the Transition Area up after the last rider leaves by providing a plastic bag with a team number on it. Participants would stow their TA gear in the bag with their team number. Volunteers would transport the bags back to the Staging area and teams could retrieve them there, saving a trip back to the TA.

Tentative plans call for a pre run the long course in two weeks. Unlike today, I will need to avoid anything from the Wendy's Drive Thru the night before and probably stretch before taking on the long course. As always, suggestions on ways to improve the process are always welcome.

Mike B.

UMM EVENT PREPARATION REPORT

As preparations are in full swing for Usery Mountain Madness, a status report is in order. UMM is 32 days away and as April 17th approaches, it is getting busy.

Event Venue - The event venue and course routes are locked down. Jennifer Johnston, the Usery Mountain Regional Park supervisor and Daniel Bray with the Forest Service, have been wonderful to work with. Did you know UMM will be the first of its kind in the park? All eyes are on this event for a number of different reasons.

Event Web Site Update - The event site was updated with forms, event info, FAQ's and maps. Check it out at www.catchthemadness.com. Click anywhere on the splash page to open the site. A Raffle Prize page and a Volunteer page will be posted on the site this week. Please forward any suggestions for site additions or corrections to mbellows.madness@gmail.com.

Advertising - With the event about four weeks away, we are pushing registration. Check with your race buddies, AR contacts and couch potatoes friends and remind them of the event. There are quite a few links when you Google or Bing the event. Keep going back to the site as it is being updated regularly. We are running this event on very narrow margins and need to assure the charities benefit from the time and effort put into making this idea a reality.

Raffle & Door Prizes - We are hosting a raffle the day of the event. Tickets can be purchase at 1 for $5 or 3 for $10. A huge thanks to the folks who have donated prizes. Travis Jones, the owner of Two Wheel Jones Bike Shop and all around good guy, donated our Grand Prize which is a 2010 Haro Flightline Expert Hardtail (18"). This bike retails for over $1000. On behalf of the 100 Club, Rachel St. Moritz donated a new Fetish MTB frame that retails for $500. Team sponsors include Gargoyles Eyewear, Hi-tec Shoes, Alexander Building Company, Gold Medal Gardening, Skyline Signs, Nuun, Polar Water Bottle, Atac Jerseys. Event sponsors are Hammer Nutrition, Road ID, Two Wheel Jones, Adventure Cycles, and Hydrapak. They have come through with a boat load of door prizes. Check out the website for the list. We really need to maximize the generosity of our benefactors. Please let folks know about the raffle. Tickets can be pre purchased with registration or the day of the event.

Volunteers - Over the next few weeks we will be coordinating event volunteers. As you well know, events like this are not possible without volunteers. Follow up with your contacts and find out who wants to help. Have volunteers contact me by email.

Thanks to everyone who is supporting the 100 Club and Mesa Benevolent Funds through this effort.