beccahakensak
07-03-2007, 09:30 AM
What an AWESOME course!! COGGS rocks!! Thanks to everyone involved in putting on the race and maintaining the delicious trails!!
My only frustration came prior to the start of the Sport race when the race director informed our pack of women that we 'only had to go two laps' after he had just sent the Sport men out for three.
After a female racer clarified that the men were going three laps, the race director was informed, by that female racer, that we too were riding the full three laps. When the race director asked us to vote, he again was simply told by the same female racer, that we were riding three laps.
While two laps may have sounded appealing to some (it was hot and that hill is long) I, and a few others I spoke with, received it as a slap in the face.
We're Sport racers. We know what we're getting into when we register for our race. Some of us LOVE to suffer and sweat. Some of us also like to wear pink lipstick, pretty clothes, and paint our nails-but that doesn't mean we want our race shortened just because we're girls.
Other than consistently posting women's results last (which does send a fairly direct message, WORS posts them first and most other events-running, triathlon, skiing, etc-alternate gender with each age group) this is the first time in three seasons of racing mt. bikes that I have felt gender bias at an MNSCS event (although I bet a lot of male racers were jealous at Red Wing last summer when all the female racers got gift bags! Is this a double standard? or just Red Wing's race director's way of saying-Thanks women for setting an example for all of the youngsters out there that women can race bikes too!? Thanks Red Wing folks!).
And thanks again COGGS-Dirtspanker is a TERRIFIC race!
My only frustration came prior to the start of the Sport race when the race director informed our pack of women that we 'only had to go two laps' after he had just sent the Sport men out for three.
After a female racer clarified that the men were going three laps, the race director was informed, by that female racer, that we too were riding the full three laps. When the race director asked us to vote, he again was simply told by the same female racer, that we were riding three laps.
While two laps may have sounded appealing to some (it was hot and that hill is long) I, and a few others I spoke with, received it as a slap in the face.
We're Sport racers. We know what we're getting into when we register for our race. Some of us LOVE to suffer and sweat. Some of us also like to wear pink lipstick, pretty clothes, and paint our nails-but that doesn't mean we want our race shortened just because we're girls.
Other than consistently posting women's results last (which does send a fairly direct message, WORS posts them first and most other events-running, triathlon, skiing, etc-alternate gender with each age group) this is the first time in three seasons of racing mt. bikes that I have felt gender bias at an MNSCS event (although I bet a lot of male racers were jealous at Red Wing last summer when all the female racers got gift bags! Is this a double standard? or just Red Wing's race director's way of saying-Thanks women for setting an example for all of the youngsters out there that women can race bikes too!? Thanks Red Wing folks!).
And thanks again COGGS-Dirtspanker is a TERRIFIC race!