Cairns World Cup #2

[nigelhicks]

How the Camera stuff works at a world cup

 

http://dirtmountainbike.com/news/behind-the-scenes-red-bulls-world-cup-live-coverage.html?l=OrMCe04Lcp0lOEFOBz8_rBIK287-R0NMEAk5T51GQCsR6kdPA0c_rBQOuEsHOZPJxfQiUmcjxE_yFyVUmUA50Wt1wLSB3TlT6u3tL04LMuVVaUh7Tgs?l=OrMCe04Lcp0lOEFOBz8_rBIK287-R0NMEAk5T51GQCsR6kdPA0c_rBQOuEsHOZPJxfQiUmcjxE_yFyVUmUA50Wt1wLSB3TlT6u3tL04LMuVVaUh7Tgs

[Stretch]

How the Camera stuff works at a world cup

 

http://dirtmountainb...L04LMuVVaUh7Tgs

 

that was really cool to watch

[nigelhicks]

that was really cool to watch

 

25km or camera cabling! ... NUTS ...

 

Add to this 3 cables for DH timing running the length of the track (3 x 3km) ...

 

Thats a LOT of cabling!

[Hairy]

"Hi Our names are Headshot and Hairy! ... and we dont seem to read Nige's informative posts on UCI rule changes and Camera position issues!" .... :whistling: ... See page 7 for Greg DQ issue and Page 9 for Camera issues

Hey leave me alone .... .. bully

[Headshot]

Aaah Nige, man. I did read your post on all of the above. I get the rule change swinger thingy going on, I just don't think it is fair.

 

Its an example of a badly drafted rule for lazy officials to try to avoid having to make a judgment call. I think they decided that one or two unhappy riders is better than a whole field being pissed off because some official let off his countryman/woman who broke the tape and wasn't cm perfect on the return to the racing line. So in trying to be fair, it is unfair.

 

A bit like imposing the death penalty to keep the masses happy :-)

[Hairy]

Aaah Nige, man. I did read your post on all of the above. I get the rule change swinger thingy going on, I just don't think it is fair.

 

Its an example of a badly drafted rule for lazy officials to try to avoid having to make a judgment call. I think they decided that one or two unhappy riders is better than a whole field being pissed off because some official let off his countryman/woman who broke the tape and wasn't cm perfect on the return to the racing line. So in trying to be fair, it is unfair.

 

A bit like imposing the death penalty to keep the masses happy :-)

what it does do however then is remove any grey area or doubt, so ultimately not so bad then.

[nigelhicks]

hahahahah just chirping you guys.

 

Yeah Hairy has it spot on - its to remove any form of doubt.

 

Previously there have been a number of incidents where the team managers of opposing teams have issues complaints when another rider has gone off track, rejoined (even with a time penalty) and then beaten their rider ... So the issue of a "fair" time penalty is up to scrutiny. as what is fair?

 

2 seconds on a 2 minute track is a big penalty - but 2 seconds on a long 4 minute track is not - so the rules and implimentation of the penaltys were very haphazard.

 

This way the rules are clear - you return where you left the track ... IE - you must re enter between the "gates" where you went out (each pole or tree where the tape is ties is a gate) ...

So if you dont do this - then you get disqualified ... the whole name of the game in DH is to be the fastest rider down a course designated by a taped off area ... if you leave the tape you are no longer on the course.....

 

So this way (although maybe mean to riders who crash on a steep section and cant get back up) reduces any form of ambiguity ... and the UCI officals can make an immediate decision based upon video footage ... and there are no comebacks or arguments

[beanz]

Clear rules are fair rules. In golf nobody complains that if you're an inch out-of-bounds you're 3 off the tee.

And after all mountain biking is the new golf, though whoever coined that phrase, I don't think they had Cairns DH in mind.

[Stretch]

 

This way the rules are clear - you return where you left the track ... IE - you must re enter between the "gates" where you went out (each pole or tree where the tape is ties is a gate) ...

So if you dont do this - then you get disqualified ...

 

So this way (although maybe mean to riders who crash on a steep section and cant get back up) reduces any form of ambiguity

 

so this begs the question - are the uci officials or course designers consciously thinking about where they place the gates? - i.e. if it is a very steep section - is the bottom pole being place at a point where they can easily get back to to enter?...my guess is not

[nigelhicks]

so this begs the question - are the uci officials or course designers consciously thinking about where they place the gates? - i.e. if it is a very steep section - is the bottom pole being place at a point where they can easily get back to to enter?...my guess is not

 

Actually they do ... all effort is made to accommodate steep fall sections ... so often "gates" are left wide in the event of an off-piste excursion.

 

In Val Di Sole - "gates are generally trees - so the width between gates is generally large - here in SA the rule of thumb is a gate every 5m - but in some instances we have had gates of 10m gap.

[nigelhicks]

I think Cairns didnt have their gate placement down though as also in zones such as the spot where Greg went off this zone should have been demarcated as a "fall zone" and had a Spectator B Zone taped around it - this would have eliminated the need for the gate around which Greg slid.

 

A spectator B zone is always put in for safety - but also allows the Track designer and UCI to open the race track gates up more to allow for issues when riders go off track.

 

In Cairns i hardly saw any B-zones - even on the steep stuff - think of that guy who got hit by Marcus Peckoll and then look at the Whoops - if that were my track I'd have had full B-zones along thats whole section like i did at the tables.

 

Also on the inside of corners - these should be B-zoned as if the rider cuts the corner there is a clear view for camera and the UCI officials (also no spectators leaning into the track to take pics)

[nigelhicks]

So this way (although maybe mean to riders who crash on a steep section and cant get back up) reduces any form of ambiguity

so this begs the question - are the uci officials or course designers consciously thinking about where they place the gates? - i.e. if it is a very steep section - is the bottom pole being place at a point where they can easily get back to to enter?...my guess is not

 

Also we need to think what is a steep section that the rider cant get back up from?

 

If you think of all the tracks and their respective steep sections - there are very few where a rider would go out of the tape at the top and slide dowm next to the track - in most cases the base of a steep section will have a turn which is padded or netted to stop the rider from exiting the track

 

Leogang for instance

 

http://ep1.pinkbike.org/p5pb10115155/p5pb10115155.jpg

 

This section shows catch netting where gwin crashed when his brake failed at worlds - it is a corner below the steep section.

 

Same at Champery - almost ALL the steep section had catch netting - think of Gwins crash at worlds there too

 

Then also here

http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/ngKigVv3u1Q/maxresdefault.jpg

 

This was the section where bryceland crashed and lost his bike down the hill - not because he actually crashed in the steep - but the bike catapulted down next to the end of the netting down the hill.

 

All other incidences have been on sections of track that are not steep

 

Rach - Windham

http://nsmb.com/assets/2012/images/windham/rachel1.jpg?KeepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=430&width=700

 

CLearly missing a gate on a flat section ....

 

You think of here in SA???

 

Cloud 9??? NO! ... you can easily run back 3m and get back in where you went out.

Haibo - may be an issue but again you wont exit on the steep stuff - you may fall there - but will exit on teh flatter stuff below.

 

No where else really!

 

So IMO its a good rule to have barring the odd fluke crash that may occur on a track like Val Di Sole or Champery!

[nigelhicks]

[nigelhicks]

Aarons crash at Leogang

 

 

vs

 

Rachels off at Windham at 2:10

 

[Stretch]

nige is da man!!

[Stretch]

so from that windham clip it was quite clear that rachel went through a b section and round a gate and entered through the next gate...yip she should have been disqualified

 

forgot about Josh's bike careering down the hill...that was epic

 

edit;sp

Edited April 30, 2014 by Stretch