CSA insisting on club membership

[TimCan]

I recently went onto the CSA site to get an annual cycling license. As of January 2022, there is a compulsory section requiring that you select an official cycling club. If you don't belong to a cycling club you will not be eligible to get a valid CSA number. CSA will happily take your money and you'll recieve a CSA number but it needs to be validated by the cycling club you have chosen. If you don't join the club you have selected, your CSA number remains invalid and you cannot use it to enter events. You can purchase day licenses but this gets pricey if you do more than a few events a year. So CSA is insisting that all cyclists who would like to compete in any SA cycling events need to belong to an official club on their list. This raises a few concerns. No all cyclists in SA have access to a local cycling club. Many chose not to belong to an official CSA registered club but ride informally with mates. There is a virtual club you can join on the CSA site but other than donating some cash to a club you'll never use, it seems a bit pointless. Perhaps I am missing something here and someone can enlighten me regarding the rationale behind this. Alternatively, I may just start a free virtual cycling club that anyone who wants a CSA license can join 🤔

[Spinnekop]

It's always been there.
There are clubs that you can join for free.

[Ozzie NL]

1 hour ago, Spinnekop said:

It's always been there.
There are clubs that you can join for free.

The rule has always been there but they only started enforcing it late last year. Prior to that you could just leave club blank and go issued a valid licence.

Given CSA's permanently cash strapped position, I think this is a daft move. It is designed to encourage people to become club members but I suspect the vast majority of clubless members (which is the majority of the cycling community) will choice to simply let their membership lapse and take out the odd day licence if needed. Break even point between day licenses and annual is ~3 racing days per annum. 

Proof of membership is rarely checked at events (incl the big ones) and sometimes not even available on their site (such as 2022 S2C race). Moreover, quite a few events choose not to be CSA sanctioned to avoid the associated costs (with very limited upside).

I see this move as just another step in CSA's death spiral.

Edited June 8, 2022 by Ossie NL

[Spinnekop]

10 minutes ago, Ossie NL said:

The rule has always been there but they only started enforcing it late last year. Prior to that you could just leave club blank and go issued a valid licence.

Given CSA's permanently cash strapped position, I think this is a daft move. It is designed to encourage people to become club members but I suspect the vast majority of clubless members (which is the majority of the cycling community) will choice to simply let their membership lapse and take out the odd day licence if needed. Break even point between day licenses and annual is ~3 racing days per annum. 

Proof of membership is rarely checked at events (incl the big ones) and sometimes not even available on their site (such as 2022 S2C race). Moreover, quite a few events choose not to be CSA sanctioned to avoid the associated costs (with very limited upside).

I see this move as just another step in the CSA's death spiral.

Interesting.

I have always been part of a club so I never picked up on the "leave blank" item.

 

[Frosty]

6 hours ago, TimCan said:

I recently went onto the CSA site to get an annual cycling license. As of January 2022, there is a compulsory section requiring that you select an official cycling club. If you don't belong to a cycling club you will not be eligible to get a valid CSA number. CSA will happily take your money and you'll recieve a CSA number but it needs to be validated by the cycling club you have chosen. If you don't join the club you have selected, your CSA number remains invalid and you cannot use it to enter events. You can purchase day licenses but this gets pricey if you do more than a few events a year. So CSA is insisting that all cyclists who would like to compete in any SA cycling events need to belong to an official club on their list. This raises a few concerns. No all cyclists in SA have access to a local cycling club. Many chose not to belong to an official CSA registered club but ride informally with mates. There is a virtual club you can join on the CSA site but other than donating some cash to a club you'll never use, it seems a bit pointless. Perhaps I am missing something here and someone can enlighten me regarding the rationale behind this. Alternatively, I may just start a free virtual cycling club that anyone who wants a CSA license can join 🤔

To create a (virtual) club you would need to pay an annual membership fee otherwise they block the club from being used.

[Ozzie NL]

6 hours ago, TimCan said:

I recently went onto the CSA site to get an annual cycling license. As of January 2022, there is a compulsory section requiring that you select an official cycling club. If you don't belong to a cycling club you will not be eligible to get a valid CSA number. CSA will happily take your money and you'll recieve a CSA number but it needs to be validated by the cycling club you have chosen. If you don't join the club you have selected, your CSA number remains invalid and you cannot use it to enter events. You can purchase day licenses but this gets pricey if you do more than a few events a year. So CSA is insisting that all cyclists who would like to compete in any SA cycling events need to belong to an official club on their list. This raises a few concerns. No all cyclists in SA have access to a local cycling club. Many chose not to belong to an official CSA registered club but ride informally with mates. There is a virtual club you can join on the CSA site but other than donating some cash to a club you'll never use, it seems a bit pointless. Perhaps I am missing something here and someone can enlighten me regarding the rationale behind this. Alternatively, I may just start a free virtual cycling club that anyone who wants a CSA license can join 🤔

You can contact CSA and ask for a refund which they do honour (been there, done that).... after trying to convince you to join some virtual club

[binxc]

Just join an online club like ROAG, it is R135 a year, less than R12 a month which is less than a cup of coffee. We have a local cycling club but got gatvol of the politics and lack of support. 

[Jbr]

That's the main use I have for my Tygerberg MTB membership at the moment haha. I must have ridden their trails only 2 or 3 times this year, but did pretty much all the road races in the CSA calendar with my licence validated by the club

[Ozzie NL]

18 minutes ago, binxc said:

Just join an online club like ROAG, it is R135 a year, less than R12 a month which is less than a cup of coffee. We have a local cycling club but got gatvol of the politics and lack of support. 

Hmm to me this is more about the principle of CSA forcing me to pay for something I do not want nor need and does not do anything with the funds to support cycling in SA but just uses it to pay salaries. That's when the anarchist in me takes over.

Know that acting on principle is usually not the financially astute route but it feels better and given my rationale above re day licenses, checking at events etc it is pretty close to break even (joining CSA and ROAG works out to R470, which equates to 9 R50 day licenses)

Edited June 8, 2022 by Ossie NL

[PhilipV]

16 minutes ago, binxc said:

Just join an online club like ROAG, it is R135 a year, less than R12 a month which is less than a cup of coffee. We have a local cycling club but got gatvol of the politics and lack of support. 

Ja but I'd rather use that money for something with upside. Like drinking 4 cups of coffee.

 

[Furbz]

It’s fairly standard industry practice for most sports I’d assume?

I know to be a part of the official golf handicap system you also need to be a member of a club.

maybe more knowledgeable members can confirm if other sporting bodies do the same?

I must admit I also feel it’s unneeded. I have no interest in being a member of any club. I just want to ride and play golf with mates.

I do race and I do play decent golf - neither of which are dependent on me being a member of a club.

[binxc]

16 minutes ago, Ozzie NL said:

Hmm to me this is more about the principle of CSA forcing me to pay for something I do not want nor need and does not do anything with the funds to support cycling in SA but just uses it to pay salaries. That's when the anarchist in me takes over.

Know that acting on principle is usually not the financially astute route but it feels better and given my rationale above re day licenses, checking at events etc it is pretty close to break even (joining CSA and ROAG works out to R470, which equates to 9 R50 day licenses)

True, there is the "principle" of the matter. If it works out cheaper to get day licenses for you based on the amount you race annually, that is probably the better option. The money still goes to the same people and is used by them for the same reasons. The anarchist option is not to do CSA races at all and then give them zero Rands, if your objection is how they use the money. 

[Ozzie NL]

10 minutes ago, binxc said:

True, there is the "principle" of the matter. If it works out cheaper to get day licenses for you based on the amount you race annually, that is probably the better option. The money still goes to the same people and is used by them for the same reasons. The anarchist option is not to do CSA races at all and then give them zero Rands, if your objection is how they use the money. 

Or just ride races without paying CSA license at all... easy as I have never been checked... true anarchist style

[DieselnDust]

2 hours ago, Spinnekop said:

It's always been there.
There are clubs that you can join for free.

Nope this is a new ruling. In the past taking a racing license required club membership.

from 2022 renewing your CSA membership requires club membership.

this was pushed by clubs with so much internal politics they’re literally falling apart. The only way they can grow is to compel membership. 
crappy tactic . Instead of making clubs worthwhile by offering tangible benefits they want to force membership. Tis the South African way

[Frosty]

47 minutes ago, Furbz said:

It’s fairly standard industry practice for most sports I’d assume?

I know to be a part of the official golf handicap system you also need to be a member of a club.

maybe more knowledgeable members can confirm if other sporting bodies do the same?

I must admit I also feel it’s unneeded. I have no interest in being a member of any club. I just want to ride and play golf with mates.

I do race and I do play decent golf - neither of which are dependent on me being a member of a club.

To send riders to the Olympics, the sports federation must belong to SASCOC.

To belong to SASCOC, the federation must comply with certain requirements, like regional affiliates. That’s why there are supposed to be 5 regions in Gauteng, but only 3 functional regions (North, Central and South).

I’m not 100% sure if the mandatory club membership comes from CyclingSA or SASCOC. It wouldn’t surprise me if it’s the latter.

[Skubarra]

32 minutes ago, Ozzie NL said:

Or just ride races without paying CSA license at all... easy as I have never been checked... true anarchist style

Think in Gauteng things might be a bit different than here in the Cape, here it is checked frequently, even on some of the platteland basaar funrides I have done there was a csa auntie with a laptop checking memberships.