New Registration Rules for Downieville Classic
For the 2010 All-Mountain category, which sells out its 200 slots in a matter of minutes, event organizers are qualifying top finishers from the last year's races. New reg date is April 1 — no joke.
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By Singletrack.com
Downieville Classic registration, take-two, is set for April 1, but the new date brings with it a new way of doing business.
For the 2010 all-mountain category, which sells out its 200 slots in a matter of minutes, race organizers are qualifying top finishers from the last year’s races. For example, the top two finishers in each category from the combined cross-country and all-mountain classes; the top two finishers in each category from the downhill race; and the top two finishers in each category from the all-mountain overall.
The remaining 2010 All-Mountain entries will be available through Active.com on April 1 at 8 p.m.
Starting in 2011, racers must “qualify” for the all-mountain to be eligible for an entry, according to the Downieville Classic Web site.
The changes in signing up for the July 9-11 race in California’s Sierra Nevada follow the initial registration on Feb. 19, when hopeful racers were asked by active.com for a passcode, which very few people actually knew about. The error caused considerable confusion for those vying for the coveted 200 spots for the all-mountain race. Refunds were made to the lucky 800 people who were able to register for the slots — 200 for the coveted all-mountain race and 600 for the cross-country.
To earn all-mountain accolades, riders must compete in the Classic’s 29-mile, point-to-point XC race on Saturday, and then take on the famed 17-mile Downieville Downhill on Sunday — on the exact same rig. Lowest combined XC and DH race time wins the heady title of All-Mountain World Champion.
The cross-country race accommodates 600 riders and includes a lung- and leg-busting climb into the Sierra Buttes at the get-go, which then turns into a baby-head strewn descent into some of the most diverse riding you’ll ever encounter. Both races end on the streets of Downieville, a funky Gold Rush hamlet on the banks of the North Fork of the Yuba River.