Monday, April 18, 2016

Nifty Mixty 2016



Nifty Mixty is a 46 mile mixed terrain adventure ride in the East Bay Hills with over 6,000' of climbing. There will be 9 timed Sectors, while the remainder of the course is neutral. Take your time on the neutral sections, regroup, socialize, navigate, etc. About 80% dirt and 20% paved. Most dirt is smooth and most (but not all) grades are not steep. The course is doable on a road bike with sturdy tires, however a gravel. cross, or mt. bike is recommended. The event is April 23, 2016, Cerrito Vista Park, Moeser Ln & Pomona Ave, El Cerrito, CA., 7:30 A.M, registration at 7:00 AM. Please check out the Nifty Mixty Facebook Event Page and RSVP if you are coming. Here is the Nifty Mixty 2016 Route. Check back for updated versions.

Below is a list of Rules for the Nifty Mixty:

1. This is a handicapped event. All riders compete on equal footing. I have scientific data that accounts for differences in gender and age. So if you are a studley Cat 1, 28 year old dude, you have the same chance as a fit, 60 year old woman who is age group National Champ.

2. This is a fun, mixed terrain ride with timed Sectors. Between Sectors is neutral. Rest, chill, eat, drink, socialize, regroup, chat, and have fun!

3. Be courteous to other trail users. Slow down, call out to hikers, and pass as to not frighten anyone. Say hello, Good Morning, and comment about how nice a f-in day it is! If you see a horseback rider, you MUST STOP! Ask the rider if it is OK to pass. And then do so slowly and carefully. No shifting, skidding, or any other movements or noises that could spook a horse. This is SERIOUS!

4. For each timed segment, the results will be handicapped and a leader board with placings will be determined. Riders will then have 9 scores with individual placings. The individual placings for each Sector will be added up, and the rider with the lowest score will be the winner. This means that all segments are weighted equally, regardless of length or elapsed time. It is possible, depending on accuracy of GPS data, that each rider will be allowed 1-3 "throwout" segments. Regardless of throw outs, a rider must complete the entire course to be scored.

5. Riders will be responsible for delivering accurate Sector times and uploading them to Strava by 8 PM April 23rd following the ride. If you have a Garmin 500, I highly recommend that you also bring your iPhone or Android device and record a second file. Garmin 500's have inferior GPS accuracy, and your iPhone is actually much better. If a rider has shitty GPS data, I will be unable to match segments and that rider will not be listed in results. Again, if you have a Garmin 500, try to take backup measures.

6. There are 10 Sectors on Strava, all labeled with Nifty Mixty Sector X (but only 9 will be counted). You are responsible to know where these are. The Sectors are designed such that there is little or no navigation required within the Sector. But it will be prudent to know where the Sector starts and ends. Sectors will start well after, and end well before any gates or obstacles, so plenty of time to get rolling at the beginning, and plenty of room to stop before the end. No need to impale yourself on a gate because you think the Sector ends there. It doesn't. Each Sector is called out in the Cue Sheet with mileage and a short description.

7. There are some downhill stretches in the Sectors. The safety of you and other trail users is of paramount importance. If you jeopardize that, you will be DQ'd or penalized. Read Rule number 3 again, please.

8. Single Speed riders shall have a 5% time bonus in addition to the standard age/sex bonus. Since most of the Sectors are Single Speed friendly, it is reasonable to assume that if you are a strong Single Speed rider, you will have an advantage. Single speed riders must use the same gear for the entire event. Duh. It's Single Speed.

9. There will be a six place Podium with awards. All entry fees will go back to cash prizes minus any expenses to host the event. Prize money will depend on the number of entries. Entry donation shall be $10. This is a non profit ride.

10. Ride organizer will be listed in the results, but not eligible for official placing or prize money.

11. If a rider botches a Sector, that rider can go back and start again, but cannot go back to a previous Sector. So, if you flat or crash on a Sector, and wish to do it again, you can backtrack and have another go, as many times as you like. However, once you finish the next Sector, you cannot redo a previous Sector.

More rules may be added or modified at any time before the ride.

Here are the segments for 2016. Each Sector should be lableled 2015 as they are the same as last year. 

6 comments:

  1. Will a complete map be provided?

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  2. No maps are provided, other than the online map link above. You can print it out, along with a route sheet if you like. Otherwise, upload the course to your GPS unit. Alternatively, and this may be the best option, stay with me, the leader. We regroup after each sector, ride neutral to the next, and I then describe that sector so you know where to go, and where it begins and ends.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Any plans for a Nifty Mixty this year?

    ReplyDelete