Which class do i race in?

[Dreggsy]

Howdy all,
Im getting back into racing this year.
But i dont know which class i should Race in
this year im turning 33
last season i raced in i was in sport and always finished in the top 20
5th being best and 17th being worst.
should i move up to "old mans class"
does old mans class mean ill be racing the like of Sharples Ronning and Eva?
Should i go on in sport and beat all these kiddies on there expensive rigs?
( makes you feel good when youbeat them at my age ).
any comments appreciated

[Rik]

I know how road cycling works, but not MTB...
but, once you're in a certain age category, are you locked in to that grade? Ie, once you turn old enough to be Masters X, does that mean you have to race in Masters X every race, or can you slot yourself into the sport/elite/whatever grades?

[Jordy]

you can race elite,expert and sport at any age

[Rik]

But are you still classed as a master? Do they even have seperate masters categories, or is it just on paper?

[Jordy]

you can race elite if your an 8 year old... they call you elite even though you might walk your bike down the track

[Rik]

That doesn't really answer the question about Masters, does it?

[RCOH]

At WSMTB ther are 3 classes: A, B & C.

You can chose what class you want to race in, or it can be decided by the time you do.

eg. At Dargle DH track best time was 1'20" ish

A grade: 1'20" - 1'35"
B grade: 1'35" - 2'00"
C grade: 2'00" +

All ages race together but points are allocated in same way as national & state series:
u15
u17
elite (A)
expert (B)
sport (C)
masters

I did a season with them last year, & this is how i figured it to work. Hope it is of some assistance

[Jordy]

i kno this is off-topic but wsmtb might be holding a set of club races using ourimbah,dargle and some other tracks

[DEVLIN]

If your are a masters rider you can race in Elite, Expert, Sport or Masters. If you race in Sport or Expert, in say the NSW state series, you can go up a class but you cannot go down. Last year, as a Masters, you were able to go and race in say Expert then next round return to Masters. I am not sure if this should or should not be allowed. The top guys in Masters XC and from what of seen of results, would easily ride at the top of Expert and middle of Elite............(thinking)............... I think the Masters/Expert crossover in fine, but once you decide to race Elite you should stay there.

[Toxic]

i kno this is off-topic but wsmtb might be holding a set of club races using ourimbah,dargle and some other tracks

Well they've got a whole series scheduled on their website:

http://www.wsmtb.com/calenders_dh.html

[Rik]

Offtopic still, I like how they have recreational DH for $5 entry fee, that really makes things affordable and accessible to everyone. Even if you do have to push your bike to the top, it's still a cheap way to get in to it.