Welcome members and friends of CRCA to the 2012 season!  This year promises to be another great season of racing and we hope each of you has a safe and rewarding season. The board has been working hard to make the club and our races even better this year.  Among our high priorities for the year are:

• Deliver high quality and competitive club races - from registration to results we have made significant enhancements to the organization of our club races
• Expand and improve open races – we are raising the bar on our open races by increasing the level of promotion, sponsorship and prize money to create high quality events
• Promote the development of women’s racing – we are aiming to create an environment that over the long-term will help increase the number of women participating in the sport
• Support rider development – we are continuing to improve our coaching sessions and adding financing support for promising riders who seek to continue their development by racing in major events outside of the New York tri-state region
• Improve communication with members – we are expanding our use of social media and significantly increasing the quality of information on CRCA.net

Hopefully you have seen evidence of some of these items already.  We are particularly happy with the success we have achieved to date with finding sponsors interested in supporting our extensive race calendar.  It speaks to the quality of CRCA and its members that sponsors have been so keen to be involved with our races.

This year our club series is presented by Accelerade and 2nd Surge, both of which are produced by PacificHealth Laboratories.  In addition to financial support, PacificHealth will provide samples and discounted pricing for members during the season. This significant sponsorship of the club is greatly appreciated and we encourage members to read more about it on CRCA.net.  Check out the member benefits page in the secure members section of the website for current offers.

Additional sponsors of races or race series this year so far include BikeDoctor NYC, I WILL Foundation, Lucarelli & Castaldi and SIDS’s Bikes NYC.  We thank all the sponsors for their support of CRCA.

Our first club race is this Saturday.  Please note:

• We made tremendous improvements last year as it relates to compliance with Central Park rules.  This greatly assists when we negotiate race dates and other details with the Park’s Department each year.  Please re-read the race protocol here and help us keep our racing privileges in Central Park
• We will have a separate check in line for dinosaur and donor members.  Members who have not prepaid will check in using the usual field by field registration lines.
• Race registration will open 45 minutes prior to the start and close 10 minutes before the race start time.  Our races will start on time.
• If you did not pick up your race number or it was not sent in the mail, arrive at least 45 minutes prior to the race start time to ensure there is sufficient time to collect your number or sort out any last minute problems
• NUMBERS RIGHT.  This year numbers should be placed on the RIGHT.  Please take care when pinning on your number to ensure your number will be seen by the finish line camera.  Ask for help if you need help pinning on a number.  Experienced members, if you see a newer club member that needs help with their number, please offer to help.
• We are improving our results reporting and anticipate having printed results available at the registration area “shortly” after the finish of the last race, but please bear with us we get this process implemented.
• Don't forget to bring a 2012 USAC release form to registration. All racers - dino or otherwise - must have a 2012 release form to race

Teams should note the revised rules for the Jim Boyd and Team Cup competitions. The Grant’s Tomb Criterium takes place on March 10^th and is among the open races included in the competitions that you must pre-register for if you intend on competing.

This year we are on track to again grow our membership.  Welcome to all our new members.  Please check out the coaching schedule for sessions that will help with your skills and your fitness while also helping you to meet others in the club.  Our qualified coaches are a great source of information for you.  The upcoming men’s clinic (there will be a women’s clinic in June) is an excellent way to experience your first race.

Many of you have been generous in your additional financial contributions to the Development Foundation, Central Park Conservancy and CRCA itself.  We are especially grateful to our donor level members for their support.  Our juniors could still use additional financial support.  So if you didn’t make a contribution and would like to, you can make a tax deductible contribution to the Development Foundation here.

Recently I have met with many racers from around the country.  CRCA and New York City racing is the envy of many with so many races so close to home.  The privilege of racing in Central Park that we enjoy requires all of us to remember that we represent the club every time we get on our bike and especially so in Central Park and during and after our races.

Good luck to everyone for the season.

Regards

Rod

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