Sandbagging

Serious post time

I'm currently sitting in third in points for the 250 novice class in the series I race, I've gone 5-5 both of the races we've already run, just so happened that the guys in 4th and 5th did better than me one race than rather poorly the other. The guys in first and second, have both finished first and second both races, both are running loop times on par with your average 250 amateur rider.
Maybe if I was younger and this was all about trophies to me I'd be aggravated, but I'm not. To me its "just" the C Class, which means that even though I want to become one of the fast guys, I'm not going to stress about 2 guys (which for the record I don't know their racing history) who could be sand bagging, if they truly belong in B and are just doing this for trophies, I'll use them as my target speed since I do want to improve and move up through the ranks, I really don't care that to them a plastoid trophy is more important than improving as a rider, actually they're doing me a service, they're giving me something to work for, I'll bust ass all year long to run with them, and I'll move up to B next year and probably get owned pretty bad, but a C class championship isn't what I want to be the highlight of my time spent racing. Actually I won't, because for me personally I've never finished outside the top 10, this is just how I ride period, I want something that I can say I worked hard for.

Man, you like to through out that whole "top ten" alot. :rolleyes: :smirk:

He likes to get his moneys worth ... :prof: As for sandbagging, you will find that in any ameture sporting event. Anything to get in the money! We have it in our weekly bowling league ... 200 avg bowlers establishing with a 165 so they can have handicap. Unless they're new, they get called out on the rug and they eitehr start bowling their level or quit.

You have to addrss it otherwise they'll keep screwing you!
 
Okay, I want to bring this issue up for discussion, because it has stricken a foul nerve with me :rant: If you already haven't heard my heinous facebook post, I'm enraged. We have all heard of people intruding on racing classes set for a lower skilled rider just so they can win trophies and feel special but it's come to a flat out level of distrust and cheating. Yesterday I attended the Malvern Racing season opener competing in 250C and schoolboy. Of corse there are the typically sandbaggers in C with almost 60 riders, but schoolboy made me want to puke. There were 28 riders, and about half the portion I knew were overage for the class. The rule book clearly states that the age you are Jan 1st is the age you are permitted to remain for the entire race season in this case 12-15. I singled out 2 riders (one from my school) that have been 16 since last year, and a few riders from facebook and the local tracks known to be 17. This infuriates me, as I would rather take 14/24 in a class I am suited for than get 1st in one I'm not. I am HIGHLY debating whether or not I should write a protest now or wait to see if they stick in the class. I'd like other opinions of you all :noidea:

Not sure what rule book you're goin by but schoolboy 1 is 12-16 125cc two stroke or 150cc 4 stroke [big wheels] and school boy 2 is 13-16 150cc two stroke or 250cc 4stroke. Then there is the college b/c class which 17-24 125cc-open.. Now the 17year olds may have gotten into the schoolboy class because they were still 16 at the start of the year.

Now, I understand your concerns on sandbagging.. More in the C class.. Where you will see C riders being fast enough to win B class races localy. How ever if they are a national level racer in the C class they can not race B anywhere else or they will be bumped up to B nationally also. With that being said they may be super fast locally but still be a Mid pack C racer nationally. I see it all the time here.. The kid I work with and a few friends of ours.. Last year they all raced C class national and just demolished the C class localy but when they made it to LLs didn't make it in the top 10.. The only thing is that Logan [the kid I haul around] did not Race any C class races[except for LLs area,regional and the LLs]. He only raced Schoolboy which is B/C.. He didn't want to race C kids He wanted to Race B kids to get some decent challenges.

The thing is that people are so damn stupid and touchy about this it makes it hard.. there was one kid who thought that if he raced schoolboy he had to race B for LLs so he just raced C class and got called sandbagger ect.. How ever he was only racing C locally for practice for National races which he truly is a C class racer there..

So, to that before you rant about "Sandbaggers" Might want to ask them if they are racing nationally. If they are then you have no reason to whine.. If they are not and only doing the local series ect.. then yeah they are jagoffs..
 
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