Thursday, March 23, 2006

TRANQUILITY TIRE TANTRUM POSTPONED TO APRIL 1


Due to the large amount of snowfall in the Omaha area, and the delicate freeze/thaw cycle now occuring on the trail, the Tranquility Tire Tantrum XC will be postponed one week until Saturday, April 1. Soil types at Tranquility are very delicate, and the potential for erosion is high, so every effort must be made to avoid damage to the trails and the city park.

Register online now at http:/www.velosource.com/

The forecast indicates that warm temperatures are on the way, and the trail is expected to dry accordingly and be race ready on April 1. The first of eight races in the 2006 Nebraska Lottery Psycowpath Series, the XC season opener will set the bar high for the remainder of the series.

The Tranquility Tire Tantrum to be held April 1, will feature a free t-shirt and water bottle for every participant, as well as a vendor expo area, demo bikes, picnic table seating near the staging grounds and start/finish line, and more. Don't miss out!

http://www.nebraskacyclingnews.com/psycowpath


10 comments:

cvo said...

I'm down,
it's the free water bottle that sealed the deal man...

hope it dries out... gonna be one hellava weekend.

omahole, then Lawrance. the next day. ouchy.

I'm down though...

dale said...

Yea 3pO, I think the water bottle will seal the deal for most riders.

Temps are forecasted to be above freezing day and night all next week, and with a few days of rain to boot, the snow should be long gone by race day! Sunny with temperatures in the upper 40's and 50's at race time, April 1 has the makings of a fine day for racing.

And we will have great shop representation in the expo area from The Bike Way, Monkey Wrench Cycles, and Bike Masters.

Looking forward to seeing you all at Tranquility on the first!

cvo said...

I'm keeping my fingers crossed man.

my new pink helmet came in today, and I'm making my stickers for it at work to boot.

I hope the weather holds out for us. and if it doesn't well, I'll be at the race when it re-scheduals again...

T-bone said...

Who's in for some Crowder this weekend? There won't be any off-road riding around here so lets road trip it. It's supposed to be 50 and sunny on Saturday there.

dale said...

With the April 1 date, the possibilities are endless! :D

Rusty Car said...

We are heading to Crowder. So far four of us. We plan to be on the bikes in Trenton about 11 on Sunday morning. Temps and conditions are looking prime.

Don Kuhns said...

I'm not trying to burst anyone's bubble, but there's still over 6 inches of snow on many parts of the trail, with only a week left to go. If anyone wants to help me give mother nature a little kick in the ass, you could walk the trail this weekend. The grassy meadow in particular could use some more foot traffic to get rid of the snow faster. I intend to finish shovelling the deep forest tommorrow, so you needn't worry about that.

How "down" are you?

dale said...

Don,
I appreciate your help shoveling the snow off the trail. When I realized the trail couldn't be cleared in time for March 25, I decided to let God do the melting.

I know some think the snow won't melt in time for April 1. Since the snow stopped Tuesday, only 8 or so hours a day has been above freezing. If that didn't change next week, I would be pessimistic, too. But the forecast includes rain which will melt the snow, especially in the woods, and sunny, warmer temps that remain above freezing during the nights. That means constant melting.

Though this snow forced us to reschedule, the moisture is really needed and the slow melt keeps most entering the soil instead of running off.

Last year before the training race, we had three or four days of rain, then one day of sunny, warm temps and a 20-30 mph wind. TPMBT was rideable the next day. The moisture decreased the lap speeds but allowed the bikes to smooth out the tread. I remember riding after the race and thinking the trail was almost expressway smooth compared to what it was like before!

If you want to keep shoveling, go for it. But if there is any snow left on April 1, it will be the shoveled snow piles. Compacting and thickening the snow slows down the melt. The last vestiges of a snow storm are the piles on the edges of parking lots. Just make sure all your shoveling puts the snow downhill from the trail and it will be fine.

Don Kuhns said...

Dale,

I've been pretty careful to pile the snow so that it won't end up back on the trail. I don't know jack about trail maintenance, but common sense tells me that if most of the snow isn't off the trail by Monday or so, we'll have a very messy race, or no race at all. I'd rather not leave it to chance, although that's always a factor, isn't it?

dale said...

An unpredictable event like a tornado touching down in Tranquility would postpone the race. But that has a very small "chance" of happening before April 1.

I prefer to view weather forecast in terms of that which is more likely to happen. The shorter the time horizon, the more likely the forecast is very close to reality. Based on the current weather forecast, the biggest affect on the race is not how fast the snow melts, imo, but how much rain we may get Thursday and the drying affects of Friday's weather.

I really want to have this race April 1 for a number of reasons. Because there are a very limited number of dates available to run a race, a wider array of tread conditions will be acceptable to race on than a weekly ride, for instance. A tread with some soft spots and a few greasy sections will be deemed racable. Plus, the warmer temperatures will bring out a higher number of participants which is part of the calculation.

I would be getting in some riding on the cement trails and roads this week because there is a high probability we will be racing at Tranquility April 1!