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NEWS
FORT WILLIAM WINS EVENT OF THE YEAR 2007
For the 3rd consecutive year, the international mountain bike teams, tech support and race organizers organization (IMTTO) has awarded the prestigious "IMTTO Event Of The Year" trophy to Rare Management.
In 2007 they were the organizers of the UCI Mountain Bike and Trials World Championships in the classic venue of Fort William, Scotland. Close to 60 members voted (teams and tech support companies only), and of the 25 events voted for, it was clear that Fort William was again the obvious favorite.
Unlike other awards, this one recognizes any mountain bike event held in 2007, and is voted on by the industry main players when it comes to mountain bike racing and events.
For the second year in a row, the members voted the Mont-Sainte-Anne World Cup as the 2nd best event (and therefore the best World Cp of 2007), very closely followed by the Houffalize World Cup. The highest ranked non-World Cup, non-World Championship event was the Roc d’Azur held in Southern France.
"The feedback we get from our members in this voting process is extremely valuable. We pass on that constructive feedback to the various organizers in order to help them further improve their already excellent events. As an organization, the role of IMTTO is to further assist the events in their growth and therefore further secure the future of mountain bike racing as a viable sport for our members. The trophy we have awarded to Rare Management symbolizes this aim." – IMTTO President, Martin Whiteley.
Results:
1. UCI Mountain Bike World Championships – Fort William, Scotland
2. Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup – Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada
3. Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup – Houffalize, Belgium
4. Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup – Maribor, Slovenia
5. Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup – Offenburg, Germany
6. Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup – Vigo, Spain
7. Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup – Schladming, Austria
8. Roc d’Azur – Frejus, France
9. Kokanee Crankworx – Whistler Mountain, Canada
10. Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup – Champery, Switzerland
11. Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup – Saint Felicien, Canada
12. Bundesliga Cross Country National – Heubach, Germany
13. Swisspower Cup – Bern, Switzerland
14. Absa Cape Epic – South Africa
15. Lisbon Downtown – Lisbon, Portugal
16. Bundesliga Cross Country National – Munsingen, Germany
17. US Open – Diablo Park, NJ, USA
18. Bearclaw Invitational – Mountain Washington, Canada
19. Swisspower Cup – Schaan, Switzerland
20. Sea Otter Classic – Monterey, CA, USA
21. Mountain States Cup - USA
22. Maxxis Cup International – Gouveia, Portugal
23. Ostravsky Chachar XC – Czech Republic
24. Swisspower Cup – Muttenz, Switzerland
25. Wheels Of Speed – Willingen, Germany Letter To UCI On Women's Participation
The UCI recently wrote to IMTTO seeking its input regarding their concerns that women's participation in gravity events, especially the Women's 4X and Junior Women's Downhill at the recent World Championships in New Zealand, seemed to be on the decline. After consulting its membership as well as other key experts and top women riders, the IMTTO Executive formed a reply from the majority of responses, and sent it to the UCI. Here it is below:
Peter van den Abeele
Mountain Bike Co-ordinator
UCI
CH 1860
Aigle
Switzerland
22nd January, 2007.
Dear Peter,
Thank you very much for your letter of December 13th seeking our reaction and comments to the weak participation of junior women in Downhill and women generally in 4X.
We asked our membership, as well as some very qualified coaches and top athletes, to gain a better understanding of the real situation.
We will address the four specific questions you raised in your letter however we would like to start out by saying that the situation in Rotorua was obviously an anomaly. Many National Federations simply did not have the financial resources to send the same number of athletes to New Zealand as they would to a European based World Championships, so therefore we don't wish to dwell on this particular event, but more in general terms.
1) Are the courses too difficult for women?
For some women, they are difficult, however, if we are talking about World Cup and World Championship level racing, the courses must be appropriately challenging. Most of the top women athletes do not want to see a compromise in the courses and very much welcome the fact that they race on the same courses as men. Unlike many cycling disciplines, the opportunity exists in downhill for optional course sections to be included, that are easier, but a little longer. These will allow women of varying abilities to compete. In 4X, courses must be designed always so that the men's race, and its spectacle, is not compromised to allow incompetent competitors, male or female, to participate. Most big jumps, if designed correctly, can be ridden over at slow speed. 4X courses must not be built for the lowest level skilled athletes! Doing so will not bring more women into the sport, but ruin the top level racing.
Ultimately though, courses should be "hard to ride fast" not "hard to ride". Courses should be designed so that riders are not encouraged to take unreasonable risk in the search for reward.
We could ask, why are some women finding the courses too difficult? The key factors seem to be the lack of skill training, lack of resources (women are not funded like men, and all National Federations, except maybe the French, do not fund downhill and 4X like Olympic XC).
Another reason is that in the eyes of many, gravity racing is perceived as a very strength based masculine sport. It is not considered a very feminine sport, and similar to Moto Cross, it will always have a much lower female participation in the racing side (but a high participation in the support and social areas of the sport).
It is also vital that at National level, the courses don't replicate World Cup level courses. The national and regional courses should be more welcoming to beginner and intermediate riders, and form a developing ground and feeder system for international events. This progression is logical. Simple local club events welcoming all new members, slightly more difficult regional events…and so on up to the top level events where people should expect to be challenged.
2) Does it depend on the material?
No not at all. From a technological point of view, competitive bikes are readily available, and often for less money than top road or triathlon bikes. All sizes are also available. Not from every manufacturer, but from most. What could more of a factor is the maintenance of the bikes. Suspension and brakes require a good deal of attention and without mechanical support at the top level it is harder for sure. Most women have a difficult time getting that level of mechanical support.
Without outside sponsors supporting the athletes financially, the burden has been left to the bike industry, and the bike industry will support male athletes before women due to the level of exposure given by the bike industry media. Back when the World Cup was televised and women were guaranteed some TV coverage, the top and mid level women did attract support, but these days it is so much harder for them.
The overall costs to participate and finding a place to stay etc, gets expensive. Funding and support are the real issues, not equipment.
3) Why don't more riders compete in Downhill and 4X?
As mentioned before, there is a widely held perception that these disciplines are male dominated and strength based. Also, with the dramatically reduced sponsorship support, it's become very difficult for women to participate. Lack of opportunity and support, especially versus risk, is a major factor. There's also not much motivation or incentive because even if women do race well, the rewards, recognition and potential opportunities achieved from these results are weak. Many of our members, who are commercial enterprises, find it hard to justify the cost of supporting/sponsoring a female athlete versus the return commercially, in the current media climate. So until sponsors, and therefore teams, are willing to pay decent salaries to female athletes, we're going to continue to see weak participation at the top level.
Furthermore, comparing our sport to others such as Surfing, Triathlon, Tennis, Snowboard etc, it's clear that what we lack is the concept that these riders can be used in the marketing of the sport. The female market in Snowboard and Surfing has seen increases in double digit percentages and part of this has been the creation of an image that this is an attractive
"lifestyle sport".
The fact that XC and BMX are Olympic disciplines will have a negative impact on participation in DH and 4X as choices for Olympic disciplines, which are funded more often by National Federations, become more attractive.
Another factor gets back to skills. Not that many females are skilled enough to do this sport. As with most skill based sports, the skill is learned at a young age (especially if there is an element of danger involved). Boys grow up playing on bikes, not many girls do this. Consequently, the women that have developed the skills are a long way ahead of those that didn't. This makes it very hard to compete against those that are skilled, and a little intimidating.
There are very few places to practice 4X. Permanent tracks are not easy to find. Most of the tracks for DH and 4X are only open during events, and are not open all year round. There are exceptions like Whistler Mountain, Todtnau, Leogang and some other European MTB Parks, but for the most part it's not possible to practice. If the sport cannot be practiced easily in large cities, recruitment will be difficult.
The only place where recruitment is logical is from BMX, where the riders are younger, and they're learning skills at the correct age. There are females out there with the correct mentality, but it is difficult to get them "up to speed". There are not enough qualified coaches in this area. Even when a girl wants to do this sport and she goes to a race wanting to improve, there's no guidance in place to help her to do what comes easily and naturally to a boy, play on a bike.
4) How can we stimulate a higher participation?
Our membership and respondents had many answers to this question, but the main points were:
1) Get Downhill into the Summer Olympic program.
2)Encourage National Federations to have solid development programs, and a national calendar events structure that encourages riders at the beginner level.
3) Develop a coaching clinic for females only, at all levels (including elite), from all countries, so the females can then become coaches/mentors and therefore recruiters and identifiers of female talent.
4) National Federations need to spend money with greater equality across XC/DH/4X and across men's and women's programs. This simply isn't happening, and we are now seeing the consequences.
5) Better World Cup track design to make the courses rideable, but still difficult at high speed.
6) A return of the World Cup to more substantial TV coverage globally, with women getting some of that TV coverage and therefore encouraging the bike industry and non-industry to make worthwhile commercial investments in women's racing.
7) Better marketing of 4X and DH to BMX athletes, focusing on the benefits available (i.e. - international races for women).
8) Use of riders such as Anne-Caroline Chausson as role models and ambassadors for the sport to the female market.
9) Easier cross over between BMX and MTB.
10) Provide free entry for women into 4X World Cup events.
11) Do not eliminate the Junior World Championship for Women's Downhill. This will have a further negative impact on women's cycling.
12) Schedules. As we have tried to explain before, having the 4X BEFORE the Downhill final will always have a negative impact. Many riders want to do both, but need to do the Downhill first. In the 4X there is often a chance of a rider-to-rider crash and most riders don't want to take that extra risk before a downhill. The World Championships schedule in New Zealand had a negative impact on male and female entries.
13) Commissaires need to start using the yellow card more in 4X! The current perception is that it's a last-rider-standing-crash-festival and this puts women off. Commissaires have issued zero yellow cards in 2 years of World Cup racing!
A lot of the above issues rest with the UCI's members, the National Federations, and we feel the UCI has a big role to play in providing the motivation and incentive for the National Federations to act on these measures.
Hoping this information is helpful. Thank you once again for seeking our opinions.
Yours sincerely,
Martin Whiteley
President IMTTO Letter To UCI
Recently, IMTTO sent a letter to the UCI representing a number of issues and concerns for our membership. The dialogue with the UCI since this letter was sent has been positive.
Peter van den Abeele
Mountain Bike Co-ordinator
UCI
CH 1860
Aigle
Switzerland
1st June, 2006
Dear Peter,
Following our most recent meeting of IMTTO, which was held on Friday May 26, I have been asked by the membership to write to you and the UCI Mountain Bike Commission to express our views on certain matters pertaining to international mountain bike racing.
This letter is being sent by email, without a signature, so that you have it in time for your next Commission meeting, but an original will also come later by post.
Firstly, just for information, we wish to inform you that due to his change of work situation, Antoine Lyard is no longer the President of IMTTO. We will be holding elections this month for the three executive member positions, however, during that time, I will be the Acting President.
Please also note that our membership is currently at 73 members, with three more members joining this weekend in Willingen.
Secondly, we would like to express our concern that the formal email sent by Antoine Lyard to Daniel Baal on March 29 of this year, and copied to you and other members of the Commission, concerning the change of race status for certain key multi stage events, like Sea Otter, to being Marathon ranked events, has still not been replied to.
We feel that it would be appropriate to receive a reply, answering those concerns. The reply can now be sent to me.
Regarding our recent meeting, please see below the matters we wish to raise with you:
1) UCI Ranking: One of our members, Rene Walker of BernBike.ch has circulated a petition for the return of the UCI ranking to being a continuous ranking. Our members fully support this petition. The current ranking system makes no sense. Riders that are number 1 in the world at the end of the year are 30th on the next ranking, due to one event. No other international sport’s ranking is this erratic. The UCI ranking is in danger of being ridiculed by the media as it bears no relevance on the true status of the riders. It should be a continuous ranking like before when it was nearly always an accurate representation of the current standings of the best riders. A lot of work went into the research and development of the previous ranking, and the results showed. The current ranking system is not a ranking, but a just point’s competition.
2) Drug Testing: Our members, who represent the majority of the top XC athletes in the world, would like a formal explanation of what took place in Curacao regarding the UCI’s failure to carry out drug testing at the World Cup. Furthermore, we understand that no drug testing was done on the Women’s XC race at Spa-Francorchamps, World Cup #3. Can you explain this too? Given that known drug cheats like Filip Meirhaeghe are now racing again, you can understand our decreasing faith in the system if in two out three World Cups drug testing was not carried out.
3) Course Cutting Cheats: We would like to know what action the UCI is taking against the documented and widely publicised course cutting cheats in the Madrid XC World Cup. We also understand cheating took place in Spa-Francorchamps. We strongly believe that if the UCI has any evidence of cheating, photographic or otherwise, it has no option but to disqualify those riders.
4) Women’s 4X World Championships: There are a number of rumours circulating about the UCI’s planned elimination of this event at future World Championships, as well as the Junior Women’s Downhill. We don’t know if these rumours are true, but our membership would like to see these events remain. Can you confirm if this is true or not?
5) National Jerseys: We feel that the UCI is not really aware of the general feeling about this subject in the gravity disciplines. The gravity riders recently held a meeting in Vigo, and Helen Mortimer was invited. One of the points of discussion was this matter of National Jerseys. The riders do not support the obligatory use of National Champion’s jerseys in gravity disciplines. There is no history of it and it has little or no meaning for most riders and fans. The Commission has an obligation to each discipline to provide it with the most appropriate rules, and to recognise the differences from one discipline to another. Unlike XC, the gravity riders do not benefit financially from Olympic programs, from their National Federations, and strongly resist the mandatory rule of National Champion Jerseys. Many Commissaires I speak to hate enforcing this illogical rule. If the UCI continues to ignore this problem, the situation at National Championships will only get worse. Boycotts or protests like the one that took place in Australia in 2005, will become more common, and the National Champions will not be the best riders from those countries. We kindly ask that you please review this matter with respect to gravity and allow some form of compromise or flexibility.
6) World Cup Entry Qualifications: We believe that the Commission should now see that the “open entry” into World Cups is not a success. In XC it is resulting in huge fields that are not manageable on the courses selected, and often traffic jams result in mass cheating. In Downhill, it has resulted as IMTTO always said, in huge differences in standard creating safety issues, long training days, damaged courses, and semi finals that take forever. In 4X, especially in Vigo where the host National Federation allowed anyone to enter, you had riders that couldn’t ever ride up the wall of a jump. It made everyone look bad. World Cups should not be the place for encouraging mass participation. That should happen at national level with multi-category racing. IMTTO believes that in 2007, the UCI must return to some form of qualification system. The old system worked for many years without issue. Other UCI calendar events benefited because people needed to earn points to race a World Cup, and attendance was good at those events. This isn’t so much the case anymore. Please return to a system of requiring a UCI point, or 10 UCI points or whatever (if the old ranking system is adopted back), and you will solve all these issues. You mentioned to me that you have ideas of going in the complete opposite direction to this year. Going form mass open participation, to an “exclusive club”. You say that perhaps only UCI Trade Teams and riders in National Federation clothing should enter World Cups. Couldn’t the middle ground that we’ve had for 12 years before, be used again? It worked perfectly well. Or is this a revenue exercise for the UCI, forcing people to form artificial Trade Teams of one or two riders, just to get into the World Cup races? Perhaps this could work in XC where there is Olympic program funding for National Teams, but we do not agree this is the correct way to go for DH and 4X where many top riders are not on trade teams, but run their own programs. It would severely affect the numbers, especially out of Europe. It seems to us that this idea is like going from one extreme to the other.
7) XC Wet Weather Options: In years past, it was always normal to have a wet weather option or options marked during training for a race, so that if a particularly technical section became rain affected, it could be eliminated and replaced with a wet weather option that all riders had a chance to know in advance. In Spa-Francorchamps, not only was there NO WET WEATHER option planned during training, and sign posted, but on the day of the race, a new section was added without the riders EVER seeing it. This is completely unacceptable and against the rules. If a serious accident had occurred on this unknown section of track, we suspect that would have been a serious legal matter for the Technical Delegate and Chief Commissaire. The course must be available for training in advance.
8) Downhill Race Numbers for World Cup: We believe an error has been made in the UCI rules for 2006. It was always been our understanding that the top 20 men (and 10 women) from the previous year’s World Cup ranking got to keep that number as a reserved number, for the following season. This is how it worked in 2004 and 2005. We knew that for 2006, those same 30 riders also had the added privilege of being able to choose a number outside of the Top 20 (10 for women) if they had a lucky number or something like that. In fact, I remember writing to you about my 7 athletes, before February 15, and asking if I needed to write anything if they all wanted to keep their numbers from World Cup season 2005, because none of them had lucky numbers to choose etc. You said I didn’t have to write anything, they would automatically keep their number. In Vigo, riders like Steve Peat, who had number 12 from 2005, and entered late, had his number given to someone else! In Fort William, no riders kept their 2005 top 20/10 numbers, except my 7 riders. Now I see the UCI list on the UCI web site, for Willingen, doesn’t even respect that. This situation needs to be fixed. Having a season long number in Downhill is key for the riders who market themselves around a number (it’s on their helmet, jersey, posters, web site and everything….except now their number plate). Downhill racing these days models itself more on Motorcross and this is a big part of the request to keep their numbers for a year. Please review this matter. As we say, it happened just fine in 2004 and 2005, and then out of nowhere there is a change, uninformed to UCI teams.
9) Rule Change Notification: As a large number of our members are UCI Trade Teams, I have been asked to express their concern that rule changes are not made know to them when they happen. Even a simple email saying that the new rules are posted at the UCI web site would be courteous. It seems logical that one of the services a team gets by joining the UCI is being informed about the rules of competition.
10) Top Downhill Riders into Final: The way that the rule 4.8.034 is being interpreted is varying from race to race, and it needs to be written more clearly. It says nothing about where the riders are to be listed in the final start list etc. Current rule states:
4.8.034: The first 10 women and first 20 men on the current World Cup classification, or the final general classification for the preceding year in the case of the first event, shall qualify automatically for the final in the case of fall or of an equipment problem: if the riders in question are not among the 30 fastest women or the 80 fastest men, they may ride in the final in addition to the 30 women and 80 men already qualified.
However, we believe that the original intentions of the rule have not been remembered. The idea was to guarantee for TV that the best riders were in the final (and therefore should be near when the TV is broadcasting), and that no riders can gain a big advantage by having a problem in the semi final. Therefore we propose the following wording:
4.8.034: The first 10 women and first 20 men on the current World Cup classification, or the final general classification for the preceding year in the case of the first event, shall qualify automatically for the final, without fail. These riders’ semi final times will be ranked in order within their group of 20 (10 for women), so that the slowest of the top 20 men will start the final 20th from the end, and so on, and for women, the slowest of the top 10 women will start 10th from the end, and so on. There will only be a total of 30 women and 80 men qualified for the final.
In this case, you are respecting the maximum number of riders as 30 and 80 (keeping the event on schedule especially for TV), and you are keeping the top riders together, so that no top rider has a weather affected result that changes the overall classification dramatically. It also keeps the hotseat in rotation, avoiding a boring situation for the fans when a top rider gets in the seat early and there is no change for 90 minutes.
11) Rules: After talking to some of the more experienced Commissaires, there is a concern that after 3 different MTB Coordinators in 5 years, there have been some issues regarding lack of continuity in the rules, and a loss of the intentions behind some rules. IMTTO supports the idea of the appointment of a special rules revision committee who could review the rule books from previous years and look for inconsistencies and report back to the Commission before season 2007.
12) Afxentia Stage Race, Cyprus: Our member from Cyprus expressed his concern that he applied to host a top level stage race in 2006, and he applied by the UCI deadline in July of 2005. He paid his calendar fee for that type of event, which is not cheap. Later in the year, the UCI changed the rules on such events, and his major stage race then became a marathon event with no XCO points for the UCI ranking. This is not what he applied for, and he wants his calendar fee back. We understand that rules can change, but when someone applies for one type of event, and pays the right fee, then the rules change, he should have his money returned.
13) World Championship Boycott: Please note that we will be writing to the Organising Committee of the 2006 World Championships in Rotorua to inform them that because they have not changed their pricing policy for Tech Area (almost 4 times more expensive than Livigno), that the IMTTO membership will be boycotting their Tech Area. We feel increasingly frustrated because our membership pays for the majority of top level athletes to be there, and for 100% of the specialised technicians (suspension, tyres etc). Yet more and more we are getting told that this is a National Federation event. Yes, it is a National Federation event that is greatly assisted by the financial support of Trade Teams and Tech Support companies. This latest example is too much for us, and unless they follow the pricing guidelines of Livigno and Les Gets, we shall not attend. This decision is unanimous. We provide it to you for information only as we realise it’s a matter between us and the OC.
Thank you for your continued efforts and for reviewing these points and we look forward to your reply after the next Commission meeting.
Yours sincerely,
Martin Whiteley
Vice President – Europe
Acting President FORT WILLIAM - EVENT OF THE YEAR
May 30, 2006
At last Friday's IMTTO meeting in Fort William, Scotland, IMTTO Vice President Martin Whiteley surprised Mike Jardine and Lesley Beck of Rare Management, when they were awarded a huge crystal trophy for their 2005 World Cup Event, voted by 62 IMTTO Members as the event of the year. The two were at the meeting to brief the membership on plans for the 2007 Worlds.
Unlike other event awards, IMTTO members vote on all MTB events, not just World Cups. This means every event on the 2005 calendar, regardless of their affiliations, or event style, are considered by the members.
Lesley Beck said "Wow, this is a huge surprise and real honour. We try and do all we can to assist the IMTTO membership and we appreciate all of your feedback. We'll take this trophy to the volunteers meeting tonight and show them that all their hard work has paid off!"
Martin Whiteley said "Fort William was a clear winner in the voting and it's no secret why. They go out of their way to assist our members and put on a consistently impressive bike event. It's the model that all other major events should try to emulate. If you are serious about running a great event, visit Fort William first."
IMTTO membership is made up of international mountain bike teams, technical support companies, and top level organisers. More than 30 events received votes. Here are the top 20:
1. Fort William, Scotland – WC
2. Sea Otter Classic, USA
3. Mont-Ste-Anne, Canada – WC
4. World Championships, Livigno, Italy
5. Houffalize, Belgium – WC
6. Spa Francorchamps, Belgium – WC
7. Camboriu Beach, Brazil – WC
8. Schladming, Austria – WC
9. Crankworx, Canada
10. Swisspower Cup, Bern
11. Mount Snow, USA – NORBA
12. Vigo, Spain – WC
13. Angel Fire, USA – WC
14. Lisbon Downtown, Portugal
15. Madrid, Spain – WC
16. Willingen, Germany – WC
17. Roc d\'Azur, France
18. Marathon Worlds, Lillehammer
19. La Bresse, French Cup Finals
20. Swisspower Cup, Reinach
All events that received comments on the voting forms from the membership will now have the comments sent to them to assist them in the future event planning. December 21, 2005
All of our 2005 members are busy voting for the best Mountain Bike event of the year for 2005. The award takes into account all Mountain Bike events that IMTTO members attended, not just World Cups, and already it's clear that there are many events that are worthy of consideration. The results will be announced here in the early part of 2006, and the IMTTO Trophy will be awarded to the winning organiser during our first meeting of 2006, which is schedule for Fort William, Scotland, in May. The members are voting for events that not only were excellent for the sport, but were very helpful to the IMTTO membership. March 7 2005
IMTTO Member FOX Racing Shox has announced it will be sponsoring the 2005 NORBA National Mountain Bike Series and the USA Cycling National Mountain Bike Championships. FOX has confirmed that a large portion of the sponsorship money provided to the Series will go towards prize money for the Professional Downhill and Mountain Cross events. “We are proud to be able to sponsor and offer prize money to these world class athletes. The NORBA National Mountain Bike Series brings in the best athletes from around the globe and they deserve to be rewarded for their hard work and efforts," stated Mark Fitzsimmons, Mountain Bike Race Program Manager for FOX.
Mark went on to say, "Racing is in our blood. We use racing to test our products in order to make them the best suspension available. Through our sponsorship we want to continue that message to the athletes and our customers."
IMTTO applauds this member's actions in giving back to the sport an all those members who will participate in the NORBA Series this year will benefit from this support. 21 February 2005
Today it has been confirmed by the organisers of the 2005 World Cup XC at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium, that parking for ALL IMTTO members will be completely free. No matter the size of your truck or tech space, you will have free parking. Madrid has also confirmed that parking for the first 60 square meters will be free to IMTTO members, but the new Belgian event has gone one step further and is offering all IMTTO members, as well as UCI Teams, completely free parking. Our thanks to the organisers for this great gesture and we look forward to the event in April!
IMTTO Launches New Web Site
IMTTO, a non-profit organisation in the sport of mountain bike racing that represents Mountain Bike Trade Teams, Technical Support Companies and Race Organisers, has launched www.IMTTO.com which not only serves as a vaulable tool for its members, but also provides the press and public with access to the sites of all IMTTO members and the latest IMTTO news.
The web site was launched on Tuesday for member access, and is now available for the wider public. IMTTO President Russell Carty said today: "This is an important step in our continued growth as a cohesive organisation that has at its heart, the healthy development of our sport. With members in nearly every continent, operating on different time zones, the internet is the best way for us all to stay in contact and assist each other".
The web site contains a news section as well as information about IMTTO, and membership application forms. Additionally the web site has "members only" sections, which feature a forum for open discussions on various issues in the sport, a section for posting minutes of the various meetings attended by or held by IMTTO, and the list of prices and benefits for various events.
Speaking on IMTTO, Carty said: "Our aim is to ensure that by working with the organisers of events, and the various sporting bodies, that our sport continues to prosper and is as appealing as possible to all of our sponsors and media friends."
IMTTO was created in 2001 through the amalgamation of IMTO (International Mountain bike Teams Organisation) and TAG (Technical Assistance Group). The organisation now has close to 60 members.
NEXT IMTTO MEETING:
This meeting will take place at Les Gets (France) during the World Championships. The exact date, time and venue will be announced here shortly.
2005 MAXXIS CUP PRICING:
The organisers of next year's Maxxis Cup in Europe have confirmed that all IMTTO members will be able to park their trucks and tents for free at the races, and all riders of IMTTO teams will not need to pay an entry fee to participate. A big thanks to Luis and his organisers!!
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