I’ve only been to 2 races where a 29er has won.

Anyway, it’s not really about the bike, it’s about the engine sat on top of it. The tool doesn’t count- I’ve seen races won on 5″ AM bikes, XC hardtails and everything in between. If you’ve not got the legs, 3″ on the wheel will definitely not help you.

Forget tyre sizes. Everyone should weigh in at the start line and the whippets should be made to carry extra weight to give the fatties a chance.

Nonsense. That would lead to a world full of unfit bloaters and increase the strain on the NHS at a time when it can ill afford it.

Rather, bike plus rider should aim to total 84 kg, this being the combination of the perfect rider weight (73kg, 11.5 stone) and the perfect bike weight (24 pounds, 11kg).

If the combo is under this then the rider has to carry weights to get up to target, if they’re over it they have to use a lighter bike to get down to it or, if that’s impossible, run carrying the bike.

This way, bloaters lose weight (saving the NHS) and whippets have to eat pies (putting much needed money into the economy). Everybody wins!

There needs to be a class for people with baggy shorts and a class for people in lycra 🙂

other than that, it should be a full on free for all!

Top marks to the organisers of the Brass Monkeys – top event, great course and great weather!!

Brass Monkeys (or any time based event) will always have a vast range of abilities, that’s the point, and there shouldn’t be handicaps.

XC racing is already category based, so there are appropriate handicaps there.

As for different categories for different bikes… no, that’s madness.

As for CX bikes… BC rules say no, non BC-sanctioned races can do what they want. Nick Onslow raced a cross bike at a number of the Gorricks a couple of years ago. I doubt it’d be quicker on many courses to be honest.

thomthumb, that’s not a general rule in MTB racing though is it?

thinks it’s a gorrick rule (i thought it was more general) I’ve scoured the UCI rules and it seems you aren’t allowed race radio & you aren’t allowed studded tyres.

All else goes (so it seems) bring on my 36er brakeless fixie tall bike 😆

As for CX bikes… BC rules say no

2.0 THE BICYCLE

2.0.1 BC in no way wishes to stifle the natural evolution of
the mountain bike in any recognised discipline. To this
end there is only one requirement; that the bicycle is
solely human powered. Any bicycle used in
competition must be capable of safely and efficiently
completing the task and must, as a minimum, be
mechanically sound, have efficient brakes on all
wheels and all reasonable steps must be taken to
ensure the safety of the rider and others. As part of the
latter, bar plugs are compulsory.

2.0.2 If, in the opinion of a scrutineer and/or commissaire, a
bicycle fails to meet the above criteria the rider must
take immediate steps to ensure the necessary steps
are taken to remedy the shortcomings and ensure the
Scrutineer/Commissaires requests are met. Failure to
do so will result in exclusion from the competition.

2.0.3 For Four Cross an effective rear brake is required.

i’m not sure they do?

I remember Mark Thwaites smashing the West Yorkshire Summer Cross to bits on his Yeti ASR.

Likewise, Scott Forbes on a 26″ Whippet blasted around our SPAM Winter Challenge last year coming in with a good time-gap over a chasing pack of CX riders. That course with lots of gravel tracks and a fair bit of tarmac would be ideal for CX bikes I’d have thought.

He’s done that a few times now!

I was having a good tussle with a bloke on an Orange 5

South Wales CX race and I was on a CX bike! Bugger, need to get fitter!

singlespeedstu
lets reward the people who can’t be arsed trying
Wooop woooop.

How do i enter that cat?

WTF are you into now, beastiallity?