Events: Doylestown Bike Works Goldsprints 2019 (Canceled)
(2019) It was supposed to be an event to offset the messy wintry weather our area has experienced. It was supposed to be a nod to the roller racing tradition of taking over a local watering hole, putting on a mock-up of a summer event, and leaving with a couple winners who could brag for a year. It was supposed to be a night the local cycling scene got together and either raced on rollers, heckled those hammering away, or doing both. But it was not.
Doylestown Bike Works has had weather interfere with one of their events for the second time in a year. Over the summer Bike Works occupied a night at the Trexlertown Velodrome where high wheel bikes would return to the banks. There was optimism that the pre-schedule rain was working out the kinks. Then the warm-ups started and so did stronger storms, canceling the evening’s docket. And last night, at Poco’s in Doylestown, a snowstorm that would dump nearly a foot of snow in some places caused the restaurant to close early, cleaving the Goldsprints from their warm and welcoming venue.
After being one of the final entrants into the bracket, I regularly explored the ‘Who’s Registered’ list and made excuses as to why I wanted to race none of them. Some were too fast. Some were too young. Some had beaten many times, and I wasn’t up for another public humiliation. I picked a smattering of riders who I could stay close to and hope they had a bad day. I have always made it to round two. This year I had doubts until a burning email found its way to me regretfully canceling Goldsprints on account of the weather. An indoor race was canceled on account of outdoor events.
In the end it was the right call. The snow started earlier than forecasted. Those planning to attend needed it to be canceled outright. Competitive personalities – particularly cyclists – would see the winter storm as a challenge and not a danger. And of course there is the tiny fact that I would not have to race against anyone, therefore making me the default winner.
To have a cycling event canceled is always a tough call, a tough reception, and an immediate question as to whether a secondary date has been discussed. Rest assured if there is a secondary date, more people could prepare for the whirlwind experience that is the Doylestown Bike Works Goldsprints. Perhaps I have not convinced you that this is something that must be witnessed, even coming from non-cycling communities. These events have been happening for decades. There is a reason they keep coming back, blizzards be damned.
