Velodrome event rolls out of Indy

June 18, 2009
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cyclingAn 11th hour deal to keep this year’s USA Cycling Masters Track National Championships at the Major Taylor Velodrome has fallen flat, and the event has been moved to Colorado Springs. The track championships were to run here Aug. 18-23.

Local organizers couldn’t raise the $18,000 needed to operate the event and notified USA Cycling and city officials earlier this month, said Paula Freund, IndyParks spokeswoman.

An organization called Indy Velo originally was going to host the event at the local velodrome, but notified city officials in October it couldn’t come up with the funds. Marian College, which has a nationally recognized cycling program and is located near the Velodrome, tried to rescue the event, but was unsuccessful and notified city officials this month, Freund said.

Colorado Velodrome Association spokesman Pat McDonough said his organization is “thrilled” to be hosting masters nationals.

“As North America’s fastest velodrome, we are excited for the opportunity to see many new world records broken here,” he said.

The event typically draws about 300 participants age 30 and over. Each of the six days of racing typically draws between 500 and 1,000 spectators. Attendance this year in Colorado Springs, USA Cycling officials said, could be hurt by the late venue change.

The biggest impact to Indianapolis—besides the six-figure economic impact—could be a ding to its reputation for its ability to host national level cycling events.
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  • BilkoJune 19, 2009 12:12 PM
    Please note - USA Cycling had major changes in Event Managers spot -- and events leading uup to and now after that position change could have had an impact on this situation. That is a detail missing from this post.

    You also failed to mention the Marian College (university?) attempt at running the velodrome for Indy Parks and how that arrangement went far enough to have some impact on positions and staffing, but was not ratified in the final hours.

    reasons for it being in ColoSpgs & not Indy are many and varied. Much of which was not covered in the above....
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  • Anthony SchoettleJune 19, 2009 2:28 PM
    Hello Bilko. Good to hear from you. I have covered all points in your comment above both in on-line stories at IBJ.com, and in our print publication. If you don't subscribe, you should check IBJ out. In the meantime, you can get a flavor for what's been covered by IBJ by going here: http://thescore.ibj.com/content/?p=960
    As always, thanks for reading.
    Reply to CommentFlag Comment
  • IndymoonJune 24, 2009 10:36 AM
    These are the type of events that built Indy's sports/tourism reputation and the inability to raise $18k shows that Indy is losing its touch. Too much emphasis on the big ones (SB and NCAA) and letting the small events get away could have long-term, negative impacts.
    Reply to CommentFlag Comment

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