Perhaps it was my imagination, perhaps paranoia, but I am fairly sure that they were looking right at me. I had just arrived at Microsoft's Office XP preview, using bogus-at-best credentials to gain admittance into the "breakout session", when I saw two Microsuits giving me the evil eye. Clearly they could somehow sense that I was going to raise a Free Software ruckus during question-and-answer time, but what had tipped them off? Could I somehow have become famous, outside the world of BMX of course, without my knowing it? Was it the deep texture of my Giorgio Armani oxford and calculatedly outrageous style of my Zegna tie that stuck out in this group of wash-and-wear Microserfs? It didn't matter now - they were on to me.
I had come to the preview to publicly challenge Microsoft's new licensing systems. If you haven't heard about them yet, all I can say is, um, consider taking a firm hold somewhere around your, um, ankle area. The licensing Microstink is preparing for its users is nothing short of dictatorial. It will cause millions of people all sorts of sorrow. Of course, I'm tickled pink about the whole thing.
Tickled pink, of course, because every time Microsoft becomes more heavy-handed about its restrictive ideas and idiotic practices it creates new Free Software users, the same way that the Romans' persecution of Christianity guaranteed its survival. It's human nature not to worry too much about something until it is forcibly brought to your attention.
Some days before my invasion of Microsoft's little party, I had received a flier from the NBL inviting me to be a spectator at the World Championships. That's right, those "world championships" - the ones put on by the NBL and UCI working together. The World Championships put on by the ABA are another event altogether, and we'll talk about them in a moment. Anyway, these "world championships" are expected to bring riders from all around the world - and their families, as well.
The flier I was examining told me that I could be a spectator at the World Championships for, I believe, twenty-six dollars. That's right, an admission charge for a BMX race! My first impulse was to laugh until I began choking. "Oh yeah! Plenty of people are going to pay to see a BMX race! Woo-hoo! Only $26 - heck, that's cheaper than second-deck Cubs tickets! I bet the community will really turn out for this one! Ha-ha, bet they have to close the gates early to prevent a festival seating riot!" And then, dear readers, it hit me. The NBL doesn't expect a single "real" spectator to attend this event. They aren't naive enough to think that the Louisville community will stop watching NASCAR long enough to pay $104 for a family of four to watch Charles Townsend case a set of doubles, or to watch the 30-34 Cruiser class bumble its way around a track well beyond the capabilities of nearly everyone involved.
Nope, this is a classic NBL move - hitting US in the pockets. Remember, I said riders and their families from all over the world would attend. Do you think this flier is being sent to Venezuela? How about Finland? France? Nope, this is something people will find out about after they spend thousands of dollars to travel to America to see their children/friends/spouses race. What are they going to do, sit out in the parking lot? Nope - they'll pay up, because they have virtually no choice. Even I will have to pay up, because I have three friends racing and I don't want to let them down. Meanwhile, people in the area who might be genuinely interested in BMX will sit this one out, because they won't waste their money on something they have never seen. Everyone loses, except the traveling circus and its animal tenders, who will party all night at our expense yet again.
Two days later, I found out that the ABA is not requiring ABA licenses to race in their world championship. This will come as a surprise to any UCI member who has ever been bullied into buying an NBL license despite the "special relationship" between the NBL and UCI. Not only will there not be spectator fees, there is a move afoot to provide real-time race results over the Web - something that I have decided to donate my time and efforts to. Compare this with the NBL's actions. Who is the good guy here?
I have traditionally said that both sanctions are "bad guys" in the long run, and that still holds true. I have to wonder just how right I am, however, when one sanctioning body holds families hostage and another one waives licensing requirements. Who is stealing from the sport, and who is helping it?
Remember what I said about martyrs. If you go to Louisville, think about this: In many countries, the dollar is up to ten times stronger than the local currency. A family might have to save the equivalent of $250 in their local cash to pay for that "spectator ticket". Imagine that you are a BMX parent who takes your spouse and one child to watch another one race the world championships in another country. Now imagine that, upon arriving, you are told that you have to pay $750 to watch that child race or be locked out of the building that child is racing in. If they get hurt, you won't know. If they need help, you can't help them. If they win, they will win alone. Are you going to pay? What if you can't afford it? The NBL will create martyrs at the end of July. When you are making your plans to race the National seasons next year, think about that. Hey, at least we know who the bad guys are, right?
Update June 8, 2001: Looking over my NBL flier, I see that
the rate is $35 per person for people who do not pre-register.
To put that in perspective, a Mexican world champion rider would need
to come up with the local equivalent of $275 for each one of his family
members - assuming he can get someone to give him a fair exchange rate
into dollars. Nice, huh? Of course, he could always pre-register, by
sending a check written in dollars to the NBL... What are the chances
his bank would let him do it? What are the chances of the mail actually
getting there? Sickening.