Liability and Bike Events
In article <1994May19.142112.23964@brtph560.bnr.ca>, seasler@brtph8e1.bnr.ca (Sara Easler) writes:
>
> Hey, I hear ya’ and agree 100%. My bike club recently elected to get
> liability insurance.
I wonder if there’s a way to have a club without really having one so that it can’t in any way be liable.
Less bizarre—and in fact a great idea, I think—would be to hold *Non-Events* and *Non-Races* where the non-promoter wouldn’t be indentifiable or liable to anyone.
I believe there’s some famous instances of this happening…the state of Washington has a legendary and crowded non-event, as I recall. Seems like great fun and completely subversive. If a non-promoter wanted to make money (and offer prizes), I guess he’d be running a “blind pig” version of a bike race and could be fined if anyone cared to bust him….Actually, I recall the legendary Washington event ran into a bit of heat. Officials didn’t like not being invited. (Does anyone know of this or a similar event?)
What you do is think of an event. Make posters and post. And see who shows up. Race, ride, party. Can’t beat it. Everybody is overtly and explicity taking care of themselves (which they are anyway, but they often can find someone to blame for a mishap).
I’d like to do an in-honor-of-Paris-Roubaix event in this way someday…a road race on mostly dirt roads. Send fliers to the clubs, post in shops. But with no one taking responsibility. Everyone knows there’s no ‘security’ when they start. Stop-sign-obeying “foot down” policy mandatory—no one acknowledges any rider gaining advantage that way. The racing attitude would probably be a little tamer, and well it should.
