Requirements: upgrading to semipro

I was wondering what you need to do to advance from expert to semi pro? I couldn’t find the information anywhere in the norba book. I know in BMX you have to place 1-10 nag.

By the way your site is great. keep up the good work.

thank you, Chris

Hey Chris. Congrats on being in a position to think about this.

Here is the rule of law, from the NORBA Officials Handbook:

“As stated in the NORBA Competition Rulebook, Rule 2.5, expert riders may be eligible to upgrade to semi-pro (men) or pro (women) after finishing in the top five in three NORBA National Championship Series (NCS) events or UCI international calendar events. No rider will be permitted to race pro or semi-pro unless their license indicates the pro or semi-pro category. NORBA reserves the right to upgrade experts at any time. NORBA also reserves the right to downgrade riders from the pro or semipro category at any time. NORBA staff may take into consideration AMBC and regional races. There is no semi-pro class for women.

“To race at the semi-pro or pro level, racers must submit a typed cover letter and detailed race resume to the NORBA office with a $15 check or money order for license reissue. The upgrade request should be labeled “Upgrade Request.” Riders need to allow three to four weeks for a decision to be made. Upgrades may also be requested online from the USA Cycling website. Upgrade requests will be directed to and processed by the appropriate NORBA regional coordinator.”

Here are the rule books.

What that means:

– If you’re placing at nationals (and you’re not old), that’s pretty clear. Upgrade baby!

– If you’re doing well at regional races, you can still upgrade. I know a couple guys who never won Mountain States Cups in expert, but they got their upgrades anyway.

Go to this page and click “Request an upgrade.”

I got my upgrade within a couple days. Slick. Some people take a few weeks, so do it now and be ready to race next year.