The 2005 British IRC takes place this Sunday at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham. With nearly 3,000 entrants, the day is guaranteed to be fantastic. If you're not racing and you're anywhere even vaguely near the West Midlands, you're really strongly urged to come along and watch. Entry is free for all spectators, and it's an opportunity to see everybody from Olympic champions to 95 years olds compete over the same playing field. If you can't make it, the British IRC website (http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/) will be updated constantly throughout the course of the day. Race results will be posted online as soon as possible after each race, and we're hoping that we can get the as soon as possible bit down to 5-10 minutes this year.We'll also have a regularly updated report throughout the course of the day (see http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/reports_2004.php for what we did last year) as well as photographs. We'll also be providing race replays and stroke graphs for everybody competing, although this may not be available until Monday. Competitors will also be able to download a PDF certificate from the Results page, with their name, time, event and position on it. The race timetable can be found at http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/events_schedule.php while the links you'll need on the day are: Race Results: http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/results.php Reports: http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/reports.php Race Replays: http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/replays.php Photographs: http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/photographs.php Late Entry **************************************If you, or anyone you know, haven't entered the championship but still fancy taking part, remember that hope springs eternal and that you can still race on the day in the Bullpen. The downside is that it's an extra five pounds on top off the normal price to enter and you won't be eligible for a medal. You will, however, appear at the bottom of the results and be entered into the Concept Ranking. SMS Alert**************************************To get the results of any competitor sent to your mobile for free, sign up at http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/results_service.php. You can get as many results as possible and we're aiming to get them sent out about 10 minutes after the finish of each race.Photo Digital ************************************** If you're anything like the Indoor Rowing News, you don't actually possess a good side and photographs always find you boggling scarily at the camera with a face that looks like it's been carved out of a side of beef. Vanity, however, will be even less important than usual this weekend, as the snappers at PhotoDigital are in action once again, stalking the NIA to capture as many sweaty and gurning competitors as possible. They reckon they'll be able to snap about 99% of people racing with the pictures being available to view on-line at their website http://www.photodigital.co.uk. You'll also be able to purchase a copy if it tickles your fancy. Race Machines ************************************** All the race machines used at the championship are brand new at the start of the day and can be bought for £799. This means that, even if you're not competing, if you can get over to Birmingham you can pick up a barely used Indoor Rower for £140 off the normal price. There are only a handful still available, so if you fancy getting hold of one, then make sure you go to the Concept 2 booth on the day as early as possible.Race Start Procedure**************************************When you enter the NIA you will be directed to registration where you will be given a Registration Card, a bottle of water and an event programme. Your registration card will have your name, event, event time (and weigh-in time if you are a lightweight) and the number of your race machine. You should be at registration at least an hour before your event. If you're a lightweight, you cannot weigh in more than two hours before your race. Ten minutes before your race you should go to the athletes holding area. Once your race is called you will be allowed into the race arena. You should find your race machine and give your registration card to the scrutineer sitting behind your machine. It is important that you familiarise yourself with the way the race system works on the PM3. It's not very difficult, but if you don't know what's going on, you might be at a disadvantage. Your race pack on the day will contain full information about the start procedure but you can also download those pages as a PDF from: http://www.therowingcompany.com/birc/news.php?story=race_startOne Last Thing**************************************Whatever happens, we're really keen for you to enjoy the experience. After the race, we will, as ever, be mad keen to hear your feedback on the day, especially anything you feel would improve the championship. Make sure you email your thoughts to editor@therowingcompany.com. And, if you've got an indoor rowing diary at http://www.therowingcompany.com/forum/ make sure you write about your experiences, so that we can link to you in the Indoor Rowing News roundabout next week.