Everyone Wants Race: What If I’m Outside the Coverage Area?

One of the most common questions we get from people is “When is Race coming to my city?” and “What if I’m outside Race’s coverage area?” 

Welcome to California’s complex realm of broadband distribution, with Race Communications at its forefront. We’ve formed a solid alliance with the State of California, leveraging the resources of the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF).  

This blog explains what the process of expanding to new communities looks like.  

Think of CASF as a special fund designated to: 

• Propel broadband adoption, 
• Set up robust infrastructure in areas on the slower side of the internet revolution, such as rural areas. 

Out of this partnership: 

• We’ve leveraged public grants and private investments totaling over $200M
• Aimed at bringing fiber broadband to over 16,000 homes 
• These funds cover nearly 60% of our building costs, with Race chipping in the rest

CASF: The Rulebook We Play By

While we’d love to bring Race to every corner, we work with guidelines from CASF, which gets its cues from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). Their job is to label areas as “underserved” when their internet isn’t fast enough; that means download speeds less than 6 Mbps and upload speeds below 1.5 Mbps. Sometimes, this means we need to leave out certain places. 

The ‘Swiss Cheese’ Dilemma in Phelan, CA

Our project map in Phelan, CA looks a lot like Swiss cheese, filled with holes. Some spots, those holes, are deemed served by the CPUC. This means that either they already meet the minimum speed standards or an internet service provider claims to serve them. 

When Race Breaks the Mold

Wondering how to get fiber internet in rural areas? In an effort to bridge the digital divide in California, Race Communications often charts its own course, even when faced with challenges. While CASF sets the primary guidelines, there are instances where Race goes above and beyond, driven by community needs. 

For a prime example, let’s take Lee Vining, CA. Despite being initially overlooked by CASF’s criteria, the vocal requests from the community combined with our existing infrastructure motivated us to bring a fully self-funded fiber-to-the-home network. 

If You’re Outside the Coverage Area, Use an Inquiry Form

If you’re reading this from outside our coverage map, don’t worry. Being off the CASF list doesn’t mean Race won’t eventually come to your city as part of a separate project in the future.  

If the demand is loud and clear, and it’s feasible, we’ll see what we can do to bring you our fiber optic services. Use our inquiry form, and our engineers will continually gauge how we can expand.