Cyclocross
Sprinkler Cross
30/11/08 16:30
(Click for pictures)
On Sunday, Jen and I drove down to Tacoma for the last race in the Seattle Cyclocross series - Sprinkler. I thought this course would be a bit better for me, but it ended up being so twisty on loose, dry gravel/dirt that I never got a chance to really put down as much power as I could (as opposed to Viking Cross, where there were long, wet, grassy stretches).
I ended up in the second row at the start, which should have been fine, but by the time I hit the first turn in the race, I was 30th or so. On a single file course like this one (because it was so twisty), that means you’re out of the race at the front. I just put my head down, passed people where I could (especially the long running portion up the sand pit), and tried not to act too squirrelly in the turns.
I ended up a sort of respectable 11th, which is a bit frustrating, since I felt like I could’ve fought for the win at the front. Oh well. Hopefully, I’ll learn to start more quickly. My real problem is that I can’t seem to stay ahead in the turns when I’m in a mass of people.
On Sunday, Jen and I drove down to Tacoma for the last race in the Seattle Cyclocross series - Sprinkler. I thought this course would be a bit better for me, but it ended up being so twisty on loose, dry gravel/dirt that I never got a chance to really put down as much power as I could (as opposed to Viking Cross, where there were long, wet, grassy stretches).
I ended up in the second row at the start, which should have been fine, but by the time I hit the first turn in the race, I was 30th or so. On a single file course like this one (because it was so twisty), that means you’re out of the race at the front. I just put my head down, passed people where I could (especially the long running portion up the sand pit), and tried not to act too squirrelly in the turns.
I ended up a sort of respectable 11th, which is a bit frustrating, since I felt like I could’ve fought for the win at the front. Oh well. Hopefully, I’ll learn to start more quickly. My real problem is that I can’t seem to stay ahead in the turns when I’m in a mass of people.
Viking Cross
30/11/08 16:22
The last cross race of the Cascade Cross series was put on
for the UW cycling team in Bremerton, WA.
It ended up being a ton of fun (helps that I won the Men’s C), with a really creative, technical course (sorry, no pictures). Some highlights were a long, twisty descent, a wooden ramp to jump a berm, a 6 inch wooden step into a steep descent, and a “spiral of death” in deep, deep mud.
Amazingly, I got a call-up to the front row from my win at Woolley Cross, so some of the worst parts of a cross race for me were partially alleviated. Unfortunately, my lack of technical skill didn’t help me as I went over the bars on the ditch at the bottom of the descent (first time ever), and wiped out on a slick turn near the finish line. So after the first lap, I was a somewhat distant 4th place. Fortunately, I figured out how to not fall (mostly) after that, and rode the long grass sections as hard as I could. I would put about 20 seconds into the field each lap, and lose about 15 on the descent/ditch. The math works out well on that though, and I ended up drawing even with first place with a lap to go, and opened up a big lead as folks got tired. I was pretty excited that I was able to even ride most of the course, let alone win. Lots of fun - maybe I can try to upgrade to B’s next year...
It ended up being a ton of fun (helps that I won the Men’s C), with a really creative, technical course (sorry, no pictures). Some highlights were a long, twisty descent, a wooden ramp to jump a berm, a 6 inch wooden step into a steep descent, and a “spiral of death” in deep, deep mud.
Amazingly, I got a call-up to the front row from my win at Woolley Cross, so some of the worst parts of a cross race for me were partially alleviated. Unfortunately, my lack of technical skill didn’t help me as I went over the bars on the ditch at the bottom of the descent (first time ever), and wiped out on a slick turn near the finish line. So after the first lap, I was a somewhat distant 4th place. Fortunately, I figured out how to not fall (mostly) after that, and rode the long grass sections as hard as I could. I would put about 20 seconds into the field each lap, and lose about 15 on the descent/ditch. The math works out well on that though, and I ended up drawing even with first place with a lap to go, and opened up a big lead as folks got tired. I was pretty excited that I was able to even ride most of the course, let alone win. Lots of fun - maybe I can try to upgrade to B’s next year...
Monroe Cross
23/11/08 16:54
The main theme of the morning of the Monroe
Cyclocross race (before the race actually started)
seemed to be that everyone really thought it was
terribly cold. It was 39 degrees. As a comparison,
State College was 16 degrees, with wind chill, the
day before. It’s not even really winter there.
Seattle is awesome.
You know what else is awesome? Cyclocross. What a fun sport. You ride around in the mud, jump off, run, make crazy sharp turns, do nerve-racking (at least to me) downhills, and jump barriers. I love it. I wish I was better, but I love it.
Monroe (photos here) was no exception - it takes place at the local race track, which means there’s at least a bit of pavement. I was very excited about the course initially, since it looked like a long start on pavement, which would be wonderful for me. Unfortunately, it was just about 150m on pavement, then into a 180 degree, muddy, uphill u-turn. After the call-ups, I started in the third row (about 40% through the field). This would be okay, normally, except that in the 180 degree turn, someone in front of me unclipped on the uphill, which means I stalled out, and another 30% passed me. Then, in the infield, someone cut me off, bringing me to a brake-shuddering halt (and surprisingly pissing me off a great deal). This means that after the first half lap, I was in the last 10% of the field (which was sizable). In cyclocross, this means you’re out of the race.
I really wanted to get a good workout in and go fast though, so I put in as much effort as I could over laps 2 and 3, and managed to move up to 11th. 10th was a ways up the road, however, so I wasn’t able to make the catch in the last lap. Overall, I was sort of satisfied with my placing - I really think I could contend for the win with a decent start though, given how much ground I made up in a short time.
The course itself was really creative - there was a 180 degree banked turn, an uphill runup with a 2 foot ditch in front of it (that the old guys complained bitterly about jumping), and an off camber, 90 degree downhill turn that I thought I was going to eat dirt on every time. I was sort of proud of myself (sadly) for not running down it instead. Perhaps someday I’ll develop decent bike-handling skills.
The big improvement for me on the day was my ability to ride mud - I was able to hit some of the deep mud sections at speed without being totally terrified (70% terrified, maybe), and concentrated on keeping my weight back (thanks Randy!) and looking straight ahead, not down (thanks, Bill Strickland!). At least I’m making progress. I also figured out how to clip into the mud better, which I appreciated.
Seattle is awesome.
You know what else is awesome? Cyclocross. What a fun sport. You ride around in the mud, jump off, run, make crazy sharp turns, do nerve-racking (at least to me) downhills, and jump barriers. I love it. I wish I was better, but I love it.
Monroe (photos here) was no exception - it takes place at the local race track, which means there’s at least a bit of pavement. I was very excited about the course initially, since it looked like a long start on pavement, which would be wonderful for me. Unfortunately, it was just about 150m on pavement, then into a 180 degree, muddy, uphill u-turn. After the call-ups, I started in the third row (about 40% through the field). This would be okay, normally, except that in the 180 degree turn, someone in front of me unclipped on the uphill, which means I stalled out, and another 30% passed me. Then, in the infield, someone cut me off, bringing me to a brake-shuddering halt (and surprisingly pissing me off a great deal). This means that after the first half lap, I was in the last 10% of the field (which was sizable). In cyclocross, this means you’re out of the race.
I really wanted to get a good workout in and go fast though, so I put in as much effort as I could over laps 2 and 3, and managed to move up to 11th. 10th was a ways up the road, however, so I wasn’t able to make the catch in the last lap. Overall, I was sort of satisfied with my placing - I really think I could contend for the win with a decent start though, given how much ground I made up in a short time.
The course itself was really creative - there was a 180 degree banked turn, an uphill runup with a 2 foot ditch in front of it (that the old guys complained bitterly about jumping), and an off camber, 90 degree downhill turn that I thought I was going to eat dirt on every time. I was sort of proud of myself (sadly) for not running down it instead. Perhaps someday I’ll develop decent bike-handling skills.
The big improvement for me on the day was my ability to ride mud - I was able to hit some of the deep mud sections at speed without being totally terrified (70% terrified, maybe), and concentrated on keeping my weight back (thanks Randy!) and looking straight ahead, not down (thanks, Bill Strickland!). At least I’m making progress. I also figured out how to clip into the mud better, which I appreciated.
(me in the back, on the first lap)