Jul 25, 2014 at 12:33 AM
^Exactly. Add in the very high chance of team houses/meals/etc... can't be beat. Plus at this rate we'll be able to run our own Kissena daycare.
#youhearingmeerikaryanmarcjim?
Cyclocross!
Jul 25, 2014 at 12:53 PM
Give it a couple more years and Sarah will be making mad pocket cash watching all your kids at cross races.
Jul 25, 2014 at 01:36 PM
Give it a couple more years and Sarah will be making mad pocket cash watching all your kids at cross races.Since it's cross, shouldn't it be "siiiiiiiiik" pocket cash?
#technicality
Jul 26, 2014 at 10:48 PM
Evan Murphy us running cx practices / clinics every Wednesday night, 7pm Randalls island starting in august.
See Facebook ny cyclo cross page for details.
Suggested $5 donation.
One good way to get better at cyclocross is to ride your cyclocross bike. Do it.
Jul 27, 2014 at 05:04 PM
Here is an updated version of something I posted a few years back, basically an introduction to cyclocross...
Gearing is different than road gearing. Up front you'll want 46/38 or something like that. In the back you'll want a 12-25, maybe even a 12-27 depending on how much power you can generate on short steep climbs.
I would consider running a 1x10 or 1x11 setup. I think the front gearing is a little bit unnecessary, and in fact even got in the way (accidental chain drop when shouldering the bike, etc.)
Brakes: for starters, stock brakes will work fine but this is the number one place I'd invest in an upgrade. Whatever you use, learn how to adjust and fine tune them. I spent two season with avid short 6's, which are very cheap and work. I've upgraded to the shorty ultimates which are insanely nice and actually stop your bike.
So I went the new route – but you certainly don’t have to if you are willing to do some fiddling around for parts. You can pick up some old 9-speed stuff on the cheap and put together a killer setup. If you think you need something fancier watch ragot kick your ass on his bike which is set up exactly this way.
Oh yeah, pedals and shoes.
Get whatever pedals you feel most comfortable getting in and out of quickly. I went with standard shimano mountain pedals. Some people like egg beaters and time pedals, but again, this is probably personal preference.
Shoes: Here you need mountain bike shoes. Get something firm and sturdy, but comfortable enough to run a few strides in.
If you plan to add some running to your training - grab a decent pair of running shoes as well. They will come in handy for cross training purposes in the winter too.
Part 1 Equipment:
The Frame
What do you need to race cross? First, you need a cross frame. Go with something aluminum for durability. A specific cross frame is pretty much a necessity to get wide mud filled tires through with enough clearance. You don’t need fancy components. Weight is not a huge deal either, plus when you bike is covered in mud it’s hard to tell the difference between a lightweight and a standard bike. Check out our deals on the CAADX or through Van Dessel (although I'd only buy from them if they have your size in stock). Ebay, NYCX facbook group, craigslist are totally your friend here. I've seen great complete bikes for way under 1,000 posted pretty frequently.
Wheels and Tires
Wheels – again, go with durability. Lightweight might be nice, but realize they will take a pounding. Some fancy people run carbon wheels but again, they are fancy and not necessary, especially at the entry level. Keep in mind – the gear at CX races is much less “pro as shit” than a cat 4 blinged out park race.
What you put on the wheels is where you’ll want to do the most thinking. I recommend getting yourself a set of Michelin Muds for all around versatility. Tubulars are incredible, but I don't think they are necessary for beginners. If you're really curious, hunt around for a used set.
Components
I mostly run 105/Rival level stuff on my cross bikes. It's more than sufficient. You can go with APEX or cheaper and do just fine.
The Frame
What do you need to race cross? First, you need a cross frame. Go with something aluminum for durability. A specific cross frame is pretty much a necessity to get wide mud filled tires through with enough clearance. You don’t need fancy components. Weight is not a huge deal either, plus when you bike is covered in mud it’s hard to tell the difference between a lightweight and a standard bike. Check out our deals on the CAADX or through Van Dessel (although I'd only buy from them if they have your size in stock). Ebay, NYCX facbook group, craigslist are totally your friend here. I've seen great complete bikes for way under 1,000 posted pretty frequently.
Wheels and Tires
Wheels – again, go with durability. Lightweight might be nice, but realize they will take a pounding. Some fancy people run carbon wheels but again, they are fancy and not necessary, especially at the entry level. Keep in mind – the gear at CX races is much less “pro as shit” than a cat 4 blinged out park race.
What you put on the wheels is where you’ll want to do the most thinking. I recommend getting yourself a set of Michelin Muds for all around versatility. Tubulars are incredible, but I don't think they are necessary for beginners. If you're really curious, hunt around for a used set.
Components
I mostly run 105/Rival level stuff on my cross bikes. It's more than sufficient. You can go with APEX or cheaper and do just fine.
Gearing is different than road gearing. Up front you'll want 46/38 or something like that. In the back you'll want a 12-25, maybe even a 12-27 depending on how much power you can generate on short steep climbs.
I would consider running a 1x10 or 1x11 setup. I think the front gearing is a little bit unnecessary, and in fact even got in the way (accidental chain drop when shouldering the bike, etc.)
Brakes: for starters, stock brakes will work fine but this is the number one place I'd invest in an upgrade. Whatever you use, learn how to adjust and fine tune them. I spent two season with avid short 6's, which are very cheap and work. I've upgraded to the shorty ultimates which are insanely nice and actually stop your bike.
So I went the new route – but you certainly don’t have to if you are willing to do some fiddling around for parts. You can pick up some old 9-speed stuff on the cheap and put together a killer setup. If you think you need something fancier watch ragot kick your ass on his bike which is set up exactly this way.
Oh yeah, pedals and shoes.
Get whatever pedals you feel most comfortable getting in and out of quickly. I went with standard shimano mountain pedals. Some people like egg beaters and time pedals, but again, this is probably personal preference.
Shoes: Here you need mountain bike shoes. Get something firm and sturdy, but comfortable enough to run a few strides in.
If you plan to add some running to your training - grab a decent pair of running shoes as well. They will come in handy for cross training purposes in the winter too.
Jul 27, 2014 at 05:06 PM
How do you train for this crazy discipline? First you might want to watch this whole video series on youtube – it is really corny but quite helpful. I have a feeling Jeff Owens will dig the music.
This is part 1, you can find the rest.
Let’s assume you come into the CX season with reasonable fitness from the road season. The first thing you should do is get out on your bike and learn to ride it. Get on trails, grass, and sand. Ride fast, and then ride faster. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you can adapt to the ideas of letting your bike slide around underneath you while still feeling in control.
This is part 1, you can find the rest.
Let’s assume you come into the CX season with reasonable fitness from the road season. The first thing you should do is get out on your bike and learn to ride it. Get on trails, grass, and sand. Ride fast, and then ride faster. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you can adapt to the ideas of letting your bike slide around underneath you while still feeling in control.
Here is some technique work:
1) Work on 180 degree turns, fast, in both directions. Set up some cones on some grass, sprint in at high speed and try to get through the turn while doing as little breaking as possible. I’m going to continue doing this, and try to find a place to do it coming off a downhill to make it a little more challenging.
2) Set up a small figure eight, then ride around it really fast in both directions. Practice leaning and sliding. Better yet, do this when the grass is wet or covered in leaves.
3) Set up a tiny course (with run up, barriers, etc.) Race with a few friends around the course. Its OK if you lap each other, just try to hold the wheel in front of you or lap the person in front of you. When I say tiny, I mean like 100 meters of course.
4) Practice sprinting starts. 1 Foot clipped in, parallel to downtube, hold breaks down, and then plush, clip in, explode! Ragot taught me this as well, which led to vastly improved starts.
5) Barriers. Set up fake PVC barriers or throw some logs on the ground. Practice the flying dismount and re-mount over and over, coming into the barriers as fast as possible.
6) Practice carrying you bike, in every fashion. On the shoulder, like a suitcase, etc. Practice running with it. Up hills, on sand, up stairs, etc. You can do stairs and hills in Prospect Park. You can probably do sand to if you want to run in horseshit but I don’t recommend that.
7) Off-camber stuff was ridiculously challenging for me. If you can find it, practice on it.
Training:
How do you actually train? I used CX season as a kind of “race into shape” season. I raced a lot, recovered, and maybe did one hard session mid week. I did lots of level 6 stuff, because that was killing me in races. Stuff like 4x(20seconds on/10 seconds off). I also ran a bit, but there is some controversy over whether or not running is necessary. I say it doesn't hurt, so do it a few times per week. It will probably make you a stronger overall individual and less injury prone during the road season.
What if you aren't racing a ton? Do a race simulation one day on the weekend, and a long rode ride the other. Do a hard cx style workout (or casual race) mid-week. There were some illegal races at Randall’s island last year that were fun and hard.
Some people think CX is like a long time trial. It isn’t. Certainly it has an aspect of who can suffer the most over 40-60 minutes, but it is not a time trial. It is full of short bursts, recoveries, and then bursts followed by bursts followed by bursts.
1) Work on 180 degree turns, fast, in both directions. Set up some cones on some grass, sprint in at high speed and try to get through the turn while doing as little breaking as possible. I’m going to continue doing this, and try to find a place to do it coming off a downhill to make it a little more challenging.
2) Set up a small figure eight, then ride around it really fast in both directions. Practice leaning and sliding. Better yet, do this when the grass is wet or covered in leaves.
3) Set up a tiny course (with run up, barriers, etc.) Race with a few friends around the course. Its OK if you lap each other, just try to hold the wheel in front of you or lap the person in front of you. When I say tiny, I mean like 100 meters of course.
4) Practice sprinting starts. 1 Foot clipped in, parallel to downtube, hold breaks down, and then plush, clip in, explode! Ragot taught me this as well, which led to vastly improved starts.
5) Barriers. Set up fake PVC barriers or throw some logs on the ground. Practice the flying dismount and re-mount over and over, coming into the barriers as fast as possible.
6) Practice carrying you bike, in every fashion. On the shoulder, like a suitcase, etc. Practice running with it. Up hills, on sand, up stairs, etc. You can do stairs and hills in Prospect Park. You can probably do sand to if you want to run in horseshit but I don’t recommend that.
7) Off-camber stuff was ridiculously challenging for me. If you can find it, practice on it.
Training:
How do you actually train? I used CX season as a kind of “race into shape” season. I raced a lot, recovered, and maybe did one hard session mid week. I did lots of level 6 stuff, because that was killing me in races. Stuff like 4x(20seconds on/10 seconds off). I also ran a bit, but there is some controversy over whether or not running is necessary. I say it doesn't hurt, so do it a few times per week. It will probably make you a stronger overall individual and less injury prone during the road season.
What if you aren't racing a ton? Do a race simulation one day on the weekend, and a long rode ride the other. Do a hard cx style workout (or casual race) mid-week. There were some illegal races at Randall’s island last year that were fun and hard.
Some people think CX is like a long time trial. It isn’t. Certainly it has an aspect of who can suffer the most over 40-60 minutes, but it is not a time trial. It is full of short bursts, recoveries, and then bursts followed by bursts followed by bursts.
Jul 27, 2014 at 05:09 PM
Time to race. Since you've practiced all the skills above, you’re feeling confident and ready to race.
Get to the race early. Some races are set up the night before if you want to check out the course. Some have rules about this, so check it out. Racing cat 4/5 sucked because of the early start times. If you can, ride the course easy a few laps, then ride through it hard. Stop and re-ride any parts you found tricky. Just duck under the tape, go back, and ride it again. Simple. If you have extra time, you can cruise around the course and hit the tricky parts at speed. Be mindful of places where you’ll want to change gears before hitting a technical section (Example, tricky downhill followed by sharp uphill) Are there places you can run faster than you can ride? Find em. Lastly, follow an experienced teammate around the course. Watch their line choices. Ragot is ideal for this.
Some races Cs start late (Staten CX, for example) so you’ll have plenty of time to pre-ride the course multiple times. Ride though the pit if you are going to leave wheels there so you know how it is set up. Find a friend or teammate to hang in the pit to help you out should you need it. Don’t forget to drop you pit wheels /bike off in the pit
Be very warmed when it is start time. Get to the line early. Sneak your way up to the front. Some races do call ups based on points or rankings, some use registration order. So register early, as that will be your only chance at moving up towards the front. Some races just have a mad dash to line up, so be ready for that. Let’s say you will be 5-6 rows back. Check out the course and see if there are any places on the side to sneak around. Most courses start on pavement, but some have a nice strip of grass on either side. Often, the group will bunch up on the pavement and you can jump by 20-30 riders all at once if you are attentive.
Be aggressive early. Racing in the 4/5s - no strategy. Ride hard, harder, and harder. Sprint out of corner, out of turns,. Pass whenever you have a chance. Pass when running, at the barriers, and upon remounting. Sometimes you will find a log-jam where people are remounting. Run around them, and remount past them. They might have gotten on their bike by then, but they’ll have to slow down since you are now blocking the road in front of them! Are you exceptionally strong? Look for slogs on the pavement to bridge up to a group ahead of you.
The one thing to learn quickly about CX racing is that it pays to be aggressive. Insert video of Josh C smacking a guy in the face with his bike.. That is the type of aggression you need to have. You don’t need to worry about crashing in cross. It’s going to happen, but more often than not you will just end up with some grass stains.
After 40 minutes, it will be over, and you’ll be hurting. But then the best thing about CX season will happen. You’ll have a beer. You relax with your cycling buddies and talk about how awesome your race was. You’ll have another beer, some good food, and you’ll be ready for your next race.
Get to the race early. Some races are set up the night before if you want to check out the course. Some have rules about this, so check it out. Racing cat 4/5 sucked because of the early start times. If you can, ride the course easy a few laps, then ride through it hard. Stop and re-ride any parts you found tricky. Just duck under the tape, go back, and ride it again. Simple. If you have extra time, you can cruise around the course and hit the tricky parts at speed. Be mindful of places where you’ll want to change gears before hitting a technical section (Example, tricky downhill followed by sharp uphill) Are there places you can run faster than you can ride? Find em. Lastly, follow an experienced teammate around the course. Watch their line choices. Ragot is ideal for this.
Some races Cs start late (Staten CX, for example) so you’ll have plenty of time to pre-ride the course multiple times. Ride though the pit if you are going to leave wheels there so you know how it is set up. Find a friend or teammate to hang in the pit to help you out should you need it. Don’t forget to drop you pit wheels /bike off in the pit
Be very warmed when it is start time. Get to the line early. Sneak your way up to the front. Some races do call ups based on points or rankings, some use registration order. So register early, as that will be your only chance at moving up towards the front. Some races just have a mad dash to line up, so be ready for that. Let’s say you will be 5-6 rows back. Check out the course and see if there are any places on the side to sneak around. Most courses start on pavement, but some have a nice strip of grass on either side. Often, the group will bunch up on the pavement and you can jump by 20-30 riders all at once if you are attentive.
Be aggressive early. Racing in the 4/5s - no strategy. Ride hard, harder, and harder. Sprint out of corner, out of turns,. Pass whenever you have a chance. Pass when running, at the barriers, and upon remounting. Sometimes you will find a log-jam where people are remounting. Run around them, and remount past them. They might have gotten on their bike by then, but they’ll have to slow down since you are now blocking the road in front of them! Are you exceptionally strong? Look for slogs on the pavement to bridge up to a group ahead of you.
The one thing to learn quickly about CX racing is that it pays to be aggressive. Insert video of Josh C smacking a guy in the face with his bike.. That is the type of aggression you need to have. You don’t need to worry about crashing in cross. It’s going to happen, but more often than not you will just end up with some grass stains.
After 40 minutes, it will be over, and you’ll be hurting. But then the best thing about CX season will happen. You’ll have a beer. You relax with your cycling buddies and talk about how awesome your race was. You’ll have another beer, some good food, and you’ll be ready for your next race.
Jul 28, 2014 at 01:48 PM
Granogue reg opens Friday 8/1 at 12:15 AM
call ups based on "order of registration only."
Jul 28, 2014 at 09:16 PM
Why pick such an inconvenient time??
Jul 28, 2014 at 10:27 PM
mperlberg said:Why pick such an inconvenient time??
Because #sonsofbitches that's why
Jul 29, 2014 at 01:00 AM
Setting my alarm...Rick Perner said:Granogue reg opens Friday 8/1 at 12:15 AMcall ups based on "order of registration only."
Jul 29, 2014 at 02:06 AM
I started a rough calendar for all the 2014 cx races. I put in as much info that I could find including the bikreg pages and registration times. Jules feel free to add them to the Kissena cal. Anyone can edit and add info to the doc.
Jul 29, 2014 at 02:55 AM
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No formatter is installed for the format not-found
Jul 29, 2014 at 11:33 PM
So I just spent the last hour or so on the cross bike ripping around the trees in McCarren and McGolrick Park mostly doing 180 degree turns and figure 8's etc. But I also took some time to practice this drill….and it works, pretty well actually.
I dropped chains with some regularity last season. For this season I got a new derailleur with higher spring tension and I'm shortening my chain by a link or two to help keep it on. And I'm also working on setting my bike down more gently after barriers, run ups etc. But when the inevitable happens I'm sure I'll be glad I've spent some time working on this technique which quickly corrects things, getting your chain back on, keeping your momentum up and saving you time.
Jul 30, 2014 at 11:38 AM
How about a chain catcher?
Jul 30, 2014 at 11:50 AM
I raced several road seasons with a chain catcher and loved it but after losing my chain once through the catcher I have a very different appreciation for them. Without one, if your chain comes off in a cross race you lose 30 seconds. If your chain comes off and goes through the catcher your race is over, man.
Jul 30, 2014 at 01:17 PM
Anyone looking for group lodging for Nittany? ?
This place is available but.I decided to just stay 1 night in the hotel:
Check out this awesome listing on Airbnb! https://airbnb.com/rooms/2735019
This place is available but.I decided to just stay 1 night in the hotel:
Check out this awesome listing on Airbnb! https://airbnb.com/rooms/2735019
Jul 31, 2014 at 09:04 PM
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No formatter is installed for the format not-found
Aug 01, 2014 at 01:23 AM
Get excited!
Aug 01, 2014 at 03:02 AM
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:18 AM
still closed?!
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:18 AM
THOSE MOTHERLESS @$&^%&%$''s didn't open reg!!!
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:19 AM
yup this sucks.
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:20 AM
incompetent dicks
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:22 AM
ugh. i'm tired.
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:24 AM
Serious bullshit.
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:25 AM
TOTAL BULLSHIT. Seriously considering a boycot.mperlberg said:Serious bullshit.
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:28 AM
Where was the 12:15 open confirmed?
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:29 AM
On the registration page.
Aug 01, 2014 at 04:29 AM
they took it off the registration page.mperlberg said:On the registration page.