Methods of removing glue. It is coming.
http://www.cxmagazine.com/mechanical-monday-removing-tubular-glue-2015-tape

Posted by Chabanov
http://polartecfabric.tumblr.com/post/118695919185/5-things-cxers-should-know

1. Run what you’ve got. You don’t need to run out and buy a brand name bike or gear. A used CX bike is perfect to start with. As a beginner equipment is the least of limiters of performance. 
2. Have fun. Keep pushing 100%. There are numerous races within the race.
3. Go race. Nothing improves performance and skills like participation. A good clinic is also an excellent investment.
4. Dress/prepare for the conditions (bring more than you think you’ll need). The weather in many races during fall and winter can be wet and cold. Proper gear is the difference between having fun and staying focused on the race, and being cold and miserable. 
5. Take an opportunity to introduce a kid, family, or friend to the sport. CX races are great events to support one another and have a great day of fun and camaraderie. 

https://www.facebook.com/granogue.cross/posts/10205181338992044

Mark your calendars crossers & start your season here in Delaware on Sunday, September 6th, 2015. We'll keep you posted with details in the lead up so....stay tuned.

Posted by Granogue Cross on Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Cripes that's early.

this is in: ONE HUNDRED AND NINE DAYS.

108 days to prepare.

The absence of a road season for me this year is making the possibilty of cross season very very appealing.

David Yang said:

The absence of a road session for me this year is making the possibilty of cross season very very appealing.

Now is the time to shop for a bike.....

We''ll see how my lower back feels, however this is the time to build my little "Mange boue" in the very near future.

David Yang said:

The absence of a road session for me this year is making the possibilty of cross season very very appealing.

Did Schwinn make a CX bike in the '80s?

No but they did make early versions of "hybrids" in the 90s that have been converted to cross use, but they're not ideal.

I'm probably going to have to go the cheap/used/donor route. 

Keith Garrison's 2015 CX Season cyclocross schedule, complete with countdown (88 days!), distance to race, BikeReg link, and even food spots.

Kind of a big deal...new dates for Charm City. This time at the end of a stellar block of national caliber racing in our region. #weAREsoLUCKY

http://twenty20cycling.com/charm-city-cyclocross-scheduled-for-october-10-11th-despite-initial-usa-cycling-calendar/

I sent Kris Auer an email Tues as Bike Reg showed different fields racing together at different times than in last year's MAC schedule. He resppnded that fields subject to change as MAC rules finalized. Bike Reg showed 55 plus and 45 plus racing together at 10am and 35 plus racing at noon with Elite U19's. 45/55 combined field would be nightmare for racers and officials as it's likely to be 3x as large as 35/U19.

Jim's note made me wonder. What did the Verge series do? And what about the Mac Series in 2014?

I do remember that Verge did pair up the 35+ and elite juniors (which I think they were happy with, because the best juniors got to race/beat some very experienced elites throughout the season), but I couldn't remember what they did with 45/55+ fields.

It looks like they combined those two fields there too. One major difference is that for 35+ you had to be a Cat 3 or better. That said...

At Gloucester, the race with the biggest fields all year 35+/Juniors had 115 pre-reg'd with 9 on the wait-list. And the combined 45/55 field (starting 1 minute apart) had 96 + 54 riders or 150. 33 on the wait lists combined.

In the MAC series, they did a similar thing. Except, Elite juniors with 45+ Masters. And the 35+ got combined with 55/60+ (who started 1 minute behind). At Nittany, probably the most well-attended of all the MAC races, the 45+/Juniors nearly maxed out the field limit with 122 pre-reg'd. 35/55/60+ field sold out, 125.

It's probably worth noting that for many of the MAC races (Nittany, Charm City being exceptions), I remember reg numbers dropped off steeply from those initial highs. Verge races had more steady numbers throughout, but Gloucester was/is definitely the biggest of that series, with some drop off for the others.

I raced mostly 35+ in the MAC series, and was pretty much a middle to back marker in those races. I typically would get caught and passed by the top 3 or so 55/60+ racers, and pass a few 55/60+ riders myself. (I assume they were Cat 4s) Pretty easy for officials to manage I would think.

EXCEPT, I remember the Charm City results were a hot mess. They eventually got worked out, but I can't remember what happened there honestly. I think Jim had his share of results recording frustrations throughout the series.

To be honest, I don't know what the best system would be for handling this clearly growing sport. The registration numbers are just huge, especially in the pleasant months of fall. I mean, giving everyone their own race? Is there enough time in the day? Maybe in the early cross season when the days are longer and fields are bigger, then start to combine fields at the smaller MAC races? Could you even do that in a race within a series?

Jim, you've been racing cross a lot longer than I, what do you think?

Last time I raced in New England with any regularity, there was only one Masters field so I can't offer much insight into Verge situation. Marc is absolutely correct that MAC attendance drops dramatically after Charm City. If you add Whirlybird to that equation, 5 of 10 or 11 MAC races typically occur in Sept. This leads the the overall positions in the MAC being largely sorted out within first month. This is not so in New England as races are spread out more and there are more races in the series. I believe there are a number of factors to that.

Nittany and old Charm City dates did not conflict with other series. After Charm City, the Verge, MABRA,NJ, Pa. and Virginia series begin pulling people in different diections. Those who did well at Nittany and Charm City tend to stick with MAC looking for high overall placings in Series. Those who were not happy with their results start shopping for other possibilities. Personally, I have always found this thinking to be a mistake.

I have always considered the MAC as a coming together of two distinct geographic groups. Racers from Maryland, Del and Virginia are one group and those from PA, NJ and NY are another. Racers from either end often don't go to races at other end of geographic spectrum because there are closer alternatives and it can become expensive quickly. There were a number of years where I might have been only Kissena at Charm City and definately was only Kissena when there was DC race in Reston VA. Conversely, southern guys from Va and even Maryland never came to Myles' races in Southampton because of the distance. Often there would be more guys from New England who took ferry over to Southampton than guys from southern reaches of the MAC.

 Both Nittany and Charm City benefit from what I would call "feel good" cross. Died in the wool roadies are more than willing to test their hard earned fitness and speed at Nittany and neither race typically has weather related bike handling concerns. It is much more attractive for families to sit in sunshine at either of those races than in drizzle in Kutztown or cold of Cross at the Kiln with thoughts turning to, as yet, unpurchased or unwrapped Christmas presents. Later in the season, when it's dark, wet, muddy and cold many of those people pack in their seasons after a long grind that have started in March.

 I think this is why you are seeing more cross only racers. Cross season may be short but it involves a lot of intense racing and travel in that small window and it can become a grind quickly if one did a lot of road/mtn bike racing before. Add to that the fact that weather can kick in after mid October (remember Beacon in freezing rain) and many people will lose motivation. To paraphrase Mike Tyson, everyone has a CX plan until November punches them in the mouth. 

My sense of it is that this is less of a factor in the Verge where there is a larger core group of cross- first racers and more of a ingrained cross culture. If you are going to race cross in New England, you are going to have to come to terms with the weather. If you live in southern end of MAC territory you are likely able to race much deeper into season w/o weather concerns and if it's not your cup of tea, pack it in in early Nov as it changes.

Fact is, slogging through mud at 11 mph in driving rain at 40 degrees is not for everyone. In NE no one would take you serious as cross racer if you stop showing when it gets cold/wet no matter what kind of results you get in Sept/Oct. I think it's just part of culture there. I also believe that in Verge guys are fighting hard for 45th overall in the series whereas in The MAC people outside the top 15-20 don't really seem very worried about the overall points. I think that the racing in individual races in the MAC is very competitive all the way down the fieldand people fight very hard for individual places but there doesn't seem to be much emphasis placed on the overall. That may be because many MAC people compete in a number of different series and Verge is all that matters beyond state championships in New England. It also sems like Myerson, Bikereg and crossresults promote the overall in the Verge series much more so than the MAC promoters do. This could be because Adam promotes the entire series whereas MAC leadership is loosely tied group of promoters of individual races.

Those of us who have raced the MAC for over 5 years can attest to fact that the Elite fields, men's in particular, has fallen off dramatically from past. Years ago you would see Trebon and Wicks with Kona, Johnson and Powers,Driscoll, Frattini, Chris Jones and Chris Horner with some regularity, in addition to the Anthony Grande's, Adam Myerson's and Richard Sachs guys. Now not so much. I think this is due to the growth of cross in general in that pro's now have budgets that allow them to fly to biggest races all over the country and the death of the USGP in NJ first and then overall. Whenthe USGP raced in NJ, all the pro's had to be there so the MAC races on the bookend weekends often benefitted by people being/remaining in the area.

My view is that cross should be seen as a "season" rather than individual races. Is it better to finish 4th in a race than 5th? Sure, but at what risk? If you are in contention to win or podium, go all in. Those chances don't come around for most of us very often. However,4th won't get you on the podium and in battling for the difference between 4th and 5th are you wasting energy that you may need for next day's race or risking crashing and getting 0 points.

 Pick a series, whatever it is that works for you and COMMIT to it. You have to do everything humanly possible to make all the races in that series if you want to pursue overall points. Use other series to fill in empty weekends, stay race sharp but realize that you will be starting in the series at the back because you have no points and be realistic  about expectations. Don't lose focus on the series that matters to YOU because you get locked in a battle with someone for 14th in an off week race in a series that doesn't. For me, I know it would be incredibly frustrating to go to say New England World's, line up over 100 guys back fight all day, deal with, as Trebon would say, "that New England shit" in every corner and finish 43rd.

 If I raced there all the time, fought hard and finished 22nd overall so be it. Essentially, I believe that over the course of an entire series/season you get what you earn out of a cross season and if I gave it everything and ended up 22nd, I could be satisfied but doing it as a "one off" and handicapping yourself by poor start position and ending the day/weekend frustrated makes little sense to me. I understand that its fun and cool to travel to all the biggest races, New England Worlds, Rochester, Providence, Charm City, Louisville etc., especially when the cross bug first bites but I think that approach will ultimate frustrate it's practioners.

We are all familiar with the importance of series points for start positions and the importance , absent superhuman power output, of start position for placings. "Points" should be the resounding mantra in the head of all cross racers throughout the season. Whatever the situation in the individual race, do what you can to maximize points and preserve/improve start positions. Personally I have always taken the position that certain lines/battles/risks are not worth taking because you run risk of not finishing and thereby failing to accumulate any points. I tend to see a series like the MAC as a cyclocross stage race where you have to finish all the stages before you can expect a decent placing.

As to other the specific issue with combining the 45 and 55 fields at Charm City per BikeReg listing, my concerns were largely logistic.  It had less to do with what group you are on tegh course with, although it is an additional factor but the noon start is simply much more convenient than 10 am start. From northern end of MAC land, 10 am starts means 2 nights in hotels on double weekends. Noon start allows you to drive down to races after sun up on Sat morning. Simply a lot easier. Getting to race location at 7:30 am on Sat morning for proper prep for 10 am race, after working all week, is hard no matter how you slice it. Add dragging drowsy spouses and kids out of bed and it quickly becomes a problem. One of thethings I have come to appreciate about cross is that the more appealling you can make it for spouses, significant others, kids etc. the easier it is to make all the races and remain focused.

In responding to my email Kris Auer said the fields and times originally noted on BikeReg were the MAC fields and start times from 2 years ago. At that time, I would have been racing 45 and can say it really doesn't have much effect on your race what field starts behind yours. While no competitive person wants to get caught by winner/leader of the group behind, you have to convince yourself to stay focused on YOUR race. The riders in the other race should be no more than course features (think road furniture to be avoided) in your field. They are irrelevant to your placing and aren't taking points from you. 

Now, racing 55 plus, starting as second group, the group in front can have huge impact on your race. I'm not really sure why 35 plus MAC fields have shrunk in last two years but both 45 and 55 fields are bigger now, with 45 plus being biggest.

My concern racing behind large 45 plus field is that on courses with a choke point early in the lap (think Day 2 at Charm City at 180 degree off camber by tree at bottom of hill or run up at Whirlybird) if tehre is a pile up in first group at that point, the likelihood of second group on course charging head long into back of stopped or walking field from first group on course is very real. No one wants to start their race in hand to hand scrum with members of another field picking their way through 6 foot wide course at point where 5 1/2 feet is covered with mass of crashed and tangled bodies and bikes. The combining of large 45 plus field with 55 field, rather than the smaller (and consequently more likely to pass through such chokes w/o incident) 35 plus fields would only make same more likely. No one wants their race to end 1/4 lap in when you have travelled to Balt'mo, booked hotels, paid for meals and in Marc's case Aquarium tickets. Such chaos is certainly a factor at the start of every cross race within your own field, never mind increasing the possibility with presence of another field. When this occurs in a mixed field, teh chance for scoring problems also skyrockets.

Finally I would say that I have never understood why promoters don't buy numbers in two colors if they are going to have multiple races on course. While the numbers typically have different first digits/series, would it not be cost effective to get red numbers for the first group on course for any race time slot and black for the second. Certainly would be much easier to see red number and know that the wearer is not in your race than having to trust your recollection of another groups' series numbers when deep in the pain cave. I believe that it would help in making decisions, like discussed above as to whether passing on inside of corner is worth risk or not, when you have visual reminder that this guy in front isn't even in your race and by passing inside you are risking getting 0 points for no gain. (Again, its always about the points!) I have to believe that it would also make it easier for officials to score and record results.

Anyway, that my two cents. This post, in June no less, constitutes a serious breach of protocol in that I am breaking radio silence before the MAC calendar has even been finalized. I offer the info on the Charm City fields and times as a public and now return to the off season. See you at Granogue...

Thanks for breaking radio-silence. I mean, we're practically mid-June, so it's technically cross training season at least, so I think you're safe from the bolt of lightning strike.

As a quick PS:

The Verge Series, and other New England stand-alone staples (like Ice Weasels, etc) do a nice thing for points/staging. Only the first row is guaranteed for series leaders, every other row is done strictly by crossresults.com points. Soooo, your excellent results in MAC and non-series Jersey races will help keep you closer to the front than the back. Even at the bigger events.

For example, your crossresults points of 389, regardless of where they were earned, would have placed you in the 3rd row for the start of the 55+ at Gloucester. And that long wide pavement start...3rd row is quite, quite good. And since Gloucester is so early, I would expect that you would get a similar call up this year.

And Providence isn't part of Verge again this year, so you don't even have to give up that front row to the series points holders. You get staged strictly by crossresults.com points. Anyway, food for thought as you are making travel plans for the fall.

Thanks for the heads up on the staging protocol in New England. I did not know that. This changes everything. Just kidding, but something to consider.

Boooooo!

Isn't the host city supposed to have all their sponsorship/etc lined up before they are awarded a world cup date?

Hey crossers on the training peaks plan. Please head on over to the Training Peaks thread to give Tim a heads up if you want a cross specific training plan!

Nittany CX reg opens at 7am on Aug 1.

https://www.bikereg.com/8th-annual-nittany-lion-cross-mac-series-race-1-2-also-uci-c2-both-days

Adam, thanks for the heads-up!

I'm mildly disappointed that they have opened up registration at a relatively civil hour this year. Nothing like staying up until midnight so you could register. As a reminder and an important note to those who may be new to the cross scene. WHERE YOU START MATTERS.

Here's the official protocol for Nittany and all MAC races:

"The call-up protocol for the first MAC Series race of the season for all categories (minus the Cat 4/5 Men) will be based on the previous year’s final rankings as posted on the MAC Series website, followed by order of pre-registration.  The same rankings are used for both races in a double-race weekend. Call-up protocol for the Cat 4/5 Men will be based on order of registration."

As far as courses go, Nittany is pretty forgiving in terms of not HAVING to be on the front two rows to have a realistic expectation of finishing at the front of the race, however, if you are a Cat 4/5, or a racer with no series points from last year, you still want to register within minutes of it opening.

Why? Because here's what happens at Nittany. Okay, so the course has some nice wide lanes for passing, and that's good and fair and right. BUT, I guarantee you, that on the front row of 8 cat 4/5s, one or two or three of them will be good strong riders, and the rest will be guys who just rigged their computer to automatically register them for the race the micro-second registration opens. And what that means is that the few good dudes, get away clean while the less experienced guys flub the hole shot and cause a traffic jam and gap to the leaders who will stay away all race.

That drama aside, this race, this course, is an excellent intro to the sport. Less technical than most, you can parlay good road fitness into a solid race performance.

You can almost always make it up to the front by going wide to the left if you're willing to burn a match and aren't TOO far back...

Hey look, more schedule changes...

http://www.midatlanticcross.com/schedule/

#1-2	September 12-13	Nittany Lion Cross	Trexlertown, PA	Register · Results
#3-4	October 10-11	Charm City Cross	Baltimore, MD	Register · Results
#5-6	October 17-18	HPCX	Highland Park, NJ	Register · Results
#7	October 24	Whirlybird Cross	Bensalem, PA	Register · Results
#8	November 7	Fair Hill Cross	Elkton, MD	Register · Results
#9	November 14	Kutztown Cross	Kutztown, PA	Register · Results
#10	December 13	Limestone Cross at the Kiln	Emmaus, PA	Register · Results

I'm having a hard time coping with all the fame. I just don't feel like myself... 

granogue registration opens tomorrow at noon:
https://www.bikereg.com/granogue-cross

Thanks for the heads-up Eloy. A couple of interesting/important notes about Granogue, I noticed.

• Held on the DuPont estate, this year leashed dogs ARE allowed!
• Also, there are going to be Shetland Ponies for the kids to ride! How cool is that?
• STAGING BY ORDER OF REGISTRATION, with volunteers possibly getting call ups at promoter discretion.

Last year the fields weren't that big, so arguably, call ups were probably less important than most CX races on the calender. This year, Granogue, a race that many KCC crossers count as their all-time favorite, conflicts with UCI CX racing in Rochester (a brutal climbing course I hear) and regional stage race favorite, Green Mountain. So I'd expect similarly modest sized fields.

Still, if you are going to do this race, just register early and get that first, second, or third row call up!