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The West Midlands CX league has been over-subscribed so they closed registrations a week early 🙁
Just ask the commissar if it's ok to ride on your 29er with existing tyres on, chances are they'll be more than happy since it means more folks riding.
If you win, then win again you maybe asked to follow the rules, but hey you won't be the first nor last guy on a 29er hacking around having fun.
Unless you're riding a National level race or the 3 Peaks, then there'll be absolutely no problem about entering on a 29er XC bike. Just make sure that if you do have bar ends to take them off. There are no "rules" except for higher ranked events where you must comply with UCI regulations - for league races there are no restrictions.
Please note that helmet/ harness/ bike mounted cameras are not permitted in CX races (unless you have specific dispensation from the governing body) - you will be asked to remove it before being allowed to start.
Is anyone doing the Floodlit Series in Swindon - gutted that I can only make a couple of them this year 🙁
trickydisco - Memberor simon richardson winning on a 26er in the western league
Si Richardson would've won on whatever bike he rode 😉
Anyone who was moaning about it probably needed reminding of that. Some people take it far too seriously. There was a guy who had a go at me for doing mince pie hand-ups at the Lockleaze round last year. No idea where he came, but the winner had 3...
Anyone who was moaning about it probably needed reminding of that. Some people take it far too seriously. There was a guy who had a go at me for doing mince pie hand-ups at the Lockleaze round last year. No idea where he came, but the winner had 3...
My local series wont let you ride if you are wearing 'non-affiliated' clothing, i.e. a Sky top when your not on the Sky team, or a club thats not a member of BC. Kind of goes against the point of cyclocross being an open and inclusive sport if you ask me.
here was a guy who had a go at me for doing mince pie hand-ups at the Lockleaze round last year.
Whaa?! no way. I thought the western league was fairly chilled
New event in the Welsh League this year at the National Botanic Gardens, organised by Matt Page. Might make that my annual CX outing this year, should be less boring than the Carmarthen Showground course.
Clothing is restricted under the UCI/BC rules. How hard is to wear a plain top, can't see how that doesn't make it inclusive?
Pjt201- those mince pies were amazing. I only had 2 which probably explains why I did so badly. Looking forward to the new season and new venues in the western league. Mendip raceway is going to be interesting!
Clothing is restricted under the UCI/BC rules. How hard is to wear a plain top, can't see how that doesn't make it inclusive?
It is? I read it the other way, plain clothing and even stuff with a few minor manufacturers logo's are fine, club/sponsor's kits need to be a registered design...
I'm more interested in how rigidly enforced the 33mm tyre rule is.
I am curretly using 35mm on a pretty narrow rims, I'll measure them to be sure they don't come up narrow, but I don't much fancy having to buy a new pair of tyres just to race on if I really don't need to...
i cant imagine anyone will be round checking tyre widths on the start line 🙂
you'll be fine.
33mm tyre width only applies to National Level and above racing, if you're doing local league racing it'll be fine.
The clothing rules are pretty inclusive, seeing as under-16s can wear what they wish so long as it's not the National Champs. Over-16s have to wear the kit of their club/team but in general most commissaires (this one included) will be fine with plain kit.
If someone turns up in full Sky/Belkin whatever kit and they're clearly a beginner then I wouldn't be DQing them, more a quiet word explaining the rules and asking them to ride in something more suitable next time.
33mm tyre calipers are issued to UCI-level comms precisely for testing tyre widths on the start line, but as said above if you're not racing a higher-level race it won't be checked - otherwise MTBs would effectively be banned from local leagues.
If someone turns up in full Sky/Belkin whatever kit and they're clearly a beginner then I wouldn't be DQing them, more a quiet word explaining the rules and asking them to ride in something more suitable next time.
Just to press the obvious point home, that's because a pro might arrive who actually races for that team. You might buy a replica jersey but that doesn't entitle you to wear it in a proper race simply because you arent on that team. Ditto using club jerseys if you aren't a member of that club.
I remember a friend who rode for Bynea CC arrived at a race to find Jez Hunt (iirc) on the start line. Unfortunately Hunt was racing for Banesto and Bynea had stolen their design, replacing the word Banesto with Bynea. Embarrassment ensued.
When Roger Hammond was riding for Discovery Channel he rode one of our local league events as a warmup for the Nationals. More than one person was ripping the mickey out of the chopper in full team kit until they realised that he was actually entitled to wear it 😆
cookeaa - Member
Clothing is restricted under the UCI/BC rules. How hard is to wear a plain top, can't see how that doesn't make it inclusive?It is? I read it the other way, plain clothing and even stuff with a few minor manufacturers logo's are fine, club/sponsor's kits need to be a registered design..
Does this mean (I'm not a member of a club) my brash mtb tops plastered in substantial troy lee designs logos will really not be acceptable 😳
While I agree with and understand the reasoning for the don't wear team kit if your not in a team, this minor logo thing sounds a bit like my old man's golf club's policy on sock length!
That's a grey area but you'd probably be fine as it's not really 'team' kit. It'd come down to the commissaires on the day but in most cases common sense would prevail.
I suppose you could always wear a not acceptable jersey inside out .. it's likely to get muddy anyway 🙂
Or ride naked. 😆
(Checks rules..)
pin a number to? 😆
Clothing is restricted under the UCI/BC rules. How hard is to wear a plain top, can't see how that doesn't make it inclusive?
Why do there even need to be rules on clothing at non-national rounds? Why are organisers upping fees to pay for electronic timing and MC's?? Cyclocross is turning into the winter sportive.
Theres way more interest in my club this year than last for having a go a CX racing.
Speaking with mates last night I broached the question about whose coming to the 1st race on the 6th, out of about 25 of us well over half said they were. Wind back to last year and there would have only been me and a couple of others.
Some are just a bit bored of road riding all the time (none MTB, couple already CX) and fancied a blast. I think what did it was me and a couple of mates would turn up to the club filthy with a grin.
That an a few of the guys have taken advantage of lower cost of bikes this year (extended sales and such)
Why do there even need to be rules on clothing at non-national rounds?
For the reasons noted above. Also as already mentioned most Coms are okay and apply common sense.
Cyclocross is turning into the winter sportive.
Hardly.
Why are organisers upping fees to pay for electronic timing
Because the riders are demanding it, plus it's very difficult to manually judge a race with 200 riders flying round a 6-8min lap. Increased numbers = increased stress on the organising team.
Commentators have been mandatory at cat A races and above forever so it's not a new thing.
Considering giving it a go this year. I've done a couple of novice races in the past on my MTB but now I have a cross bike I may try the proper race. Will probably still stick with the novices race for the first one though while I get a feel for it.
Cyclocross is turning into the winter sportive.
erm, cyclocross is a real race. 😈
As it gets more popular there are more and more go cross races where these rules don't count.
But if you do a regional race you are technically in the pyramid to nationals and worlds and some people there genuinely are so you need those rules. There are only 6 (?) naitonals a year so the regional races see a lot of properly good riders between times. And that's what's so great for me is that this is a real race and they let knackers in too! you get to hack around mid table at the same time as some real proper riders are duking out up front.
Why are organisers upping fees to pay for electronic timing and MC's
Having promoted London League & Central League CX races in the past the workload is enormous - I stopped doing it partly because of the huge amount of time it took to get the full race results out, and the constant emails from people saying that they came 83rd, and not 84th and that I was a moron and an idiot (and worse) for getting it wrong. Having electronic timing makes it much more likely to get the results out quickly and easily within a short timescale.
I thought that if you had a PA and a microphone it was almost impossible to stop someone from picking it up and talking complete bollocks in a field to a small crowd of onlookers up until the point that someone else would take it away from them and turn the PA off.
Having promoted London League & Central League CX races in the past the workload is enormous - I stopped doing it partly because of the huge amount of time it took to get the full race results out, and the constant emails from people saying that they came 83rd, and not 84th and that I was a moron and an idiot (and worse) for getting it wrong. Having electronic timing makes it much more likely to get the results out quickly and easily within a short timescale.
Totally get that, have ran an event for past few years and timing/scoring can be stressful, but once used to it paper and pen is reliable, easy and quick to get results, though my biggest field was only about 80.
CX isnt exactly suffering for attendees right now, but ive only been doing it a few years and most of the guys i raced with at the back of the field dont race anymore and my friends who raced occasionally cant afford the now £18+£3levy for a 50min race when they are struggling to makes ends. Instead the fields are filled with (joke example of an oft used stereotype) STWers arriving in their Audi with a cycle to work CX bike on the roof. Obviously this is not a bad thing and I love that more people are racing, but i dislike that costs driven off some of the people who have been doing it for years or blocking those who might have tried it.
What do you guys pay/charge for a senior race? (turning up on the day, no licence)
TBH I started racing CX in 93/94, and whilst never troubling the front of any race I used to quite enjoy it, I don't really do so any more, and am unlikely to race CX again.
I had tried to put on a new CX race with my current club (I have with a previous club promoted 4 League CX races successfully but stressfully so have been there and done it), but some members of the club made it clear that what I was proposing wasn't something they felt should be done so I've left it to them to sort it out (18 months later, still no club promoted race....), and I Commissaire (with herself) at about half a dozen League CX races every season.
Do I need a BC licence or membership of any variety to race? I'd like to use my TriCross for something more than winter road riding
You don't need to be a member of BC or a club, you can turn up and race, it'll just cost you a little more (£3ish) to buy a day license.
You may wish to look at the website for your local league as some are now pre-entry only and may not admit entries on the day.
Thanks aP, active club member but BC membership just lapsed, so I may renew it. Local to Swindon, so looking at the CV races at Supermarine, and possibly a Western League if I enjoy it...
LS - Member
That's a grey area but you'd probably be fine as it's not really 'team' kit. It'd come down to the commissaires on the day but in most cases common sense would prevail.
For the avoidance of doubt, the two jerseys I have are the tld sprint jerseys:
[url= http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/troy-lee-designs-ace-jersey-2013/rp-prod84391 ]This one[/url]
[url= http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/troy-lee-designs-ace-jersey-2015/rp-prod117045 ]And this[/url]
Will they be ok?
Jon, no way I'm going naked, but I have I nice mankini for the warmer early round!
I'd be 100% fine with those as the logos on there are those of the manufacturer, and they're not TLD team jerseys.
Like I say it's a grey area (there are many regulations that you can drive a coach and horses through, this is one) but I'd be very surprised if any commissaire had a problem with those jerseys.
Jon, no way I'm going naked, but I have I nice mankini for the warmer early round!
MrsP said she'll help you pin your number on. 😉
I'll help too 😉
It's only £5 for a plain jersey from decathlon, might not be TLD but once you cover it in mud, what's the difference?
@Shrewbread, cheers, I was expecting it would be, been racing the xc mtb series this year and thats been super friendly, as was matt pages winter xc series at pembrey. Just didn't want to turn up and have to race with only a smear of bacon fat to keep warm!
@cookea, seems like there is no reason to. But I got both jerseys super discounted, they fit well and are comfortable, so don't really want to buy a another jersey just to race, even if it is a fiver.
@at Jon/bikebuoy, i'f I'm not allowed my jersey, I'll just Velcro the number to my chest wig but thanks for the offer!
What's the cx start protocol? In xc it's any time in the next 15 seconds and then a blast, but from watching cx vids it seems to be 5.4.3.2.1 go. Is this just at international level or is it the general procedure?
Nope, its any time in the next 15 seconds. 5,4,3,2,1 is specifically not allowed. And one foot on the ground as well.
aP - Member
And one foot on the ground as well.
Thank f. for that, if it had been no feet on the ground I'd have been bvggered!
Haha! Some people try and track stand. But all that they do is hold up the start until they put their foot down, then it starts at that exact same time... 😉
Yeah trackies are just going to fall over when the bunch moves forward anyway. I've seen 2 mental pileups on the line because theres been a trackie with his wheel at 45Deg, then hoot and everyone piles in the back of him.
Should always be one foot on the floor IMO.
The other fun thing that happens from the start is someone's wheel slips on the mud and spins, then the second row gets traction and then they are both on the floor.