[Closed] 2016-17 CX racing thread

I thought they should have made use of the field over from the start. Big field like that could have really spread the field out and eliminated most, if not all, of the bottle necks.

Then again - if it was wet, maybe the grass would have got churned up too badly.

We had national champ Liam Kileen racing in our local league yesterday in Cheltenham!

[img] ?oh=b060db2e7201c5fadc489faed317de08&oe=58695FCC[/img]

Surprised your Comm didn't put him on the first row TBH.

Lovely day but full of a cold and on marshall / coursebuild duty at Bolton. Vets and Ladies race had 173 starters so looked just a little bit frantic / crowded.....

Surprised your Comm didn't put him on the first row TBH.

It didn't seem to hinder him too much! I was hoping he'd only lap me twice, but caught me a third time on the last lap.

weeksy - Member

I don't think i'm ever going to be in a position to race the adults cat thoguh myself.

Agree with Gary_Lager, our league (Welsh) is super friendly and all ability levels, I get the impression others are the same. Plus if you enjoy it, cx is easy to improve at just by messing around, so long as you don't mind risking the wrath of park groundsmen that is!

Edit. Results out and I achieved my season goal position already. Made up... but with only three races gone, now I need a new goal - keeping up with David Jey 😆

My last cx race for a while yesterday at carmarthen. Fast dry course that was great to race on, one mildy technical run-up and drop and then lots of cornering skills practise. Largely really pleased, finally my starts aren't atrocious, plus I kept up with David for a lap or two! 😆 First race for me this season when its been full on wheel to wheel racing from start to finish. Had a good battle with two other riders till about 40 minutes when I blew, had a slow lap then recovered and had a good battle with another guy for the last three laps. Was pretty gutted as we were wheel to wheel for three laps and were set for a sprint finish till a lapping rider barrelled past causing me to stall, but hey ho, i can't sprint anyway 😆

A month of non-cycling weekends and chores await. A bit gutted to miss the abergavenny weekend, two races in a weekend sounds good. Back for Melin Mynach, hopefully by then I'll have worked out how to keep the intensity for an hour... and it will have started raining.

I enjoyed yesterday at Carmarthen too. Sorry I didn't get a proper chat to you at the end Ferrals but the boy had done a poonami so dealing with that was more pressing! I still struggle from the starts, was the same time trialling; if I go off to hard it messes me up for the rest of the race. Problem is that first 10 minutes makes such a difference positioning wise. Oh well. I tried a couple of different techniques out yesterday at other parts of the course and found some things worked and others not.
See you at Gorseinon. Hopefully I can avoid another concussion.

Haha, no probs, that is more important!

See you in November

HUGE day yesterday to start the 2016 season in Scotland - Callendar Park in Falkirk hosted over 600 entrants across all categories. V40 was probably the biggest single category with something like 145 starters, mental.

Glorious sunshine, fun fast flowy course and some brilliant racing made it a great day out. I was aiming for a top 10, was all going to plan til I threw the chain, took ages to sort, then it happened again twice over the next few laps. Ended with a mid-20s finish, frustrating but I felt great throughout and reckon I rode well. Mechanical misfortunes aside, good to have the season underway. There's always another day!

That is an insane field! Last year our combined seniors/women/juniors/all vet cats. was about that and it was crazy racing.

Been hearing about the National Trophy in Derby too, sounds amazing, might have to try a national next year!

Watched [url=

- The Final Year [/url] at the weekend. Well worth a watch

Not so much of a huge field of riders for the Vet's National Trophy at Derby yesterday, only 146 lined up 😉
Kris turned up from Belgium, ripped everybodys legs off and won ;-(

Ian I enjoyed our tussle for the first couple of laps but I was relieved to get rid of you 😉 Indeed the whole race felt like a battle to get a gap on people and not have them chase me down again! Great racing, but I literally could not relax for a moment, there was always someone hounding me - my teammate Mike, who I thought had blown completely, came back super strong and nearly caught me on the bell lap.

I'm all in until Abergavenny (but only racing the regional), but I'm taking a couple of weekends' break after that with the aim of peaking for Welsh Champs (rather that burning out by then). Unfortunately this means skipping Melin Mynach, so I guess I won't race you again til mid November....please don't get any faster by then.

Racing Central League for second season, and aiming for top 10s (in V40) based on end of last season. They used last year's final standings to grid round 1 which was nice. Managed to justify it by getting 7th in Rd1 which was an "A" race for me as my favourite course (RAF Halton, loads of wooded singletrack 🙂 ). Had empty legs for Rd2 at MK so was happy with 11th, and despite being swamped off the start line at Rd3 at Hemel had a good race and got another 7th. Still using the summer tyres and skinsuit (ahem, yes I've gone that far) and no mechanicals so far. Not sure if we'll do the 8 rounds needed to qualify (last year only managed 7 which was very frustrating) as going to do a few local Wessex rounds when the corresponding Central is a distance away.

Averaging about 90 in V40, we race with juniors (less than 20?), Senior field similar.

And fair play to one guy who races V40, then seniors an hour later, and finishes well inside top 10 in both (Gavin Rumbles if you know him).

david jey - Member
Ian I enjoyed our tussle for the first couple of laps but I was relieved to get rid of you

Haha. I was particularly pleased when you stalled round that one corner, not that you let me stay in front long!

I'm all in until Abergavenny (but only racing the regional), but I'm taking a couple of weekends' break after that with the aim of peaking for Welsh Champs (rather that burning out by then)....please don't get any faster by then.

I''m hoping to peak for the champs as well, what with it being a home race and all. I've written out a training plan and everything 😳 although i'I've already failed by missing this evenings session and sitting in front of the tv with a pint instead 😆

Will do my best to get faster but will probably just overtrain and get the flu!

V good course at Manchester yesterday - had been raining prior to but the sun came out and it ran really well.
Unfortunately I managed to roll a tub after gurning up a steep bank, so finished the race well down on where I wanted to be. Still, some good racing.

Never glue tubs after five pints....

Ferrals, david jey, I may be joining you in Wales at some point, Munqe Chick has just sent me an email with this on it...

ORDER RECEIPT

ONLINE APPLICATION FOR EVENT ENTRY

This is a receipt of payment and not a guarantee of acceptance into the event.
________________________________________
Welsh Cyclo-Cross Championships 2016

Veteran Male 40-49 04/12/2016 12:45
You have applied for the following riders to participate in this race:

With Ferrals tucked away in a hotel room I suppose I will do a Welsh League update. Saturday race this time as the course/location at Abergavenny was being used for round 2 of the Nationals on Sunday.
Weather was dry and with a crisp wind.
Course was technically interesting with a good few off-camber switchbacks and corners and some nice flowing wooded sections. Despite the dry weather the lines were quick to become greasy in places and the off-camber sections saw me and a few others I'm sure enjoy a slide or 7. I rolled my rear limus tub around the 40 minute mark and had to run to the pits and fit a spare wheel with baby limus. Not as much climbing grip but still good on the corners although I couldn't make up that many places to get back to where I was.
Oh and there were Belgians, bloody fast Belgians and UK National riders enjoying a pre-Race race.
Superb course and one I hope we get next year as well.

Tucked away in a hotel room but still with internet access 🙂 - plus now drunk!
Unlucky with the tub mate- looks like you still managed a reasonable result given the influx though? Really gutted I missed this w/e, pictures look like a 'proper' cross course, something I feel to a certain extent I've missed this year so far. Just hope it rains before MM as that's bone dry at the moment.

Crashtestmonkey, great stuff, been helping design the champs course. It's not finalised yet but it's looking really good at the moment. We had a bit of a setback as an MTV event affected a lot of the park but actually think the required modifications have improved things. Hard though, both technical and physical: some nice tight turns and off-cambers with a fair elevation change too

As an drunken pub conversation aside, I can't help thinking there should be a national trophy at Pembrey, thought it this years course had had another 500m more open grass hair pin type stuff and some hurdles it would have been a perfect course

Oh Man I'm late to the CX party this year on this thread!!! Yes Ferrals I was coming back for an attack at the stripes Welsh jersey (if only FFion James and Ruby Miller can be away racing elsewhere!) so entered Crashtestmonkey too! He'll have a laugh starting at the back and fighting his way through the filed. Do women have a separate start to men in Welsh league now?

Central league have upgraded to timing chips with live results. IT is awesome within 10 minutes of finishing they have the podium and as soon as you cross that line you get your placing! I LOVE CROSS .. cross is the boss

In league women start with v50s 2 minutes after v 40s, will double check if it's same in the champs.

We're going to be using chips for the champs. In the league it's 50-50 using them or old school number counting.

MY first race of any description this year on Saturday.

forgot how much I loved it. got a third place vets finish as well, so happy with that.

once I'd remembered it's ok to get sideways I had a great time 🙂

Warton where was that?

We had a wide pan flat powerful grass crit! Although I had a cracking battle for 2/3rd (which I won) due to my technical prowess and tactical nous! 😉 that's what I like to think anyway. Crashtestmonkey didn't enjoy his race and found it soul destroying when he spent his race wheel sucking and the guy who's wheel he was hanging on was shouting words of encouragement to hold on!

No Welsh league this weekend Ferrels? Gorseinon next week that's generally a good course isn't it?

Yeah think it was a w/e off for the Welsh league last w/e, I've not raced in a month... not really riden my bike in two weeks 😥 Been working away and long hours in the week, then getting ill and sleeping all w/e, still recovering.. so am dreading the pain of racing on Sunday 😆

Yep Gorseinon this weekend (6th). It is crazy dry. There are maybe three damp patches the entire course. I think we have a tiny bit of rain forecast one evening but can't see it being anything other than dry. Had switched to mud tyres in anticipation but going back to intermediates. Course is being run in reverse this year. Should be really good, a new extra little bit with a different descent, a drifty gravel corner or two and a bit of wooded stuff.

Well yet again we had blue skies for the Welsh league. Hope everyone liked the new course, my input was the repeated hairpins up and down the bank in the main field and the little switchback section over the lump by the entrance, so be nice about those bits! Good to see idle-Jon racing today - even if he forgot how old he was 😉

Not sure how I feel about my race, I wasn't up for it at all, if it hadn't been the home race I'd probably have not bothered. Then had an atrocious start which riled me up 😆 got sandwiched between two guys leaning on me from either side and was almost last going into the first corner. Expended a fair bit of energy getting back to midfield in the first lap and made a few more places up in the first bit of lap two, then had a steady race for the rest of it, couple of battles but more just steady plugging to the end. As far as I can tell was my worst result this year, but probably only by a few places so not as bad as I thought it would be at the start.

New venue next week, and finally rain forecast! Looking forward to mud - so long as I don't lose a rear mech!

Hope everyone else had good races

Ventured into Wales today - nothing on in the NW so did the lead mines course above Wrexham in the N Wales league. Loved the course, really tight and technical and a good rhythm to it - credit to the organisers. You'd go deep but there always seemed to be a recovery bit to stop you from completely blowing.
Felt like I had a good race but no idea on results. Didn't get involved with the melee at the start and moved up pretty steadily, got lapped by a few of the leaders.

Beautiful day in Scotland for round 3 of the SCX series and another bumper day with something like 650 racers across all categories. A change to the normal timetable saw the V50s race separated from the women's race, giving everyone a bit more room but meant less practice time in between races. Feedback seemed good though, and will hopefully help the female field size grow further.

I coach young racers and always emphasise the importance of staying 'on it' all the way to the line and not switching off at the death. What did I then go and do? About 150 starters in the V40s, but a decent start and first two laps saw me up to 4th with the front in sight. Held that til the bell, where I realised I must have slipped back a bit as 3rd had pretty much disappeared and I was suddenly in a battle for 4th with another 3 riders. Nip and tuck for the last lap with positions changing til coming back into the arena 6th on the wheel of 5th. A sprint across the gravel to the line and I knew I wasn't going to take it so switched off like a moron with <5m to go and lost 6th right on the line. Aaaargh!

Pleased enough with the ride and another top 10 but annoyed with myself. Smashing event though and nice conditions to race in.

Really enjoyed Gorseinon yesterday; could really keep momentum going.
Not the best start; missed last 3 races, so gridded 3rd line back which meant I got swamped first bend, and lost sight of guys out front until about 4th lap. Starting getting closer on guys I usually race with - then rider went down in front of me, and me and bike doing cartwheels over top of him.
Just outside top 10 I think/expect.

Some photos (not mine) from Melin Mynach:

[url= https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPwbiBGX4xKgSCUcUb0Q6s2_9GxEoiwtGfHgbuBSsfNUbXnGwzwVcY-o3n8lsrCvg?key=SkVtWEdQZVhCZnhFTjNyZmNRUGExQ1FSTkFsVFpn ]MM photos[/url]

phewww. glad nobody caught my crash!

this weekend was wet!

after busting a gut to get my new (2nd hand) Ridley built, i adjusted the saddle and didn't double check the torque. 30 mins into a very wet and muddy race my saddle works loose, and falls off. DNF - Gutted

Crashtestmonkey and I ventured to Wessex league (normally Central league) this weekend as it was 20 minutes away in Oxford. Here's my race report: 4 degrees and a Northerly wind .. CX weather is fast coming in.. we are just missing the mud (not necessarily a bad thing!) up first (for a change) ladies and V50. The course was in 2 segments a fast wide powerful billiard table style grass section with some twisties then a fast technical narrow bit with obstacles and bomb holes! 57 women started, their biggest field yet! I got gridded on the 2nd row & got a good start and up into 4th but slowly went backwards on the power grass sections. I'd pull them back on the technical trees and after some recent Wednesday night coaching my remounting was better! Until I saw a club mate from V50's (yes I'd caught him) before the trees, I was super polite as I passed then .... boom front wheel wash out in the bottom of the bomb hole and I hit the deck hard! Some swear words were shouted I looked around dazed then as someone went to assist me I was up and off ..but lost a place or so! I spent the next 3 laps with a dead right side, pins and needles and no power. Held onto 9th overall but 5th Senior woman!

So next up Crashtestmonkey in the V40! He also managed to get gridded onto the 2nd row and boom they were off like a greyhound after a rabbit insanely fast and furious, it might as well have been MotoGP! He was doing well, as I cheered him on I heard him shout "I'm going backwards"! Similar story he'd pull the groups back on the twisties but they'd disappear on the flats. He said "I need more power" bearing in mind he was doing 30mph on the straights on grass but STILL got overtaken! 👿 He washed out on some leaves trying to make up time in the singeltrack and snapped a spoke. Another lap he was leaning so much trying to carry corner speed through the woods to make up ground that he clipped a tree on the outside of the tape with his helmet and shoulder (both have grazes!!). They had 2 sets of plants, one 99% jumped, 1 needed running and a tree down!

So conclusion Wessex league is insanely fast and competitive but a great day out! I pedalled into work today as a recovery ride..ouch body so sore and still no power on my right side! Hopefully bruising will be out and recovered in time for Sunday's race! And up here it is due to be dry ALL week so another fast and furious race for us ahead.

Ferrals.. I did Gorseinon in 2014 .. ooooh that was a muddy day!!! crossisboss

Did ferrals mention the wind and the overcast cloud that appeared JUST for the seniors race at Gorseinon? Ooo it was fresh. Very dry though.
I had a good start (may have leant on ferrals, not sure) and then went backwards, finding myself riding on my own for a good half hour in the middle of the race. Couldn't quite tag on to those in front, and those behind weren't catching up.
My back took a beating, and I was really feeling it today.
It felt like a small field for Seniors, I don't know how many actually signed on.
Nice to see a few faces cheering and racing.

😆 You were way ahead while I was still one part of a moving tripod!

Looking at the results, it was a small field with 46 in S+J. Not sure why, vets fields were big. Did seem to be large gaps after the first few laps, I was quite relieved it wasnt a full on scrap to the line.

Was quite surprised to see I'd done better than I thought, best senior result to date, about normal position in the race but the juniors were obviously feeling fiesty 😆 Position helped no doubt by the small field and by a couple of people in front of me flatting

Anyone know what the Keynsham course is like?

I'm tempted to pop my new CX bikes race cherry, but its around an hour away for an hour of pain, however the local MTB trails are gonna be well muddy so it could be worth it.

Found it, New course, looks twisty!

Will I be expected to clear up my own vomit?

I managed a ninth yesterday in our regional league in this part of Germany. Weather was just above freezing and we had snow/sleet at the start...just how I live it! Had to start at the back as they don't seed you if you haven't registered before the race (how hum) but it is my favourite course in the series. Unfortunately my second favourite course is for the race today (yes they have stupidly put two races of the series on consecutive days) and so to keep a harmonious family I am not going.

A lot of people (from other parts of the country) complain that the courses are too technical but I personally like them like that. For those who are interested here is a video from two years ago of the course. Though they have tweeked it in the last two years.

Well i havn't raced a CX race for a few years (although i have helped out at my local CX event, setting up & marshaling), the Keynshan Shamcross course was GREAT fun, especially so as its a flat area and they've definately put it to good use, so many twists and turns, the spiral of doom, some great woodsy steep off camber stuff, plenty of entertainment at the boards, and a fantastic crowd. Nice for spectators that pretty much the whole course is visible from the finish area. I had a great time. FoD next week, if work allows 🙂

R.S. Looks like a really fun course.

No racing for me this weekend, another f-ing weekend lost to lying in bed ill.

Any welsh leaguers raced at Parc Bryn Bach before? Up next weekend and looks like there were races there in the mid 2000's. At the moment don't think I'll bother unless its meant to be a good and techncial course.

Looks like it's down to me to do the Welsh League update this week. Made the trip over to Llanerchaeron in west Wales, as did plenty of others despite the 100 mile drive from Cardiff - good-sized fields in all the races. A brand new venue and a good course - a mix of full throttle for most of the first half of the lap (dodging the occasional cowpat) and a much twistier second half. It got slippy in places but not proper muddy apart from 25 metres of ankle deep bog.

Another solid/unspectular day for me - got a decent but not great start, made up a few places in the first couple of laps, but got caught and dropped by a few guys too. Another fag-end of the top ten result, 9th or 10th I think. But that'll do.

Mooman also there, and did I see Thom around or was that another bearded PRCC rider..? Oh and I'm sure I saw a photo with IdleJon in making a comeback!

Finally managed a podium (3rd) at the Central League yesterday after a few 5th and 6ths. Fun course, with a nice muddy section, some sand pits and plenty of off camber sections! Had a great battle with 2nd all race and ended in a sprint finish!

Congratulations !

Will, congrats. I was stuck at work 🙁 and I followed Cnetral V40 (my cat) and women's (Munqe Chick was racing) on the live tracker - a bit vicarious but could work out who was having battles with who so tried to picture the racing.

And you're being modest, you're currently sat 2nd in the league.

https://app.lap.io/series/2016-09-central-cx-league/cup?category=SMA

We're racing a double-header this coming weekend, Central Saturday and Wessex Sunday for that pro experience 😀