Walk of Shame: Cyclocross cross-disciplining. Photo: Wil Matthews
Cyclocross—the rowdy cold-weather fusion of road and mountain bike racing—beckons cyclists from both disciplines who come together to find out who is the toughest when the spandex falls away. Boisterous spectators flank the race courses by the hundreds while swigging back microbrews, clanging cowbells and calling out “suffer, suffer” in a sort of sadomasochistic chant. The sloppier the course conditions, the better, and you can never have too much cowbell.
Back to the Basics Cyclocross Series September 14, 21, 28 • Golden New this year, the American Cycling Association, in conjunction with the city of Golden, and a little help from Green Mountain Sports, is offering weekly Wednesday night practice races at the Lookout Mountain Youth Center during the month of September. Choose to enter one of four loosely defined categories based on your gender, how hard you want to race, and whether you’re planning to ride a singlespeed or not. We can’t think of a better way to kick off the Colorado cross season. americancycling.org
Boulder Racing Cyclocross Series September 17, 24; October 22; November 26; Dec 11 • Various locations This classic series just keeps getting better. The September 17th race will be the first ever held at Boulder’s new Valmont Bike Park which ‘crossies have been salivating over since it opened this past summer. And yes, the wildly successful Westminster City Park course that debuted last year will be back—concrete staircase and all. boulderracing.com
Frisco Cross October 1-2 • Frisco Held at the Frisco Nordic Center, offering two different high-altitude courses in two days, this series makes for a pleasantly painful fall weekend getaway. As if we needed more incentive, phase two of the Peninsula Recreation Bike Park featuring a dirt jump facility, progression jumps, pump track, trials area and a race course—should be completed by then. Give yourself an extra day to play. townoffrisco.com/events/frisco-cyclocross
US Grand Prix of Cyclocross October 8-9 • Fort Collins Welcome to the jungle. Bring your spare bike and pit crew if you’re hoping to come out alive, err, in the front. You’ll be up against the sports’ best-known pros, who descend upon Fort Collins from all over the country (and even some from outside the US), in the deepest, strongest and fastest cyclocross field this side of the Atlantic. usgpcyclocross.com
