Cyclocross - CX and SSCX races and training

Very nice photos

What's the marshall doing?

Yes, I'm wondering that too! I guess I just have that kind of arse.

This should probably be in the spotted thread, but spot the forumite in this spread from cxmagazine;

http://www.cxmagazine.com/flashback-london-league-cyclocross-dartford-photo-gallery
Brixton, Hackney GT, or Paragon?

I'm afraid I don't know who it is you're referring to.

http://vimeo.com/89689947

Ok, some thinking aloud and I figured this is the best place for it.

Currently I have

A cross country hardtail with 100mm forks, 2.1" tyres.
A carbon forked, skinny tyred road bike.

(As well as a downhilly/all mountainy full suspension and a commuter but that's by the by.)

I'm contemplating chopping in the first two (the XC bike needs some serious work - wheels/forks/drivetrain probably on last legs. It's also a 26" frame so stuff's starting to get phased out) and building myself a CX/road bike with discs. I'd then probably like to run two sets of wheels so it could still be a road bike when I needed it and a cross bike when I needed it. Is this a stupid idea, and am I going to end up with a hugely compromised bike I won't enjoy?

Main concerns are riding position and clearances - weight on a new cross frame will be lighter than current, no worries.

It's a fair idea if you don't have enough resources for both a road and cross bike.

Assuming you don't race crits etc I don't think it would really affect you that much. Only thing to consider is that a cross frame used as a road frame is never quite as much fun on the road, and that there's a fair bit of difference between a more burly XC 29er and a crosser.

In terms of sizing you might have to size down a bit and run a bit of stack - or a flipped stem - for off road duties then swap to a longer stem for road, assuming the frame you went for is shorter and a bit more upright than the equivalent road frame.

I don't currently race. Cyclocross is actually the most appealing racing to me so it would kind of help.

I'm just trying to reduce required storage space and consequently maintenance costs.

Interesting points about riding position, cheers.

I think the starting point is to try and get a go on a crosser to see if I could cope with one offroad.

If you are comfortable shifting your body weight round above your road bike (arse off the back of the saddle, bike leaning one way with your body counterbalancing on the other side etc...) then you should cope easily with a cross bike off road. There are always tips and tricks for which I would recommend one of the skills days that tend to run in late autumn ahead of the new season.

As for riding road on a cross bike, just fit skinny tyres and away you go. I've ridden mine in the Dolomites and the extra braking power came in handy.

I used to ride (and raced Mountain Mayhem) on a too big rigid singlespeed cross country bike so I'm not too bad off road on unsuitable bikes. I'd always have the big suspension bike to fall back on as well. I think a quick blast on a CX bike to confirm and I'll set the plan in motion.

Club affiliation:

Possibly derpy question: can a cycling club affiliate to more than one CX league?

Yes

Ta. Quick poll:

If you were to race under LFGSS.cc which league would you want to be affiliated to?

Howard: Central

Summer is up - 46c slicks

What's the base frame?

Ridley x fire - I've ridden the bike pictured, but it's unfortunatly not mine.

That looks mega fun.

On the dry gravel and single tracks it delivered - and the effortless rolling resistance on tarmac with the very same tire pressure do turn heads in the peloton.

If you're relatively tall this cross post should suit ya:
http://www.lfgss.com/post4220147-6428.html
(Geekhouse demo sale).

I'm hoping to give cross a bash this year so I'm planning parts (well) ahead of the season. I just skimmed the thread for advice on wheels / tyre choices.

I'm thinking of using a clincher wheel set for drier conditions and tubs for wetter / muddier races. If that seems sensible, what are the best clincher tyres for drier conditions and and what suggestions for tub rims and tyres for wetter conditions?

I was thinking Major Toms with FMB SSC tyres for the latter.

Or have I got it all wrong?

It's a good place to start. The better clinchers are ones like the Clement LAS or the Vittoria XN, although both of those are only really suitable for very dry conditions.

If I was only going to run one pair of tubs, then I'd go for something that would be good in intermediate conditions but will also work okay in proper mud, so something like the Challenge Fango, Dugast Small Bird (although I've not used it), the aforementioned FMBs or the Specialized Tracer (which I was very happy with last season). A mud tyre is nice to have, but even in a wet season like last year I think I only used mine twice, whereas an intermediate tyre can be used in more races.

One other point to note with full mud tyres, is that they do throw up significantly more mud and this invariably ends up on the bike, causing fouling issues.

Depends where you are based - last season in Bristol I rode muds for every event (challenge limus)

Grifo's are good all-rounders too

Does anyone know if the latest CAAD X disc frame still has a bridge across the rear stays?

Thanks Andy

I have a pair a challenge Limus which I'll post for £60. Only used for 3 races, good condition.