Cyclocross - CX and SSCX races and training

Fit better tubs.

The rider ahead of me for most of the race was trying to ride that bank everytime, he got it right around 50% of the time. Provided you can dismount (and remount) a bike properly and maintain speed into the hill you're not going to lose too much time by choosing to run. Should they screw it up you'll make up far more time than they're going to gain if they get up. Not worth the risk in my opinion unless you're 100% confident you can get it right everytime, same goes with hopping barriers.

As it happens I got past him on the last lap as he attempted (and failed) to ride the bank only to drop my chain coming back down the other side (think I clipped something coming past him) and lost two places, one of which I managed to make up in the finishing straights.

It's also worth practicing running barriers properly, it's a skill which doesn't take long to master but can save a fair amount of time. On fast approaches to barriers like yesterday stepping through really helps maintain speed. I was riding a bike slower and losing time on my small group throughout the course but managing to bridge back just by running quicker (and remounting after the corner).

Tyres have no damping though. They can only do so much. At their limit they will bounce on small bumps reducing the contact patch with the ground. In theory the fork will keep the contact patch constant by handling the small bumps.

Cannondale forks have very good small bump handling as they suffer from less stiction than normal dual stanchion forks.

By all accounts US courses are significantly less technical than European ones, so I don't see why you'd even try it over there.

For much the same reason disc brakes are used by the vast majority of American cross racers but barely any Europeans I'd guess.

sponsorship $$$

I'd be interested to know if there was more sponsorship $ in US or European cross.

As above I suspect cannondale had little to do officially with that - it looks very much like a home brew effort.

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On a long field drag, like the one at Foots Cray, could that suspension lose you time by dissipating your power input?

Hydraulic lock-out on the 'dale dampers is a true, rock solid lockout with no 'blow-off'. You lock it out and it feels like you are riding rigid. It's activated with a push button / remote on the newer forks or a crown / steerer mounted dial on the older and headshok forks.

Ooohhhh....buttons. Me like.

Congrats @andyp on 10th place.

Who do we whinge at if we haven't appeared in the results at all?

Thanks.

Contact John Mullineaux - he's always sorted me out before.

Video of the descent of Ingleborough on the Three Peaks Cyclocross.

http://vimeo.com/107486039

Chapeaux Mr P

Mr P, how did it go at Hog Hill?

10th again, for the third week running. Wasn't gridded so had a second race in a row where the first lap was a shit fight.

Will post a fuller report this evening.

Wow! Looking forward to the report.

Ian Field turned up to the race in Leeds yesterday. Sat in the leading group for the starting turn and first lap before heading off on his tod. Ended up winning over three quarters of a fairly long lap. Makes that national champ jersey look good.

Going to be headed over to Shrewsbury next weekend for the National Trophy. Any forumengers going to be attending I can cheer on/shout DAS at?

Ian Field turned up to the race in Leeds yesterday.

Was the race in a field?

London X League Round 5 at Hog Hill yesterday.

It was my first visit to Hog Hill so I wasn't sure what to expect, except I knew there was a hill (more of a mound really but Hog Mound doesn't alliterate well does it?). The course mainly consists of existing MTB trails, but Ben Spurrier of Vicious Velo had done a great job of using the cambers of the slope to make the infield section in front of the club house quite challenging.

Once again I missed out on being gridded, so started in the third or fourth row and tried to hit it as hard as I could from the whistle in the hope of gaining as many places as possible. I got away cleanly and held a good position going into the first corner and luckily avoided a crash on the inside (I'd purposefully gone on the right hand side to set me up for the 180 degree right hand turn just after) line. I made up a few places on the infield and got another one with a committed move on the corner round the back of the club house, and then hit the downhill section hard. I nearly lost it a couple of times but managed to avoid a crash and hit the bottom of the circuit with daylight ahead of me, so put me head down and kept pushing. As I hit the drag back up the hill, I could see a couple of riders ahead of me so spent the next lap chasing them hard, passing one before the descent and then catching the other at the top of the hill on the next lap and worked hard to gap them.

I wasn't working hard enough, as number 386 caught me at the flat section at the bottom of the circuit, so I tucked in behind him hoping he'd help me catch the riders in front, but I made an error on the climb passing some back markers and he got a gap that I couldn't close.

On the next lap the same thing again, this time as two East London Velo riders passed me, so I tagged onto them, only to end up on my arse dismounting to jump the two (enormous) hurdles. Sadly this moment was caught on camera, by Pip Jenkins;

That was pretty much it in terms of moving position, so I spent the final two laps pushing as hard as I could but without catching anyone, although I passed one of the ELV riders as he was walking his bike at the foot of the hill.

Then it was time for a last big push up the climb for the final time, I nailed the off camber corners, then it was eyeballs out up the road section into the final corners to the finish.

Again, I thought I was outside the top ten but managed to finish 10th for the third week in a row which should, I hope, get me on the vitally important list for gridding for the rest of the series.

It was good to have a quick chat with @J.Dennis afterwards and admire his very nice bike.

Great write-up and pic

You should see the look on my face on the next pic...

Good to meet you @andyp.

I too managed tenth in the seniors. Crashed on an innocuous uphill corner after the big root and dropped my chain which cost me 30 seconds and (perhaps) two places. Probably running too much pressure in my tyres but I wanted to avoid any tyre squirm on those fast paved corners.

Happy Valley next week, which I haven't ridden before, but from youtube looks to be a pretty boring grass criterium.

That right handed corner at the foot of the descent, just before a sharp corner after a drop off? If so, I got that wrong every single lap. Always carried too much speed into it.

I'm not racing at Happy Valley. It's a pain to get too, especially by train, and it's the dullest course the London League visits, lots and lots of 180 degree turns on football pitches. There's one slightly technical downhill corner but even that is easy in the dry.

Anyone heading to cyclopark this evening?

Raced in club kit for the first time this weekend at Heaton Park in Manchester. Second attempt at Cyclocross racing.

Had geared down to 38x20. Was still too high, so sniffing around for an even small chainset (since (I think) 38t is the smallest ring you can get for the 130bcd messengers that came with my Singlecross.)

Virtually last, and walked a bit, but still pretty happy with the effort. Threw myself up and down some muddy, rooty, camber-y bits that scared the pants off me. Too heavy and unfit, and wasn't aggressive enough at the beginning, but know what I can do to fix all that.

Had some fun little 'battles' with some of the other slower women, which I eventually lost through poor technique and unfitness. But... NEXT TIME!

Wonderful bit of karma as well - closely overtaken by a MTBer without a word on a wide grassy section. Shouted something like 'Oi, givus some warning next time!" ... and he promptly crashed. Right in front of the boyf, club marshalls and some other LFGSSers. Glorious.

2014 has been very unlucky for me. Today this happened to my Vapour in the Epping Forrest.

Toptube and chainstay is bent, the wheel is out of line. Need to replace the frame asap, if anyone know of something in size 54 or slightly smaller, please let me know.