Cyclocross - CX and SSCX races and training

He’s fine. Feeling a bit sorry for himself but the op was a success and he’s back home now.

Good to hear!

Round 4 was good, but I suck at short sharp up and over mounds like what appeared on the course near the pavilion, I tend to panic on my approach and end up unclipping. Any advice on how to approach these?

Practice.....the coaching sessions at HH are good for that as they will help you break the sections down without the pressure of racing

Carry enough speed into them to get you over them, but not too much that you launch over the top.

And as @gofasterstipes says, practice them if you can, not just at Herne Hill, as I’m sure you can find something similar in a local park.

I honestly can’t put this in better words and I’m very sorry.

Learn to throw the bike, whether that be forwards or backwards, it’s probably the most underrated skill in cross gets you into corners better, bumps and climbs become easier

Probably a lesson would explain what I mean.

I've always found practising with other people helps and it's fun

Also the Svenness series is great for learning things.

https://youtu.be/puy8wtYhXtE

Side note I miss Sven

Bike’s ready, legs not.
Still a lovely piece of caBron.

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Yessss. I love it, very old school.

And today this too :)
So no excuse!

Waiting for a plate number copy 😂 before finishing the install!

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Great addition.

I'll take some of that panda horse power for my legs please if that's okay!

Ordered myself one of those Energie Framesets yesterday. Building it up with 12 AXS (mechanical brakes) so that I can swap wheels around between the gravel bike, cx bike and road.

Should ne a nice build. Definitely needs some colour though.

What's the go to for cheap floating rotors these days?

Nice.

On my centrelock wheels I'm using these Shimano ones

https://www.merlincycles.com/shimano-sm-rt70-ice-tech-centrelock-disc-rotor-102848.html

I've been racing CX for a few years now and have to agree that this is a massively missed trick.

I think of it more like moving my hips, more so than throwing the bike. But I do like the thought of throwing the bike to explain it to others.

That mound at the last summer CX was the perfect example.
Its under a bike length long and really steep.
So as soon as your front wheel crests the top, throw your hips up and forward to bring the back end up as you naturally stall at the top of these features.

Speed can buff a lot of things out, but technique will save you more so in my opinion.

I've always found skills practice is key, finding the time and good locations/people to practice with is the hard part.
Getting fit is relatively simple in comparison , although this year that's proving tricky too

Entries are open for the first round of the London and south east league.

Oh nice. Keen to hear about this/see pics

Set up advice

Finally, I think, have my Ridley X ready but remain confused on set up.
Should I mirror the road bike set up; some people say I should, or should I shouted the bar height and reach; which others say I should do.

Mirror your road. If it helps with confidence you could put the saddle down a touch initially

Agreed with @fredtc my CX bikes are setup identically to my road bikes.

Thanks, tried for a bit the shorter , lower advice and didn't get on with it.
My fit , via Racer Rosa & Guiseppe Guannechi, was a game changer

Only a few mm out on the X bike as geometry is a bit different,but I ll stick with the road fit.

Do you have a link?

Sure, it's on the BC website:

https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/events/details/289110/Challenge-Tires-London-and-South-East-CX-League---Round-01

The full calendar, including the East Kent races, is here:

http://www.londonxleague.co.uk/calendar/