Cyclo-Cross: the Autumn Adrenalin Rush

This racer is carrying her bike in order to jump over a hurdle.

I went to a cycling race like no other last weekend. The course was a beautiful, twisting route through autumn-bedecked trees and over and across fields—over mostly dirt trails. The crowds were enthusiastically cheering and ringing Swiss-style cow-bells as the racers sped by, then smoothly dismounted from their bikes, jumped a short barrier and carried their bikes up a steep little bluff, jumping over a second barrier, and instantly remounting their bikes to speed away, making several laps of the course. Welcome to the thrilling sport of cyclo-cross!

The crowd offers support to every rider that leaps these hurdles. "Up, up, up, that's it, go, go, good job!"

Cyclo-cross is a form of bicycle racing that, like cross-country racing, takes place in the fall, and finishes up during the winter. Cyclo-cross racers ride in a race course that consists of short laps (1½ to 2 miles) and goes over pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills and obstacles that require the racers to quickly dismount from their bike, pick up the bike and carry it over the obstacle then quickly remount the bike to continue the race. The race is timed and usually over in a fast-paced 40 minutes—perfectly timed to keep the attention of the spectators.

The women leave the saddle while their bike is still moving at a good pace in order to be ready to jump over the hurdles. They often look as if they are ready to take flight.

There are several stories about how cyclo-cross started. At the turn of the last century in France, there was a group of bicycle road races that would start in one town and it would be an all-out race with few rules to get to the next town. If a racer knew a short-cut they could take it, even if that meant going through a fenced pasture. This was also called a “steeple chase” as the only obvious landmark in the next town might be the tall steeple of a church, and racers kept that in their line of vision as they took the shortest possible path towards it to win the race. As my son noted, “Sounds like a sport created by cheaters—I like it!”

A small group speeds past the crowd on the dirt track portion of the course.

This well-loved European sport took longer to catch on here, but cyclo-cross is a popular and still rapidly growing sport here in the United States and Canada through the fall season. It was mostly a guys’ sport for several decades but now, large numbers of women are joining in the races and it isn’t just the hard-core competitors. Many women love this fun sport for the low-key competition, as a cross-training sport perfect for the off season, and for the simple reason that it is breath-taking and fun! What’s not to love? Like thrills? Riding the race course gives competitors the adrenalin rush of a roller coaster! As for fitness devotees: this sport combines running, the bike-handling skills of mountain biking, the power of a road racer along with some weight-lifting into this circuit-training style bicycle race to make you one fit chick! It offers a race setting to please everyone; it divides competitors into 3 levels: the competitive A level, the middle B set & we’re-just-here-to-have-fun C group.

The area is covered with participants, warming up and preparing for their race.

Want to check it out? Get information about a cyclo-cross race near you by dropping in at your local bike shop or picking up your local cycling events magazine.

A New Olympic Sport: If you’ve wondered why this spectator sport, which proceeded mountain biking isn’t an Olympic event, wonder no longer! At long last, cyclo-cross is going to be an exhibition sport in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, B.C. The International Olympic Committee added some modifications such as making the cyclo-cross racers ride on a snow-covered course and with a touch Annie Oakley would have loved; racers will have to get off the bike and shoot at a target.

2010 UPDATE–Alas, not this year after all for an Olympic introduction. It’s been put off for  awhile….

(Next Post—Meet the women who love Cyclo-cross!)