CYCLO-CROSS RACE

Road Bike meets Dirt Bike = Cyclo-Cross.
Hills. Dirt. Snow. Lactic Acid. Grass. Cold. Barriers. Fun!

On Saturday, I participated in a KissCross (Michigan's local CycloCross group) event and was the stoker on a tandum with captain Mike Clark, owner of Velo City Cycles (Thank goodness Mike did all the bike handling; I just had to close my eyes and pedal hard). :)

Cyclo-Cross is a autumn and winter sport and, according to MC,

"Cyclo-Cross is the fastest growing segment of competition nationally and right here in West Michigan - and it’s a great way to extend your season, stay in shape and have a blast. The races are short and furious, the venues are usually city parks or other local areas and the terrain ranges from single track to pavement to pretty much everything in between. Don’t wanna race? Come and watch then! ‘Cross is spectator-friendly to the nth degree and the vibe is nice and mellow. (Around here anyways). We count 19 races on the Michigan calendar alone, not to mention Chicago and rumours of races farther north."

[ check out www.velo-citycycles.com for schedule and other cycling news! ]

Each Cyclo-Cross event is done in laps (this race was about 8-min per lap for a total of 3-9 laps), with each lap combining some sort of varying terrain, with multiple dismounts off your bike to climb up steep hills or jump over logs or other barriers. It's tough and crazy but the good 'ol atmosphere, campfires, soups, beer tents, and people made it one of the coolest winter sports I've seen and done!

Jumping the barriers.

Climbing the hill -'bout the time I lost feeling in my legs...lactic acid burn or numbness from the bitter cold?? Crazy Mike is wearing shorts. Whaaaaaat?!

Me and "Velo City Mike" - Finished! Whew.

"Boyfriend Mike" also raced (individually) and did awesome! I'm very proud of him. :)