it goes both ways. there are people that we see in the fall who are noticeably absent at p2a. at least among the masters men. which is something because people who cyclocross seem to do well at the race. look at the top three.
thought i saw darko yesterday. was it a hallucination?
Very good question. There were atleast what...about 200+ cross bikes, yet some races last year only saw as few as 70 people total. Strange to say the least. Oh well.
As for the top three; what about the the guy who ended up forth and was in the break with Morse, Chown and Roden the whole day....?
It was good to see the "cross" crowd again, it's just so much more relaxed than certain other disciplines
After the initial silliness on the rail-trail I was in or around the same 20-30 people for the whole race. Almost all on cross bikes, and the majority were not familiar - though there were also a few folks I saw every week in the fall.
Based on the generally sad pace lines we had going this was not a group of regular roadies (note this is s self indictment as well – I am aware of the glass house in which I stand with this comment). So maybe some of these folks are racing mountain bikes in the early fall? Still you would think if they bothered to invest in a cross bike they would want to come out and suffer with us come October.
It would certainly be nice if more folks came to the cross races. In fact it would be great if every single person who was at P2A and who either finished behind me and or is not going to be racing M1 in the fall showed up for the entire series.
In the end probably these folks just aren't into the suffering of cross. PA is great but you can get in a group and make the ride a bit more enjoyable. Not so much in cross.
And Erik I know more than most how much 4th sucks. Good ride on sunday see you sson.
Does anyone know where there are some pics of the race. My wife was a little busy with the little guy to get some shots.
It's strange about cross, I saw maybe a dozen guys from the US who live within 1/2 hour from my house doing that race on Sunday, all had cross bikes and hardly any of them show up when we have races right in their back yard. I think people read about how the pros are so burned out and all and feel like they have to be burned out too, but we don't race all that much.
Ahh, 4th. place that was my best finish last year after some strategic flat tyres moved me up. 4th. is actually key because everybody says "nice race old man" but then you get to oad up the car and leave out of there rather than waiting around until 3 with the cranky kids to pick up your huge overstuffed envelope of cash that 3rd. wins (not first or second, just third).
Hope to see you guys down for the Bristol race, it's a nice hilly road race on a new course this year with decent cash:
http://www.rochesterroadracing.com/bristol.htm
Also a few new MTB type races hopefully in the spring:
I don't think you *have to* suffer in a regular cross race any more than you do at P2A. I guess it depends on how competitive (mentally, not physically) you are. I'm more interested in having fun and riding/racing with friends than puking, and my results probably show that. :) Sure getting good results feels good, but that's not everyone's ultimate goal.
I think the local cx series is a great intro to racing in general, not just 'cross. The races are short, there are a bunch of events near (and even within) the city, and you can use a variety of bicycle types.
Getting more people racing would definitely not be a bad thing. Perhaps the Southern Ontario series just needs a little more promotion... P2A would probably be a good venue for that, especially with the booths they had in the arena. CXO booth, perhaps? :)
Nathan, if you search on Flickr.com for "ancaster" and sort the results by 'most recent' you'll find lots. Mostly just groups of folks coming up the final climb, but it's better than nothing. Try this link: http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=ancaster&s=rec
Definitely agree about promoting 'cross... that's why we're here. Hope to get a booth happening - there are a lot of places it could be used. If anyone wants to help get it started, let me know.
Sorry for the delayed response, i haven't been on here for a bit. After my early trailside fix at p-a i had the whole first wave in front of me and i noticed right off the bat that there were tons of people on cx bikes, right from #249 and up the field and i also was wondering (i was on a single speed by myself i had a lot of time to think) where all the people are in the fall.
I think its really hard to compare Paris to Ancaster to a cross race. Even though its cross bike friendly its more like a point to point mtb race. 2 hrs long, 50-60 km. And its also in the spring time when everybody wants to get on their bike.
Come fall, it can be tough to talk people into driving an hour there, race for 45-60 min then drive an hour home. Not to mention the possibilty of having some nasty conditions to deal with. Also by the end of the years a lot of peoples racing budget has been used up.
If there was one big cross race in mid october and nothing else, i bet you would have well over 300 people out to it. But when you spread that out over 12-14 races... It would be interesting to know how many unique cross participants there were in last years series.
it goes both ways. there
it goes both ways. there are people that we see in the fall who are noticeably absent at p2a. at least among the masters men. which is something because people who cyclocross seem to do well at the race. look at the top three.
thought i saw darko yesterday. was it a hallucination?
Very good question. There
Very good question. There were atleast what...about 200+ cross bikes, yet some races last year only saw as few as 70 people total. Strange to say the least. Oh well.
As for the top three; what about the the guy who ended up forth and was in the break with Morse, Chown and Roden the whole day....?
It was good to see the "cross" crowd again, it's just so much more relaxed than certain other disciplines
I can't wait for October!
After the initial silliness
After the initial silliness on the rail-trail I was in or around the same 20-30 people for the whole race. Almost all on cross bikes, and the majority were not familiar - though there were also a few folks I saw every week in the fall.
Based on the generally sad pace lines we had going this was not a group of regular roadies (note this is s self indictment as well – I am aware of the glass house in which I stand with this comment). So maybe some of these folks are racing mountain bikes in the early fall? Still you would think if they bothered to invest in a cross bike they would want to come out and suffer with us come October.
It would certainly be nice if more folks came to the cross races. In fact it would be great if every single person who was at P2A and who either finished behind me and or is not going to be racing M1 in the fall showed up for the entire series.
That's my point - if all of
That's my point - if all of the people at P2A with cross bikes came out in the fall, we could have an awesomely huge series.
Is there something unappealing about suffering for 45-60min in the cold, rain and mud?? I just don't see it...
"As for the top three; what
"As for the top three; what about the the guy who ended up forth and was in the break with Morse, Chown and Roden the whole day....?"
He was strong as a horse and I appreciate his letting me get on the podium before I get too old...
John Roden
West Falls, NY
In the end probably these
In the end probably these folks just aren't into the suffering of cross. PA is great but you can get in a group and make the ride a bit more enjoyable. Not so much in cross.
And Erik I know more than most how much 4th sucks. Good ride on sunday see you sson.
Does anyone know where there are some pics of the race. My wife was a little busy with the little guy to get some shots.
thanks
nathan
Congrats to all, great ride.
Congrats to all, great ride. I'd like to see a video of the finish, it must have been an interesting sprint up that hill...
There are some photos over here at http://metaedge.ca/gallery
It's strange about cross, I
It's strange about cross, I saw maybe a dozen guys from the US who live within 1/2 hour from my house doing that race on Sunday, all had cross bikes and hardly any of them show up when we have races right in their back yard. I think people read about how the pros are so burned out and all and feel like they have to be burned out too, but we don't race all that much.
Ahh, 4th. place that was my best finish last year after some strategic flat tyres moved me up. 4th. is actually key because everybody says "nice race old man" but then you get to oad up the car and leave out of there rather than waiting around until 3 with the cranky kids to pick up your huge overstuffed envelope of cash that 3rd. wins (not first or second, just third).
Hope to see you guys down for the Bristol race, it's a nice hilly road race on a new course this year with decent cash:
http://www.rochesterroadracing.com/bristol.htm
Also a few new MTB type races hopefully in the spring:
http://www.wnymbro.com/interest.htm
John Roden
West Falls, NY
I don't think you *have to*
I don't think you *have to* suffer in a regular cross race any more than you do at P2A. I guess it depends on how competitive (mentally, not physically) you are. I'm more interested in having fun and riding/racing with friends than puking, and my results probably show that. :) Sure getting good results feels good, but that's not everyone's ultimate goal.
I think the local cx series is a great intro to racing in general, not just 'cross. The races are short, there are a bunch of events near (and even within) the city, and you can use a variety of bicycle types.
Getting more people racing would definitely not be a bad thing. Perhaps the Southern Ontario series just needs a little more promotion... P2A would probably be a good venue for that, especially with the booths they had in the arena. CXO booth, perhaps? :)
Nathan, if you search on Flickr.com for "ancaster" and sort the results by 'most recent' you'll find lots. Mostly just groups of folks coming up the final climb, but it's better than nothing. Try this link: http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=ancaster&s=rec
100k ironcross........
100k ironcross........ anybody? Only a small trip to Pennsylvania.
Definitely agree about
Definitely agree about promoting 'cross... that's why we're here. Hope to get a booth happening - there are a lot of places it could be used. If anyone wants to help get it started, let me know.
Sorry for the delayed
Sorry for the delayed response, i haven't been on here for a bit. After my early trailside fix at p-a i had the whole first wave in front of me and i noticed right off the bat that there were tons of people on cx bikes, right from #249 and up the field and i also was wondering (i was on a single speed by myself i had a lot of time to think) where all the people are in the fall.
I think its really hard to compare Paris to Ancaster to a cross race. Even though its cross bike friendly its more like a point to point mtb race. 2 hrs long, 50-60 km. And its also in the spring time when everybody wants to get on their bike.
Come fall, it can be tough to talk people into driving an hour there, race for 45-60 min then drive an hour home. Not to mention the possibilty of having some nasty conditions to deal with. Also by the end of the years a lot of peoples racing budget has been used up.
If there was one big cross race in mid october and nothing else, i bet you would have well over 300 people out to it. But when you spread that out over 12-14 races... It would be interesting to know how many unique cross participants there were in last years series.
thats my rant on the subject