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| 2007-08 Cyclocross Preview |
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| Written by John Peterson | |
| Monday, 08 October 2007 | |
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The Jingle Cross Rock race in Iowa City has been around a few years and has turned out to be a great success. Last year, 500 participants raised $15,000 for The Iowa City Children's Hospital. In attendance were road racing pros Jason McCartney (Discovery Channel) and Chris Horner (Predictor-Lotto), who are expected to return this year. Of course, the obvious theme for this race is Christmas. And to bring out the Christmas theme there are some special features on the course, including “Mount Krumpit” and the “Grinch's Lair.” Kansas City will host Cyclocross Nationals for the second time since 2000. This is awesome! The course is rated to be one of the toughest cyclocross courses around. It will be held in Wyandotte County Park in Kansas City, Kan., which is where the KLM Marketing UCI event has been held the last two years. This has enabled Race Director Bill Marshall to make this a great race course. Last year's race was bitterly cold – much like the last time Nationals were in Kansas City (blizzard-like conditions). So be prepared for some rough weather. But even before these big events, there are a lot of great races locally and regionally. The Nebraska Cyclocross Series is a great series. The first two races are held at Swanson Park in Bellevue and the last two in Pioneers Park in Lincoln. Swanson Park is the series opener on the weekend of Oct. 20-21. Most, if not all mountain bikers should be familiar with this park since the Psycowpath MTB Series held two of its races there. It's a fast course with a lot sections to go flat out, a barrier section, and a section of cross switchbacks.
Along with Jingle Cross Rock, Iowa has some other great opportunities for cyclocross that are only a few short hours away. Spooky Cross is coming this weekend, Oct. 13-14, and is held in Cumming, Iowa. The Iowa Cyclocross Championship on Sunday, Oct. 28, will be held in Newton. Both of these races are near Des Moines making it very easy to load up the cross bike and make the trip. The Kansas promoters of the De Stad Cyclocross Van Kansas Series like to give that Belguim feel to their races. The first in the series is the Chris Cross race in Lawrence. The Chris Cross course is super fast and technical, featuring several gravel road sections, a sand pit, fast flowing turns and some rather technical sections along the tree line of Clinton Lake State Park. If that’s not enough, this race also has custom awards and plenty of food. The second and third in the Kansas Series is the 7th Annual Riverside Cyclocross Festival, which is the heart and soul of Kansas City cyclocross. Known for its challenging course along the Missouri river and awesome post race celebration that includes cool swag and great food, this course is also famous for “Harter’s Horseshoe,” which takes the riders down to the shoreline of the “Mighty Mo.” Fourth in the series is the Lanterne Rouge Cyclocross, which moves to what is being advertised as the “best cyclocross course in the Midwest.” This year’s event will be at St. Mary’s College with a course featuring a quarter-mile section of cobble bricks, plus gravel and dirt roads, steep run-ups and a stair case climb that will test everyone. The fifth race in the series is the Kansas State Cyclocross Championships, which will be your last opportunity to race before Nationals. I am also told that there are several big changes in store for this year's event. There are more cyclocross events in Iowa and Kansas, but I only outlined the races that could be easily done in a day, with the exception of Jingle Cross Rock in Iowa City. So get out your PDA or planner and start filling in those weekends. And don't forget your cowbells! 2007-2008 Cyclocross Calendar
Oct 13 - Spooky Cross, Cumming, IA :: http://www.spookycross.org
Oct 20 - Nebraska Cyclocross #1, Omaha, NE :: http://www.nebraskacyclingnews.com
Oct 27 - Capital Cup Cyclocross Race, Topeka, KS :: http://www.sunflowergames.com
Nov 3 - Riverside Cyclocross Festival Day 1, Riverside, MO :: http://www.kansascitycross.com Nov 11 - Sunflower Cyclocross, Lawrence, KS :: http://www.freestateracing.com
Nov 17 - Nebraska Cyclocross Series #3, Lincoln, NE :: http://www.nebraskacyclingnews.com
Nov 24 - Lanterne Rouge Cross, Leavenworth, KS :: http://www.kansascitycross.com Nov 25 - Jingle Cross Rock - UCI, Iowa City, IA :: http://jinglecrossrock.com/ Dec 9 - Kansas State Cyclcross Championships, Leavenworth,KS :: http://www.kansascitycross.com Dec 13-16 - USCF Cyclocross Nationals, Kansas City, KS :: http://www.kccrossnationals.com January 6, 2008 - Grote Prijs Shawnee, Shawnee, KS :: http://www.localcycling.com |
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| Last Updated ( Saturday, 20 October 2007 ) |
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