http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii228/unistarlx/Bikes/?action=view¤t=8f75f0b4.mp4
Video by Ed Roby
Get Hungry because Cyclocross is Coming to CHS November 6th!
Archive Page 2
Nice Beach Run Video from the Macon Cyclocross Race
Published October 14, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a CommentCyclocross Racing Kicks Off This Sunday in Dalton, GA
Published October 1, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a CommentThe cool weather came in just in time for the first race. Good luck to all of those making the trip up to Dalton to get in on the action. Folks can follow the results at www.georgia-cross.com
Food at Race Sponsored by the CHS Junior Class
Published September 27, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a CommentLooks like the junior class will step up and grill out for the racers and spectators on race day! This is a great was to raise money for prom and other events. Details about their offerings will follow shortly.
I’ll be holding a race clinic on September 18th on campus from 9am to 11am. I’ll be showing the basics of racing including dismounting and remounting, running with the bike and previewing the race course. Please bring your mountain bike (not everyone has a cyclocross bike) or cyclocross bike and make sure to remove your bar ends and water bottle cages. Make sure your bike is in good working order. Drop me an email at kuhn@fultonschools.org if you plan on attending.
Remember, there is no “beginner” category for the race. A one day license places you in the CX 5 category which has beginners and the least experienced racers racing. Please make sure you are in good health and are riding your bike during the week. This is NOT a ride, it is a race and is very strenuous.
Hope to see you at the clinic! Park in the back of the school near the stadium.
I would like to welcome our main sponsors to the Centennial Cyclocross Crusade.
Van Michael Salon: Since 1984 Van and his brother Michael have been delivering top quality stylings for men and women. With salons in Atlanta, Miami and Tokyo, Van has set a standard in hair styling. Van is also a avid mountain bike racer, having completed the grueling La Ruta in Costa Rica and recently was a finisher in the Leadville 100 mountain bike epic race. Having a sponsor who is so successful in business and understands bike racing was a perfect fit. Included in the sponsorship will be styling gift cards for the top 3 women in the CX1/2/3 and CX4 categories as well as some lap primes. One lucky staff member at Centennial will win a $60 gift card for professional service at a Van Michael Salon. My wife is jealous.
Alpha Bikes: Alpha Bikes located in Alpharetta is a great bike store, full service repair shop and place to hang out. Michael is a class act and provides excellent service for north Fulton. He has major brands in demand such as Cannondale, Scott and Niner but also has a bike to fit every member of the family. Whether it is custom wheel builds, professional fitting or just teaching someone how to fix a flat, Alpha bikes is patient and delivers what you want in a bike service experience. Alpha bikes is also a big sponsor of Cycle Youth and local weekly bike rides out of the shop. Michael is an avid mountain bike and road bike rider/racer my goal is to get him to abandon all of that for cyclocross. Alpha Bikes will be providing prizes for the races as well as neutral tech support for riders at the race.
Mad Alchemy Embrocation: Pete began brewing leg embrocation in his kitchen in 2008–now he is a legend. Leg embrocation is a warming or non-warming creme that cyclists put on in the chilly or cold months and when it rains. Pete decided to do it naturally without a bunch of hard to read chemical junk in the bottle. He has done coffee, spice, chocolate and specialty embrocations for some of the US’s most famous ‘cross racers and venues. His everyday embrocation, leg oil, embrocation remover and chamois creme will be on sale at the races this fall and he will be adding to the loot for all race winners. Pete is also a very good cyclocross racer in the heart of New Belgium (aka New England). If you are interested in his embrocation email me (bobkuhn3@netzero.com). We can also add glitter.
Please patronize these fine establishments often and say a big THANK YOU for me for helping to make the race a success!
HUP United: HUP United has helped define “cyclocross culture” across the US. The men and women who ride for HUP embrace the idea of the “journey” and not always the result as being important. These are my brothers and sisters in cyclocross. I would leap a barrier for them. Zac Daab, the creator and leader of the squadra is famous in Seattle for his bike studio, PRO races such as Starcrossed and the MFG series and cool online events like the Tour of the Uninvited. His inspiration for a collective of like minded cyclocross individuals spans the entire continent. I am honored to be the southeast coordinator and to have HUP United as the sponsoring bike club for the race.
Very succinct and from the heart. Probably each racer goes through this once.
Over the past 2 weeks I have been encouraged by the number of faculty and students who have expressed interest in racing, or have encouraged a friend or family member to race. If you have never raced in a cyclocross race you will probably race in the CX 5 class (30 minutes) which is not a beginner class, but full of relatively low experience racers. These folks are just as passionate and want to get better and have fun. If you are under 18 you can race as a junior. The junior class is also 30 minutes and I have seen some really small boys and girls tackling the course as well as plenty of teenagers. The junior class is divided up into 15-18 and under 14.
In terms of what you’ll need to do to get ready to race.
- Don’t plan on just showing up and racing if you are not already riding a bike during the week. Cyclocross racing is hard from the start and there is little rest time for the duration of the race. You’ll have to spend some time on the bike in the weeks leading up. If you can get out on the mountain bike so much the better. You may be a great athlete but ‘cross will kick your tail if you are not prepared.
- If you will be using a mountain bike, please take off the “bar ends” which are the small attached bars perpendicular to the end of the handlebar. Your mountain bike may or may not have them. Also, take off you water bottle cages since they get in the way if you have to pick up your bike.
- There will be some demo bikes available to try but these are on a first come first served basis and it can be hard to use one if there are a lot of beginners.
- Please make sure your bike is in great working order before the race. I can’t stress this enough. There is no bigger bummer than showing up to race and finding out midway you have a mechanical you could have prevented the week before.
- Make sure you have a helmet for race day.
- Watch some “How to”videos or race videos on You Tube to see what you might expect.
- Be prepared to run short distances about 2-3 times per lap.
- Check out THIS LINK for some general pointers.
I am going to try and have a cyclocross clinic on campus one Saturday or Sunday in September. I will post time/place here. We would meet for about 2 hours and discuss the basics and ride around testing stuff out.
There is a GREAT CLINIC on September 11th at Jim Miller Park in Marietta sponsored by Sorella Cycling. There will be lots of beginners and many experienced racers to show you the ropes. It would be a perfect time to learn some skills.
If you go to a cyclocross race more than likely you’ll want to ring a cowbell. When you ask someone “why a cowbell?”, you might get a strange look because first off, everyone rings cowbells and to not know why seems strange. But that person might also be looking at you funny because they don’t know why either. Cyclocross has always had a “cult of the cowbell”. It has other quirky fan traditions like wearing clothes that say who you are supporting–shirts and umbrellas to name a few. But the cowbell, it seems sacred.
The cowbell is both a piece of farm equipment and a musical percussion instrument. You can strap on on a cow and it will tell you where the cow is by the ringing. You can remove the inner piece and clang it with something like a drum stick to make it a musical instrument.
I think sports that have their roots in the farmlands of their countryside have cowbells in common as ways to cheer on the athletes. Cross country skiing fans ring cowbells and in cycling you can find the cowbell in most races being rung to mark the last lap of the race.
Cowbells are cheap, they come in various shapes and sizes which leads to various sounds. If you stroll around a cyclocross course you are bound to hear a lot of them and we encourage fans to bring their own and ring them. There is one caveat to that, don’t ring one near the finish line as it will confuse the racers to how many laps there are to go.
More and more vuvuzelas started creeping into the arsenal of fans since the last world cup. Bottom line, fans love to make noise and racers like to hear noise being made.
Grab your cowbell and clang it with freedom. You can ring it, smack it or kick it around.
Check out right around minute 2.
