Cyclocross
Winter Fun
Season - September to February
Race Duration - 15 minutes to 1 hour depending on race category
Entry Fee - £1.00, £4.00 or J,S,W,V £10.00
Age categories - under 12's , 12-16 years (Youth), Juniors(J),Seniors(S), Women(W), Veterans(V)
Equipment - Cyclo Cross Bike or Mountain Bike, helmet, cycle clothing
Where are the races - 12 races across the region, details HERE, starting at 10.30.
You will need to have a provisional license, with is included for free with British Cycling Membership, alternatively you can pay an additional £3.00 when you enter.
Cyclo-Cross (often abbreviated to 'Cross) is generally an autumn and wintersport. Massed starts make for exciting races, usually no more than an hour in length – and shorter for youths, juniors, women and veterans. Organisers are are hoping to start a summer series in 2011.
Lapping it Up!
Cyclo-Cross races are usually multi lap events, held on short (typically a mile, grassy courses, generally in public parks or on school playing fields. Less technically demanding than Mountain Biking, Cyclo-Cross often requires riders to dismount to clear artificial obstacles – often wooden boards. The ability to swap smoothly and quickly from riding to running and back to riding in one fluid motion is a key skill for advanced riders.
Private Battles
The short lap lengths mean that better riders often lap some of the slower competitors, but that’s not the end of the race – you can still submerge yourself in the action, enjoy your own private battles and forget whether you are first or a hundred and first – that’s the beauty of the sport: it’s what you make of it that counts.
Bike Facts
Cyclo-Cross machines look very similar to road bikes, with dropped handlebars and thin tyres - however the latter have a
knobbled-tread for grip, powerful brakes, low gears and better frame clearances to prevent clogging with mud, all of which adds up to make them easy to handle on the rough.
Cyclo Cross North East
Has a well supported and friendly cyclo cross league that takes place every winter from September through to February.
For further information about events, results and what is going on in cyclo-cross in the NE please visit www.cxne.org.uk