Hemel Hempstead Cycling Club

Cyclocross or ‘cross is one of those areas of cycling that I considered a bit of a niche market. I didn’t really know much about it apart from the fact that you’ll probably get extremely muddy, you’ll have to carry your bike at some point during the race and it was popular in Belgium. As the cyclocross season is relatively short, coverage in cycling magazines is also a bit sparse compared to other cycling disciplines.

So when the Hemel Hempstead Cycling Club decided to become part of a newly formed Central Cyclo-X league and host a race, it was a chance to find out a bit about a more specialised area cycling.

Cyclocross races last about an hour, and are run over laps mainly off-road. At least 90% of the circuit must be rideable. The rest will involve carrying the bike uphill or over hazards some of which are man-made such as wooden hurdles.

The atmosphere at cyclocross races seems to be pretty relaxed and friendly and a lot of the time you can enter a race on the line. Another nice thing about cyclocross racing is that you can use a mountain bike if you haven’t got a specific cyclocross bike.

Before I took the plunge and raced, I decided it was best to do some research, so surfed the Internet to find some advice on cyclocross techniques.

What I discovered is just how big ‘cross is, particularly on the continent and surprisingly in America too. Those who are into ‘cross are very passionate about the sport.

You Tube was a particularly useful site on which to find films of races both professional and amateur races alike, as well as some useful tutorials on how to tackle obstacles in races. With all this in mind it was time to take the plunge and enter my first race.

The Hemel Hempstead round of the Central League events took place on a field at a local secondary school. A big variation in the terrain afforded the club the chance to put together an interesting and challenging course.

After the youth events in the morning, the seniors were given some time to survey the course. It was fairly undulating with some short sharp climbs, a wooded section with some tight turns and some exposed areas that I knew would be hard with a westerly wind blowing across the field. Fortunately, the weather had been relatively dry and the course was pretty much mud free; quite a relief for a novice like me.

Finally, it was time to take my place on the start grid.

For some reason, the organiser decided to put me near the front (perhaps he felt sorry for me and was giving me a head start!). This turned out to be quite a slice of luck as when the race started, I was able to avoid a crash behind me that involved a number of riders.

I sprinted off from the start and tried to keep a good position, though it was pretty clear that I wasn’t going to keep up with the more experienced riders. A combination of a lesser level of fitness and a heavy bike made sure of that. It was obvious that the lighter, more nimble cyclocross bikes had quite an advantage over a mountain bike like the aged one on which I was riding.

Half a lap down and I was feeling ok; happy with my position. I reached the wooded section and made my way through it comfortably. This was the one place on the course where a mountain bike might have had an advantage as the wider tyres and wider handlebars seemed to give a better ride through this sort of terrain.

I reached the hurdles and managed to dismount reasonably seamlessly, just like the riders I’d seen in the You Tube videos. I felt happy with my progress so far, but a couple of laps later I realised I may have gone off a bit too quickly. I was starting to feel it and realised that riding on grass really does sap the energy a lot more than I had anticipated. All I could do now was try not to push myself too hard and blow completely; just press on at a pace I knew I could maintain.

Another Hemel rider, Geoff Reynolds, was riding at roughly the same pace as me, and we were regularly overtaking each other with shouts of encouragement. But both of us were feeling the effects of our efforts and were starting to suffer.

The weather took a bit of a turn at this point and a slight drizzle began to fall. Fortunately, the only effect was to make the grass greasy rather than muddy, so a bit more care was needed when cornering or riding on a slope.

Cyclocross races last about an hour and finish when the leader has completed his or her lap at that time. The race stops at that point and once everyone else finishes the lap they’re on and that’s it. Fortunately for Geoff and I, when the race leader crossed the line, we were right behind, despite having been lapped a couple of times, so for us the race was over. I felt for the poor souls who still had to complete the laps they were on.

So, how did I get on overall? Well out of a field of 32 I finished 15th and had completed 8 laps of the course in 50m 55s. The winner finished in roughly the same time as me, but had completed 10 laps, which was quite a difference.

I was happy with how I had ridden and really enjoyed the race. In fact, so much so, that I decided to compete in a few more races in the Central League namely the Icknield race held over in Luton and the race promoted by Team Milton Keynes at the Milton Keynes Bowl.

Cyclocross is something I enjoyed immensely and will ride more races as I get more interested and enthusiastic about this aspect of the sport. The only thing I haven’t experienced so far is mud, so once I’ve raced in those sorts of conditions, I may be saying never again, but I doubt it; I think I’ve got the bug now.

Andy

Links

• Central Cyclo X League: CXL
• Julian Smith's Pictures: JulesPhotos