RACING IN THE NCNCA

This Saturday's Lion of Fairfax will be epic!

Information can be found here,

To what will be an amazing day of Cyclocross...

Big Swinging Cycles will not disappoint in keeping the Lion of Fairfax fun times for all!  So far in 2011 CCCX, Folsom, & Sac. Town, have all delivered some great races.  Now it is the Lion of Fairfax to step up and go off...  Enjoy!

The Surf City Series has set their dates!  The super cool Halloween Event opens the Surf City game on October 30th!  Best of all the Surf City has their last date set for January 29th.  This is one week after the North/South Challenge in Bakersfield on Jan. 22.  So thanks to the CCCX Series, Bakersfield North/South Championships, and the Surf City Series, Cyclocross racing in our region fills up January until the end of the month!

Team Santa Cruz keeps the Surf City Series alive...

Thank You!

Mark your calendar for the Bay Area Super Prestige Cyclocross to kick into gear with the revival of the Candle Stick Park course on October 23rd.

Lets hope for rain, cause that course really gets into tip top shape with some moisture in the dirt!  I am sure it will be bumpy and choppy from the lack of cycling the past years on the track.  Sounds like fun to me, more bumps & more choppy sections makes the Nor-Cal racers that much tougher and stronger when all is said and done!  Thank you to all promoters for the most wicked courses possible!

My advice to all is...

Get Out There And Race!

Each Weekend & Each Event- JUST RACE!

VIDEO FEATURE- KEVIN PAUWELS - NYS GETS DOUBLE TEAMED

Kevin Pauwels(Sunweb-Revor) has left the powerful Fidea Cross Team for his own gig at Sunweb for 2011.  Pauwels was the bronze medalist at last years Worlds and has produced other incredible results over the past few years.

Pauwels is one of the very best on the planet for Cyclocross racing and the video below shows one of his greatest rides to date.

One way to beat a on form Sven Nys is to tag team him with aggressive riding from two team mates, which is excatly what Stybar & Pauwels do in the video above.  Fidea simply hit Nys from the left and the right, and never gave Nys a chance to control the race from the very front in the final moments of the last lap.  A great example of how to race Cyclocross!

This video is must see action!

This is a great video because the action is non stop, the course is full of all kinds of obstacles, the speed is ripping, and the group at the front features most of the current crop of superstars of Euro Cyclocross.  The big names came to play on this day and in the end it was Kevin Pauwles who was able to raise his arms in final victory!

Do check out the re-cap action in the video toward the end of the clip. 

The re-cap shows a huge get off(crash) that took place on the start of the race. As well as quick shots of the in-race fighting between Nys and the Fidea hit squad.

It will be very intersting to see how Pauwels races this 2011 Cross season on his new Sunweb team.  He has already won a race to start the season, and I have a feeling more success is on his horizon.  Yet Nys, Albert, Stybar, & the boys from the Fidea team are sure to make life difficult for Pauwles as the season rolls on...

WEEKEND CHAMPIONS

CCCX SERIES RESULTS HERE.

SACRAMENTO SERIES RESULTS HERE.

Congratulations to Devon Gory(Team Rambuski Law) & Andy Jacques-Maynes(California Giant/Specialized) on their outstanding overall victories at CCCX Race #2.

Congratulations to Sarah Maile(Ventana) and Mitch Trux on their tremendous overall victories at Sac. Town Cross #1.

CCCX #2 had over 200 riders take to course on the day, and there was even some rain and moisture to contend with during the morning races!   The track was talked up greatly by most riders, and technical skills were tested throughout!

The Sacramento Series had over 200 racers on the day.  I am sure wind direction and the soft-loose dirt sections in the turns on the far side of the College Cyclery Compound course played heavy into the overall outcome in most divisions during the day.  Plus BMX skills were tested in the spectator area near the start/finish.

Both Elite Women's races on Saturday were epic battles.  The CCCX Women's Cat. 1/2/3 race had Devon Gory & Karen Brems of Team Rambuski Law post a large gap on the other female racers early.  However Team Webcor's new Cross sensation Katheryn Mattis slowly started to close this gap.  Each lap Mattis was making up lost time, with the crowd screaming encouragement. However, the hard charging Mattis was 1 lap short on time for her valiant comeback and finished a few seconds down to Gory & Brems.

In Sacramento, the A Women's race had Sarah Maile and Joan Gregg off the front in a heated dual on the College Cyclery Compound course.  Each lap Gregg & Maile would come past the finish line together locked in a battle for the ages!  The crowd was going out of control over the war between the two rivals.  In the end it was Maile who sprinted to a well timed 1 second victory over the inspirational riding Gregg.

CCCX SERIES - SACRAMENTO SERIES

Cyclocross racing is on for this weekend in Nor-Cal.

 The CCCX SERIES & SACRAMENTO SERIES

both hit the dirt at high speed Saturday!

The Central Coast Series hosts their event near Monterey on what will be a tricky and thrilling course in Ft. Ord.  The overall fun factor is sure to be at a high level, yet the challenge of navigating technical sections will always be first and foremost for a winning formula!  The course layout has it all for Cyclocross, and in the end it will be survival of the fittest.  To do well at CCCX you have to be solid in everything that is Cyclocross. 

Each race prepares your skills for future success, yet most of all the CCCX events are made for a high smile factor when racing.  The CCCX team completely enjoys seeing everyone test themselves on course & they work hard to continually bring the goods to Nor-Cal racers...

Keep it fun!

The Sacramento Series kicks off their racing at College Cyclery Compound in West Sacramento.  I have personally raced there, and the track is great stuff!  Fun times and demanding competition will be the theme!  There is no elevation changes except for some free flow BMX sections, but do not let this fool you!  The track is hard at speed, and wind direction makes for the feeling of either uphill or downhill riding.  The winners will be the strongest in each group with the biggest smiles at the end of the day...

Promoters Brian Joder, Gene Redmon & their excellent staff work very hard so you can ride & race Cyclocross.   The Sac. Town Cross Series has grown into a super scene over the years with the help of so many local racers and businesses.

So...

Enjoy & Keep it fun!

On the horizon is continual great action for Northern California Cross racers...

The Surf City Series is getting their locations lined up as you read this!  Always great days at the races, the Surf City Series is powered by David Gill, Jeff Clark, Team Santa Cruz, and Project Bike Trip- also known as "Bike Tech At School".

The Santa Cruz Sentinel had a very nice article on "Bike Tech At School" here...

The Surf City Series in Nor-Cal's founding father events for what we know today as Cyclocross.  Surf City is great times, and outstanding racing, with Santa Cruz's culture mixed in for good measure! 

Always keep it fun!

Of course on the radar is Murphy Mack's Single Speed Cyclocross World Championships coming to Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.  This will be off the chart excitement from beginning to end, so mark you calendar for the 3rd weekend in November, to ride & view what will truly be a legendary time for Cross racing in the big city.

Does S.F know what they are in for?  View this video to have a sneak peak of what to expect...

BIG FUN! 

SVEN NYS

Please take a moment to watch this video of the  Cyclocross GVA Trophy Oostmalle 2011 - Final 2 laps. 

This course is rad, and the technical aspect really shines as the racers battle on the last lap.  Sven Nys just needs to finish ahead of Kevin Pauwels to clinch the GVA Trophy overall.  Watch as Stybar tries slowing down the front of the race into one of the corners near the end of the last lap so Pauwels can catch back on to the lead group.  Yet Sven Nys has none of that!  And jumps off his bike and shoulder checks Stybar in a smooth running pass and is then on his way to the overall for the GVA Trophy. 

The sand sections and the tight turns really are amazing in this race course and shows how bike handling and accelerations are key for Cross.

FOLSOM CYCLOCROSS

Jeff Namba put together some great photos of the Folsom Cyclebration Cyclocross event here...

I am unable to track down results, yet I am positive Bruce Kaiser and Kinetic Cycles put on a great show for all the racers and spectators at the Folsom Cyclebration Cyclocross...

Cross racing is now rolling full speed in all the NCNCA, as Sac. Town will host a race this coming Saturday, as well as the CCCX Series hosting their race near Monterey on Saturday too.

Keep it fun!

CROSS VEGAS

Cross Vegas Photos.

This race is all about pure speed, power and skills on the bike.... Cyclocross!

PHOTO SPECIAL

The first featured photographer of the 2011 Cross season has got to be Tim Westmore.

Westmore has been possibly the most dedicated cycling photo specialists in Nor-Cal over the past few years.  His favorite shots are Cross and you can clearly see from his work, he has passion and vision in each still image.

Please view the NCNCACyclocross Photo Page- to view Tim Westmore's excellent work from CCCX #1.



BAY AREA SUPER PRESTIGE PRE-REG - SANTA ROSA CUP DATE CHANGE

The kind, courteous and fun loving Tom & Alec Simpson, who are the masterminds behind the stellar Bay Area Super Prestige races, made a few smart moves for 2011 to better handle the popularity of their great events.  Pre-registration is now the name of the game for the Bay Area Super Prestige races.  So if you want to race these events you need to go to their web site and pre-register now!

The big show that is the Bay Area Super Prestige races are a huge part of what makes Nor-Cal one of the top regions in America for Cyclocross racing.  Tom & Alec Simpson deserve much gratitude for their dedication to the Bay Area Cross scene and I personally want to give them a big thumbs up for all they do for Cyclocross racing in general.

One tip for the Bay Area Super Prestige races are to keep it fun!  Large fields and tight courses make for great racing a long way down the line of riders.  Yet this can also cause stress and turmoil to riders when the competition heats up and racers are banging elbows left and right.  Keep it fun, and enjoy the experience, and this will in turn make the Bay Area Super Prestige races good times for all!  Including Tom & Alec who have their hands full putting on the events in the first place.

The Santa Rosa Cup has made a date change and the calendars will soon reflect this move.  Brian Staby at CX Nation gave notice that the Santa Rosa Cup will now be  holding a race on November 26th, rather than the original date of October 29th.  This appears to be a great move, as the Santa Rosa Cup will be putting together a strong Cross course with special features via a blessing from the City of Santa Rosa for this special date.

This Saturday is the Folsom Cyclebration Cyclocross race.

It will be hot Cyclocross racing near the State Capitol!

Have Fum & Ride Safe!