Yes, cross IS coming (at least in my state). I haven’t raced since 2019, but haven’t tottally forgot what it feels like.
- How are you preparing?
- What workouts?
- What training plan?
- What races?
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CO here.
- I’m not yet. Gravel prep for Steamboat while racing crits still. gateway cup eary sept.
- Will start cx prep mid Aug.
- Fascat cx plans. Prep and in season
- CO races. Usually something every weekend from early sep to December. mid week training race mid august to early sept.
edit: Also haven’t raced since 2019 and it wasn’t pretty in my first cat 3 year.
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Haven’t raced CX since 2016.
Prepping by reading on the internet that I’m probably the last person still on regular inner tubes and cantis. But new and used bikes are too much $$.
Doing plan builder, so a bunch of threshold and VO2 workouts.
In VA, so I’m doing the GGG on August 1 as a fitness/equipment test. Hoping that Schwalbe Marathons are fine for double track horse trails. If not, I should put some sneakers in the jersey pocket. I’ll probably do 4 races, so not enough to cat up if I get good results but enough to justify buying a new bike once the market normalizes.
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Most likely scenario for me:
- Don’t train
- Feel terrible in race
- Shotgun beer at 10:30am from a spectator
- Repeat for rest of season
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Doing fascat training programs for cross. Still waiting for local OH schedules for my area to come out, but do plan on hitting trek weekend up as I usually do. Will be adding in Rochester and Kings CX this year with a trip to Chi in Dec to end the season. As for prep, hitting parks for laps and skill sessions also going over bike set up and maintenance. Making sure I have stock of common items as well to get through the season. So excited for this year!!!
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Thanks! Im up in CLE, so those are a bit far on a weekly basis to do, but may jump in a few depending on what NEOCX and Cap City schedules look like.
I’m hoping to race single speed at Trek. I sold my geared cross bike in winter of 2019 and built up a newer Trek Crockett as a single speed.
I’m looking forward to it. Any racing is good. If I could cat up to 2 that would be amazing, but MN has a really strong single speed CX field.
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I have a set of handbuilt Velocity A23 tubeless compatible wheels. However, I’ve never had any success setting them up, so I just run nothing special clinchers. There are some cheap tubular wheelsets on ebay, but I’d just as soon move onto something that’s disc in the next few years than mess with glue and or rolling a tub.
I loved SS. Went from Cat 5 to 3 in a season or season and a half I think racing SS. SS open in CO was just too bonkers for me. If I could land a top 20 I was happy. Going back to gears and may even request a cat down as my fitness isn’t quite what it was when I made that jump. Was probably a 4.2 or w/kg and could be in the hurt locker all race. Now, not so much.
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I’m in week 5 of 8 of short power build, which is going swimmingly with adaptive training, I have yet to fail/struggle in any workouts and I’m at 5.3 for vo2 progression.
I got gifted a mtb for father’s day and did my first ride today, it’s supposed to be an easy friday but it was hot and some of the stuff is gnarly! I wasn’t ashamed to walk up some of the nastier climbs until I build up some more technical prowess. Hoping some time off road will pay off somehow
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I’ve added 3 days of running into my workout routine. Running helps harden the body for the tough demands of CX (off-road pounding with skinny tires and no suspension).
One other thing I’m doing is racing XC again. I felt the demands of racing the local xc every other midweek race helped my mindset and just fitness going into CX.
*** How are you preparing?** Wondering if I can afford new wheels and tires for the #1 bike. Trying to convince myself that I can have fun in the 8 am master’s races even though I haven’t raced since 2016 and I’m way closer in skill to a “novice.”
*** What workouts?** Whatever TR drops on me. Second cycle of SSBase started this week after I pulled the crit serious C races out.
*** What training plan?** TR LV plan builder with a random place-holder A race in the middle of October. I fill
This dude for the WIN!!
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I would like try cross, but with a sub 2watts/kg, why even bother? I’m sure I’d get the doors blown off in the first 30 seconds and DNF. I should have picked better parents.
Just do it. In cross, you often end up riding against the course more than against other riders. And with laps, nobody really knows where you are anyway. You nearly always have a success story too, because you nailed a corner or a slippy descent. And each place counts, everybody sprints to the line (if they still can).
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I agree, part of the fun of CX is riding designed courses. Otherwise with lack of gravel roads in my area I probably wouldn’t have a cx bike just to go ride around grassy areas
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Id like to race cross this season. I used to do it and had some good results, but took a break from racing in grad school. I have kept steady training for the last year so I will race if there are some local ones.
I will continue the training I am doing by focusing on:
- short power intervals (ex. 30sec @ 166% FTP → 90sec @ 60% FTP x 10-15)
- 30/30 workouts (ex. 30sec @ 150% FTP → 30sec @ <50%ftp x 10-20)
- longer vo2 intervals (ex. 5-10 mins @ 110-115% FTP x however many depending on interval length - maybe one 10min and one to two 5min, or three 5mins, etc.)
- low-rep / high-weight leg training in the weight room
- MTB ride on a repeating 5-15min loop with a punchy climb and a decent amount of single track.
I do not do all of these in a given week, but I always do at least 1) or 2), 3) and 4) within the week. I would skip 3) if it was a race week.
I am a time crunched cyclist (6-10hpw) so I include (3.) into my long ride with at least 1 all out sprint. Ill throw in one all-out sprint into 5) as well.
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Lil Sur, I also haven’t raced since 2016.
Only reasonS I’m not on cantilevers anymore are; I broke a rim, didn’t trust the fork, the bike needed more in shop labor and parts than I could justify to keep her running. If I hadn’t crashed it during a race and busted a shifter, I’d still be riding the Tiagra 9spd…
But that bike is back running with a rack and fenders (tubeless tires, though) after collecting parts at a discount and a repaint. Its a great lockup commuter, and will absolutely get stripped down to race again if I bust up the replacement, or decide that any race might require me to bring a pit bike…