Why You Should Try Cyclocross

The thing about hobbies is everyone thinks theirs is the best, but they don't necessarily want everyone to do it too. Some people like their hobby to be exclusionary, for them to be special in the eyes of their friends and acquaintances. Cyclocross is not one of those hobbies. I don't know anyone that races cyclocross that doesn't want everyone to join in. The more the merrier. It's not just a race, it's more like a bike festival. Everyone is out with their cowbells, friends, kids, dogs, what-have-you, and this happens every weekend for 3 months. Even if the weather is bad and everyone gets covered in mud, you just know that the racing is going to be that much more epic. How great is that!

There are a lot of options out there for amateur athletes who still want to have fun and recreate past high school and college: triathlons, masters swim meets, 5k's, marathons, softball and soccer leagues, road races, mountain bike raced, crits, etc. In every one of these there are 3 basic groups of people that participate.

The pseudo pro: This is the guy(or gal) who just knows they could go pro if they had the time or money or got noticed. They spend every waking minute training or planning their diet to maximize their chances of winning the upcoming race or game. They get really upset if things don't work out, their bike gets a flat, someone crashes and blocks them on the trail, a teammate commits a fatal error, whatever. This guy then flies into a rage because his world has just crashed into tiny pieces and he can't be the one to win the amateur competition that day.

The weekend warrior: This gal/guy is fairly balanced. They train during the week, eat reasonably well and look forward to the race or game, but their week isn't ruined if something derails their training or they lose the game. They're competitive but do it as much for the fun as the they do for the competitive push they get.

The fun guy: This person might run a couple of times before a 5k, just to make sure he doesn't completely die, but also stays up late the night before eating burritos and watching the "Back To The Future" marathon on tv. He just wants to have fun with his friends.

Cyclocross has all of these, except the really fast guys don't seem to get all hopped up when something crappy happens, everyone seems happy to help everyone else. I've had a number of great get-to-know-you conversations waiting at the start line. Cyclocross is the fastest growing segment of cycling for a reason, it's just plain fun. People are friendly and it gives you something to look forward to after the Summer ends. This might be an odd outlook on a sport often referred to "An hour long sufferfest" or "The most painful hour in cycling," but it's true. I am addicted to it.

Every week I experience the same pattern. I wake up Monday thinking about the race on Saturday, get in some intervals on the trainer in my basement while watching a video, usually a comedy to keep my mind off the monotony that accompanies riding a bike that goes nowhere in the basement. Same sort of thing through Thursday. Friday comes and I'm really starting to get psyched for the race. I make sure I get some carbs, get the bike all ready, check the weather report and get the appropriate clothes together. Saturday comes and I can hardly contain

myself. I get to the race venue, register, warm up, get on the line with a big grin on my face. The race starts, I enjoy taking the downhill stuff fast, keep the pace on the climbs, then about half-way through when my lungs and legs are burning and my back is killing me I start to wonder why in the world I looked forward to this. I'm not enjoying myself, my fingers are freezing and I've over filled the terry cloth part of my glove with snot. I somehow make it past that one kid that races with the adults, "At least I passed the kid," I think. I make a last hard push to the line to come in 39th place out of 52 riders. I'm done and an hour later I can't wait to race the next Saturday. Maybe I'm sadistic, I don't think so because I genuinely dislike pain. So what is it? It might be the camaraderie, it might be the experience of pushing myself, it might be the smell of embrocation, maybe it's the muddy grins from the racers that just finished their race. Whatever it is, I love it!