Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Arkansas Cyclocross State Championships this Sunday

It will be a great day in North Little Rock this Sunday.  Fantastic course with a lot of variety, and if it's anything like last year, there will be plenty of racers from all over the state.  Plus frites, mayo, and trombone!

Cash payments down to five places in the men's A race, with merchandise primes for all classes.

https://sites.google.com/site/arcyclocrosschampionships/

Monday, November 29, 2010

It was brung.

Oh yes.  It was a fun day of hard racing at Kanis Park, in the heart of Little Rock.  The deafening echo of yelling and cowbells as a pack of harriers made their way through the double-sandpit under the I-630 was...most excellent.  The course was a leg-wrecker.  Recovery came in all-too-brief snatches, with the vast majority of time spent on the gas pedal.  Ease off, and watch your friend ride away from you.

Conditions: Crisp and clear.  The recent rains made the grass soft and sticky.  A couple of tricky leaf-strewn corners took victims.  The course had a little bit of everything, grass, gravel, pavement, some off-camber, some on-camber, and the aforementioned sand-pit that more than made up for the lack of vertical gain.  Meanwhile, a motley crew of the fraternal, familial, and merely curious enjoyed the great weather, with pizza and potables provided by Vino's.

I managed to grab a couple of frames, but there will be more---still and moving---arriving in the next couple of days.

EDIT: My original post didn't give nearly enough credit to Trevor Edwards, who almost singlehandedly envisioned and realized this event.  He had a great idea, and made it happen.

P.S. Arkansas State Championships are less than a week away.



Friday, November 26, 2010

Turkey Burn in Two Days!

One last reminder about this Sunday's Turkey Burn cyclocross race, right here in Little Rock!  Pre-race skills clinic at 8:30, Men's B and Women's Open race at 10:00, Men's A race at 11:00, and kids race at high noon.  Registration: $10.

Click here for more details.  Be there!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Zonhoven

OK so every so often I'll just post a link or vid that I like. No big whoop.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Turkey Burn coverage in the Democrat-Gazette

Woke up this morning, opened the ActiveStyle section, and:
Don't forget about the skills clinic that starts at 8:30am.  Even experienced racers might learn a trick or two.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Burn off all that turkey and stuffing!

Trevor Edwards of Arkansas Cycling & Fitness is putting on a cyclocross race in the heart of Little Rock on November 28, the Sunday after Thanksgiving. The race is called the Turkey Burn.

It takes place in Kanis Park, which is an underappreciated gem of a place. The course is mostly grass, with sections of paved and gravel paths, twisty turny sections through the woods, and two trips through a gnarly sandpit. No serious elevation change, but a true cyclocross circuit with a lot of features to make it interesting and challenging!

It's an unsanctioned race, meaning that you don't get any USAC points, but the entry fee is only ten bucks. A perfect opportunity for beginners, and for more experienced racers wanting to put some hurt into the legs and dust off the cross skills exactly one week before the Arkansas State Championship race.

In the immortal words of Bamacross impresario Brent Marshall, Get you some!

LATE-BREAKING ADDITION

There will be a short pre-race skills clinic put on by Keegen Knapp of Bully Otter Sports, Heather Ladd, and yours truly. It starts at 8:30 and will cover the very basics of dismounts, remounts, and portages.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Beginner's Corner

Here are two decent beginner's videos I came across today.

The first one is about dismounts and remounts.  Great soundtrack.  The merits of "stepping through" on the dismount are debatable.


I think the section on corning is pretty spot-on. But don't get too caught up in playing games in corners.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Bunnyhopping, part II

A great interview with Adam Craig, who bunnyhops barriers, just after the race where Todd Wells stacked.

Watch more videos on Cycling Dirt

Notable quotables:
"It's never faster [to bunnyhop a standard barrier set]."
"It's all about exit speed, regardless of what the obstacle is, or if it's a corner."
"[Tim Johnson]'s a ninja."

Bunnyhopping barriers

This year the UCI changed its cross rules to allow barriers shorter than 40cm.  I don't know if that's why, but I've noticed more pros bunnyhopping them instead of portaging this year.

If you choose to hop any obstacle in a race, you have to consider the possibility of failure, especially when your muscles are stealing oxygen from your brain.


Visit cyclingdirt.org for more Videos

[Tim Johnson ran this barrier section every lap.  And won the race.]

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Great day of racing in Memphis

Outdoors Inc put on a great event, the 24th annual race, in fact.  Great course, great riders, and the crew from Little Rock represented themselves proudly across multiple categories.

Video and stills will follow in the next couple of days.

A reminder of three upcoming Arkansas cross races:
On the Sunday after Thanksgiving, you have your choice of Jonesboro or Little Rock.  And the following Sunday, December 5, is the Arkansas State Championship at Burns Park in N. Little Rock.

Be prepared!

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Thanksgiving weekend race in Little Rock is ON

This will be a fun one.  Heather and I got a chance to preview the course a couple weeks ago, and it's a great location and course.  If you're in town, come get some!
TURKEY BURN CYCLOCROSS RACE
When – Sunday, November 28, 2010
Where – Kanis Park; Little Rock, AR
Time – B Race & Women’s Race 10:00am, 40 Minutes
            A Race 11:00am, 50 Minutes
            Kids’ Race 12:00pm
Course – Pavement start and finish, mostly grass, wooden barrier dismounts and sand pit
Registration - $10.00; From 7:00am – 9:45am
What to Bring – Cyclocross Bike or Mountain Bike; Helmet and Shoes; The Whole Family; Cowbells or Noise Makers for the Kids!!!
Questions – Contact Trevor Edwards at 501-837-8485 or trevor at arkansascycling dot com
Ever have the desire to burn off all that turkey we all love so much from Thanksgiving Day? Then join Arkansas Cycling and Fitness for our very first cyclocross race the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Riders of all levels, come have a chance to enjoy riding your cyclosross bike or mountain bike in your local park. Kanis Park is located at the corner of Mississippi and Rodney Parham. The course is mostly flat with a few inclines; all grass except for starting, finishing and sand pit. There will be multiple barrier dismounts and one wicked sand pit. This is a family event, so bring them all—from Grandma to the kids. Noise makers are encouraged for the kids to keep racers motivated. Hope to see everyone there!

Monday, November 8, 2010

Next Sunday, November 14, Cross Racing in Memphis

Looks like there should be some good solid racing in Memphis next weekend.  Get you some!


For more information, click here.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Collarbone update

arkansascyclocross.com broke his collarbone exactly two weeks ago at cross practice.  So I can no longer say that I've never heard of anyone breaking a collarbone doing cross.

We were doing hot laps at Burns Park and were ready to pack it in, when Ryan says, C'mon let's do one more!   Always be very careful when you hear those words.  Especially if you are (1) tired and (2) cranky.

I took it way too fast off of the pavement onto a slight grassy downhill.  I'm not sure what made my front wheel suddenly turn left, might have been a rock, root, or sand, but the end result was me flying over the handlebars and landing on my left shoulder.  A (long, crazy) visit to the ER confirmed the broken bone.

Last Friday I had surgery to match the two ends with a metal plate so it heals straight.  I seem to be recovering fine, each day it feels a little bit better with a little more range of motion, but I have to keep it in a sling for the rest of the month.

Moral of the story?  Be careful!  Any time you go downhill on a cross bike, stay loose and relaxed and keep your weight back.  I've decided to put bar-top brake levers back on my cross bike for exactly that reason.  [If they are good enough for Adam Craig and Katie Compton, they are good enough for me.]  Even without cheater levers, you still want to keep your butt behind the saddle and ride those bumpy speedy sections conservatively; there's far more time to make up on other sections of the course.

Ride safely and have a great cross season!

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Great video from Memphis Halloween race

Keegen and BullyOtterSports.com come up with the goods again.  A fun time was had by all.  Unless you happened to be at home nursing a broken collarbone.


2010 Arkansas Cyclocross Series Episode 2: Memphis from Keegen Knapp on Vimeo.