Cyclocross Advice
robiharper
Posts: 9
I'm not scared to start a topic that has probably been covered 100 times so here it goes.....
After having to cancel my road racing season due to work I have decided to specifically start building towards the cross season. I've raced quite a lot on the road but fancy getting muddy. I know a few guys locally who ride cross but normally there is more information available online so I will start hammering out some basic questions;
- Firstly I have a Felt F65X that I have been using as a winter trainer. It handles really well but it just seems to weigh a tonne!? Is that normal? Also has anyone had any experience on a the felt CX3R wheelset, seems bomb proof but is that a potential site to upgrade?
- I'm starting with a steady base then getting pretty heavy on the intervals a la crit racing? Is this the right theory? And what is the ideal build, are the climbers one up or the punchier types?
- I already have a set of tyres that came as stock but I am willing to buy one set for riding dryish trails(I'll probably leave them on to chaingang in winter) and one set for awful conditions? Do I need a set for wet grass or is that too specific?
- Lastly, do I need to change my BC licence at all?
All points are greatly appreciated, throw your advice at me please. If your riding the Welsh CX league later this year I'll be the one wheelsucking the juniors that have lapped me!!
After having to cancel my road racing season due to work I have decided to specifically start building towards the cross season. I've raced quite a lot on the road but fancy getting muddy. I know a few guys locally who ride cross but normally there is more information available online so I will start hammering out some basic questions;
- Firstly I have a Felt F65X that I have been using as a winter trainer. It handles really well but it just seems to weigh a tonne!? Is that normal? Also has anyone had any experience on a the felt CX3R wheelset, seems bomb proof but is that a potential site to upgrade?
- I'm starting with a steady base then getting pretty heavy on the intervals a la crit racing? Is this the right theory? And what is the ideal build, are the climbers one up or the punchier types?
- I already have a set of tyres that came as stock but I am willing to buy one set for riding dryish trails(I'll probably leave them on to chaingang in winter) and one set for awful conditions? Do I need a set for wet grass or is that too specific?
- Lastly, do I need to change my BC licence at all?
All points are greatly appreciated, throw your advice at me please. If your riding the Welsh CX league later this year I'll be the one wheelsucking the juniors that have lapped me!!
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Comments
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I'm just replying to myself, I have headache from searching tyres for hours.
Surely there is no difference between CX and XC tyres apart from size? And why would you run different tyres front and back?0 -
robiharper wrote:I'm not scared to start a topic that has probably been covered 100 times so here it goes.....
After having to cancel my road racing season due to work I have decided to specifically start building towards the cross season. I've raced quite a lot on the road but fancy getting muddy. I know a few guys locally who ride cross but normally there is more information available online so I will start hammering out some basic questions;
- Firstly I have a Felt F65X that I have been using as a winter trainer. It handles really well but it just seems to weigh a tonne!? Is that normal? Also has anyone had any experience on a the felt CX3R wheelset, seems bomb proof but is that a potential site to upgrade?
- I'm starting with a steady base then getting pretty heavy on the intervals a la crit racing? Is this the right theory? And what is the ideal build, are the climbers one up or the punchier types?
- I already have a set of tyres that came as stock but I am willing to buy one set for riding dryish trails(I'll probably leave them on to chaingang in winter) and one set for awful conditions? Do I need a set for wet grass or is that too specific?
- Lastly, do I need to change my BC licence at all?
All points are greatly appreciated, throw your advice at me please. If your riding the Welsh CX league later this year I'll be the one wheelsucking the juniors that have lapped me!!
No experience with the felt, but usually the wheelset is the first and best thing to upgrade.
CX is pretty close to crit racing, so using that as a training template won't be bad at all.
If you are running clinchers, then a set of tyres for dry, intermediate and mud will come in handy. If you're serious then you'll quickly want to think about tubeless or tubular and that means extra wheelsets in the latter case.
No need to change licence.
I doubt you'll be wheelsucking any juniors
There's no fundamental difference in the technology, but the size obviously makes a difference to suppleness, tread and feel, so I'm not sure what you're getting at.
You would run different tyres for different types of grip, e.g., run a grippier tyre up front for more secure cornering, just like you might in XC.0 -
I would recommend spending your money on a variety of tyres for different conditions - or at least a mud specific pair and some for hard packed courses. Also a digital pressure gauge if you haven't already got one as you can go from good grip to almost no grip in a handful of psi!
Your licence will be fine. Most local cross races only require a provisional one, and you probably have a full licence if you were road racing.
Yes, cross bikes are heavy, although they only get heavier when they have half a kilo of mud stuck on each wheel and in the bridges on the forks and stay! If you get serious then you might want to consider a pit bike for that reason. Although the best thing is to try it out with what you have before spending lots.
In terms of training, you basically spend an hour sprinting out of corners with next to no recovery in between.0 -
Chris James wrote:
In terms of training, you basically spend an hour sprinting out of corners with next to no recovery in between.
Be careful.... No point in having the engine if you spend most of the race crashing or faffing about getting on and off the bike.
The technical skills aspect can not be ignored!
Also, I think TT's are good prep.... Works on your ability to go deep for long periods of time.
And lastly... In crits the sprint is at the end... In CX the sprint is at the start!0
