I raced this weekend and......

dov2711

Well I came in 116 out of 117 who finished the race I entered. Haven't ridden for 4 months so hoping I can claim to have "beat" the 11 who started but didn't finish!!
Guess I'm not in a position to merit a bike upgrade....still I can cope with being crap and having a go better than knowing I am crap and bottling out.
Kudos to the better riders who all encouraged rather than belittled.

Moonbiker

Raced at eirias park on Sunday (NWCX league) a few very muddy sections, but also fast dry bits, really liked the course.

Hills, hurdles, singletrack, off camber, & a stream crossing, so the course had abit of everything.

I think about half a dozen peoples rear mechs got ripped off.

cyclingsheep

Moonbiker wrote:

Raced at eirias park on Sunday (NWCX league) a few very muddy sections, but also fast dry bits, really liked the course.

Hills, hurdles, singletrack, off camber, & a stream crossing, so the course had abit of everything.

I think about half a dozen peoples rear mechs got ripped off.

I usually ride the NWCX Xmas cross as I'm up that way visiting family. They seem to do proper old school cross courses. Hoping to do the round at St Asaph later this month

Chris James

I DIDN'T race this weekend at Queensbury.

I was all set to sign on after watching my kids and wife race. But after watching 15 DNFs from broken hangers in the three kids races and the novice race (not including one under 12 who had a spare bike he could use after his mech snapped) then I decided to skip the main race.

I think it was a wise decision as there were another 12 DNFs from 86 starters in that race. I also saw several broken mechs in the pits as people swapped bikes.

Thick mud and large woods sections with leaves and twigs is not a good combination.

mikpem

Isn't that what 'cross is all about?
Granted, we don't want to be replacing a mech every week but cycling through the mud and woods is what I do it for.

Blackbrogue

Took part in my first ever CX race this weekend at Fife College, part of the Scottish CX league. Really enjoyed it despite the very muddy conditions. Came 44/64 in V50 so didn't disgrace myself and to be honest didn't know what to expect. New caadx tiagra did well, not sure I see much point upgrading anything other than more aggresiive tyres. Looking forward to the next event.

Chris James

mikpem wrote:

Isn't that what 'cross is all about?
Granted, we don't want to be replacing a mech every week but cycling through the mud and woods is what I do it for.

Across the whole field 1 in every 7 riders ripped their mechs and the results were a lottery as people were taking minutes out each lap to clear blockages. This is my 4th year racing cross and I have never seen anything like it. So no, in my opinion, that isn't what cyclocross is all about. I think the organisers described the course as 'old fashioned' - I half expected a stream crossing.

VamP

Central League had a course last year with an ill judged gravel path section following a claggy field. Mech graveyard, probably even more attritional than the 1 in 7 you mention. I'm in no hurry to go there again.

Chris James

It was the leaves after the mud that was the problem here. I watched one guy spend about a minute picking out all the leaves jammed in his v brakes (he was on an old fashioned MTB). He then cycled about ten feet along a muddy section and straight into a bank of leaves, which stuck to his tyres and jammed his bike, forcing him off again!

tgotb

Sticky mud and something for it to stick together are the perfect storm. Venues that have had a bit of time to dry out are often the worst, though soil type appears to be a major contributory factor.

I don't have enough data to prove it, but I've a suspicion that Shimano rear mechs are a bit more vulnerable in these conditions.

cyclingsheep

TGOTB wrote:

Sticky mud and something for it to stick together are the perfect storm. Venues that have had a bit of time to dry out are often the worst, though soil type appears to be a major contributory factor.

I don't have enough data to prove it, but I've a suspicion that Shimano rear mechs are a bit more vulnerable in these conditions.

You'll probably find the majority of broken mechs are shimano but that is more of an indicator of how many riders use shimano than that they are more susceptible. I know Hillingdon mud is a shocker as it's all just dumped soil mixed with clay...thankfully we seemed to have less broken mechs than clogged bikes last year.

VamP

I'm with TGOTB - you don't see a lot of broken SRAM mechs. In fact - let's run a straw poll - who's busted a Shim and who's busted a SRAM?

I have 8 Shimano notches on my belt over last three seasons, and zero SRAM. Admittedly only have 3 months of SRAM data versus 24 months of Shimano.

VamP

At that specific race in Central League last season, I counted out the broken mechs - 30+ that I saw, and they were all Shimano. Except 1 Campag.

devhads

2 Shimano broke a few years ago in one season and no Sram since I switched for the last two seasons.

I ripped my mech off the other week when it got caught up in tape, mech hanger snapped but the Sram mech still works fine.

devhads

Except 1 Campag

And we know who that was! He's now using Sram I believe.

tgotb

VamP wrote:

At that specific race in Central League last season, I counted out the broken mechs - 30+ that I saw, and they were all Shimano. Except 1 Campag.

I survived that race (on SRAM) with no issues at all; in fact, at the time I was puzzled as to why so many people were pulling out.

I have destroyed one SRAM mech, but that was pushed into a spinning rear wheel during a crash, something that could have happened with any mech. Root cause was total brake failure, as a result of using organic pads on a wet day at Welwyn, coupled with rider stupidity (brakes had actually failed a lap and a half previously; I had another bike in the pits, but didn't want to risk losing a place changing...)

MrGrumpy

Blackbrogue wrote:

Took part in my first ever CX race this weekend at Fife College, part of the Scottish CX league. Really enjoyed it despite the very muddy conditions. Came 44/64 in V50 so didn't disgrace myself and to be honest didn't know what to expect. New caadx tiagra did well, not sure I see much point upgrading anything other than more aggresiive tyres. Looking forward to the next event.

It was fun eh ! Raced the V40 myself and started right at the back and finished just out of the top 100 which is not too bad I suppose. However need to look at tyres for whenever I race again , lost traction a couple of times and also sunk into the mud at the top section . Watched guys and girls just glide over all that so can only presume fitter not a fat barstewerd and better tyres/pressure ;-) . As for upgrades , new wheels would go a long way but it ain't going to propel me up the grid !

VamP

devhads wrote:

Except 1 Campag

And we know who that was! He's now using Sram I believe.

LOL. All roads lead to SRAM

bendertherobot

Well, we have snow......

AllezAllezAllez

I raced at Yorkshire Cross Winter Series in Shibden Hall Halifax. At the age of 42 this is my first season racing cross and after the early season dry rounds this was a real mud festival.

I'm new to Cross, but this felt like a good challenging course with plenty of slippy mud sections. I'm still finding my feet, so to speak, and my main aim is to finish.

Every round so far has been very well organised and I've really enjoyed taking part.

cyclingsheep

Raced the Nth Wales CX league today for a change from Central. They aren't affiliated with BC so don't have to abide by their rules so there was a lot more single track than TGOTB would like and massive tree trunks for hurdles. It was a technical course with plenty of hairpins through trees and some fun little lumps to catch riders out. Sadly after three weeks of fighting the lurgy I just didn't have the lungs today so let the race get away at the start as I didn't think I'd be holding any wheels but slowly worked my way through the field a bit as the race went on. It's an hour long race for Vets, ladies and seniors who all race together which makes it hard to know where you are or who you're fighting with but still a great fun course.

andyp

Rode the London League event at Leeds Castle in Kent yesterday, hosted by Dulwich Paragon. The course was a real challenge, a mix of twisty sections, a long off camber section, the biggest run up I've ever seen on a southern course, and a lot of elevation changes per lap. The key feature was how bumpy it was though, I don't think I've ever ridden a course as bumpy as that, and it felt like I'd been riding a pneumatic drill for 45 minutes afterwards. My arms, hands and shoulders ache today, whereas normally it's just my legs that hurt post race.

The less said about my performance though, the better. Got a good start and was thinking I could be challenging for the top ten at the end of the first lap, only for it all to go pear shaped over the next two laps before I recovered and managed to just about hold my position for the last two laps. I'd be surprised if I snuck into the top twenty.

bendertherobot

Pembrey (Wales) yesterday.

Decided against the new Schwalbe X-One bite as that grip not needed.

Went with the normal X-One.

Could easily have got away with G-One and possibly even Schwalbe One 25c

VamP

Snap for the Trophy at Ipswich. Totally dry, really fast, much of it on tarmac. Not typical November cross at all!

bendertherobot

Grass crit, as everyone was calling it. We only have one round left now, the infamous Caerphilly. This was the last time I did it in 2014. Last year was ever worse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CwbRNGGrtU

andyp

I had a great time at the South East and Eastern Regional Championships at Cyclopark in Gravesend on Sunday. Was surprisingly gridded on the third row (the benefits of scoring some BC points in one race this season) and got a great start, only to drop my chain on a bump about half way around the first lap. As always, time stood still whilst I tried to get it back on, but eventually I got going again and then spent the rest of the race trying to reel in everyone who passed me earlier. I think by the end of the race there were two or three riders who'd been behind me when I stopped still ahead.

The course itself was fantastic, a really well thought out course that flowed well, but also had some sections that really tested your bike handling abilities. A couple of the off camber sections were really challenging, and if you got it wrong, as one of the poor junior riders did in the warm up, crashing was unavoidable. The organisers are hoping to get a round of the National Trophy there next year, it's definitely a course worthy of that level of race in my view.

mikpem

I think that was my favourite race yet this season. Stow Scrable at Chantry Park, Ipswich. This year it was a lot less muddy than last year and I made it through the whole race without snapping my rear mech rather than just 3 corners.

It was slippy enough to make it interesting (I slipped out on the 2nd lap but only suffered a slightly bruised knee and lost a few positions) and had enough hills to work with my favoured push up and roll down approach.

I managed to finally catch and pass the guy I've been close to all season on the final straight after a long slog to get back to him after the crash. I felt well and truely wiped out at the end, clearly the worst I've felt all season but worth it.

One thing I've noticed this season is that I have been enjoying the races too much whilst actually doing them and not putting as much effort in as I could. I will always be one of the smiling faces of the eastern league but I think I have realised that I have to actually try to push myself which makes it so much more enjoyable afterwards.

tgotb

I can't remember which thread we were discussing SRAM vs Shimano mechs, and particularly their robustness in gravel; apologies if it wasn't this one. Of the four riders I spoke to who trashed rear mechs today, all of them blamed the gravel, and all were riding Shimano.

VamP

I can't remember where it was either. My small anectodal contribution is that I haven't broken any since switching to SRAM but it has been an easy going season thus far.

VamP

Oh, forgot to say, visited West Mids League today, not having been to Mallory Park before, and the course was SUPERB! I love it when a truly great course comes out of left field.