Decisions And Cyclocross



This weekend will be the first cyclocross race of the year for me.  I had kind of hemmed and hawed whether to make the trip up to do the Battle at Barlow race on the far end of Portland or grab the mountain bike and camping equipment and try to get one last glorious ride in at Waldo lake. But in the end the race beckoned just a little to hard.  Not only would the amount of time away from home be less, but the potential call up points for the Cross Crusades race series was just to much to pass up.
So know there are a ton of things to do. I've got to finish gluing up my tubular wheels. I'm rocking two sets this year (With a potential third set if I can find a replacement hoop soon.). Both are going to have Challenge tires on them. I've had very good luck (Knock on wood...) with them in the past. So my carbon Easton wheels will have the Fango tires on them.



These be the Fango.

And my Mavic Reflex will have the Limus tires on them.



The Limus's or Limi.

The idea behind the wheel/tire combinations is that the Fangos are a very good all around tire. They role well and grip well too. But definitely have an advantage when the conditions are dry and loose to more wet and tacky. The type of conditions where having a fast rolling tire is important and braking isn't... Thus the carbon wheels. In the dry, carbon wheels brake just fine. Even if the conditions get a little wet they will still do alright. But in the nasty stuff... They slip and slide all over the damn place. Having the ability to be able to slow down quickly trumped the mud shedding capacity of a deep section wheel. At least in my brain.  You guys may see me change my mind real quick though... So don't hold me to it.

The Mavic/Limus combo on the other hand is my ace in the hole if things get super slippery. Peanut butter mud to super sloppy stuff. This combo should do the trick (I hope.). On top of the fact that I should be able to slow down faster. Thus letting me keep my momentum going longer. All of which should allow me to make better bike race. At least in theory.

So anyway, That's part of what needs to happen to get prepped. There are of course other things. Clothes, towels, tools, wheels, pumps, gauges, cleaning supplies, food, beer and various other sundries.  All that crap needs to be brought together in one central location and made ready.

I'm always amazed at the amount of stuff that you need to race cross. It's easily 10x more stuff than you'd need for a summer road race. Part of that is fun. Part of it isn't. And when you're pressed for time it down right sucks. But it's all part of the game.

So wish us luck! I should have a ride report and some pictures up Monday.

Thanks for reading!

Rubber side down,

Big E