The Season Is Upon Us.

Crikeys. Where did the summer go? Or the spring and end of winter, for that matter. It’s already cross season? Every year seems to follow the same pattern. Wait, wait, wait, wait … and … WAIT!!! I’m not ready, yet! The MAC has already started, MABRAcross Super 8 gets going a week from Sunday, Charm City this weekend. Sort of like the sport itself, there is no easing into the cyclocross season. Once it’s on, it is on.

But it’s cool. We know you all did the work, put in the intervals, got rid of that double-hop, glued the tubulars (with glue AND tape … and not that skinny Tufo stuff), furiously hit enter—from 7:59 p.m. until registered—for the past three or four Sunday evenings, and are totally prepared for another season of lung-searing fun.

JPow explains the ways of the cyclocross.

In what has become a tradition in these parts, the 3rd annual Fulcrum Coaching and JBV Coaching Cross Clinic with Rapha Focus pro cyclocrosser Jeremy Powers kickstarted the season with a weekend chock full of cyclocross goodness. Skills were learned, technique was taught, burritos were eaten, and 50+ dedicated cyclocross racers, both new and weathered, went away with the tools to be faster this season.

Big thanks to Bike Doctor of Waldorf for hosting the free meet & greet with Jeremy Powers, the night before the clinic. Next year, go check this event out. It’s free, it’s a ton of information, and JPow tells some great stories. Also, check out the shop. Truly one of the best in the area and worth the drive from DC. Great inventory and service, and the owner, Chris Richardson, is hands down the most knowledgeable bike fitter I’ve ever talked to.

So here we are. At the start of another cyclocross season. And before we know it, it will be over. But that’s sort of the beauty, right? Fast, furious, done.

But in the meantime, lots of things are planned for the CXHairs this season. Course previews will start back up, videos, photos, interviews should all be here, too. If there is something you would like to see or contribute drop me a line at CXHairs(at)Gmail.

For now, check out the super PRO video rundown of the cross clinic put together by the creator of CrossTalk and president of SuperLuminal Films, Peter Nicoll.

And this ode to the end of summer. Sniff.

Thanks for visiting. Talk to you soon.

Your 2011 Cross Clinic Instructors

The MAC is up and running and already has over 1000 registrants, MABRAcross will open its doors for business this weekend. We know you can’t wait. But does that mean you’re ready?

Are you faster around the cyclocross course this year than you were last year? Did you know that using proper dismounting, remounting, carrying and cornering technique can make you ten, 15, or even 30 seconds faster per lap? Think about that. If your race is four laps long, that can mean you are a minute or even two minutes faster than you were last season without any improvement in fitness.

Do you ever practice your race starts? Are you confident you know the best way to approach this important part of a cross race? If you have the proper technique and strategy you will be better equipped to be in that first group as it hits the inevitable chokepoint in every course. Being up front means a smooth ride and faster times. As your competition bottlenecks behind, you will be in your rhythm creating gaps on those poor souls in your rearview mirror.

I know by now you are thinking, nay saying out loud, “Wow, all this sounds great! I too want to learn how to take minutes off my lap times and get to the front at the start. But how? How do I get there?”

That part, Mid-Atlantic friends and neighbors, is easy. You get yourself to the top cyclocross clinic in the area. The Fulcrum Coaching and JBV Coaching Cyclocross Clinic with Jeremy Powers.

It all happens Labor Day weekend starting with a Saturday, September 3, cross talk and meet & greet at Bike Doctor of Waldorf. Rapha-Focus pro cyclocrosser Jeremy Powers will be on hand to answer your questions about his racing career, tricks of the trade, training advice and anything else you care to ask. Joining Jeremy during this session will be Fulcrum Coaching’s Dan Tille and JBV Coaching’s Chris Mayhew. Dan and Chris have years of experience racing and coaching cyclocross. Come out and pick their brains on the latest gear and training techniques. The Saturday night portion of the clinic is free but you still need to register.

On Sunday, September 4, we get down to business. It’s a full day of on the bike training at Rosaryville State Park in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, venue of the MABRAcross Super 8 opening race, Tacchino Ciclocross. From 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., Jeremy, Chris and Dan will be joined by instructors Marc “FatMarc” Vettori and Rusty Williford to make sure every attendee receives one-on-one instruction. Also on hand to help out will be Gunnar Bergey, who spent part of last winter in Belgium at USA Cycling’s elite level Eurocross Camp, racing against Europe’s top talent.

Throughout the day, the full group will receive demonstration and explanation of a certain skill and then break into smaller groups based on skill and experience level. These smaller groups will work on the skill and receive instruction from the coaches.

As if that wasn’t enough to convince you to sign up now, Fulcrum coaching will also provide individual video analysis of each attendee using Dartfish motion capture technology. At the end of the day when the group has reviewed and practiced the essential cyclocross skills, each attendee will be filmed dismounting, carrying and remounting. Detailed, written feedback on form and technique will be sent out within a week of the camp ending.

Finally, did we mention the FULL RAPHA KIT Jeremy Powers will be raffling off Saturday night at The Bike Doctor of Waldorf? Seriously, a FULL RAPHA KIT. You have to look good racing and training and you can’t not do that in Rapha. It’s an extra added incentive to get you to this clinic. Everybody is going to come away from the weekend faster. One of you will also come away just a bit cooler and more fashionable than the rest. (All registrants for the free Saturday evening session will be eligible for the Rapha giveaway. You do not need to sign up for Sunday to win.)

This clinic is truly the best way to get a leg up on the field. Many attendees are coming back for their second and third years, and it’s not just for the complimentary Chipotle lunch. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for you, too. Come on out and join us.

To register, please visit http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=13780. Space is limited to 50 attendees and last year’s clinic sold out.

Check out photos from last year’s clinic here.

Also be sure to follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/Fulcrum-Coaching-JBV-Coaching-Cyclocross-clinic/112506545463716?ref=sgm.

If you have any questions about the clinic please do not hesitate to contact Chris Mayhew at chris@jbvcoaching.com or 724.413.7441.

The Team TOMS Shoes Bobsled Start

With the meteoric rise in popularity of tandem-cross in the Mid-Atlantic region, we thought it was a good time to give everybody interested in this nascent category a few pointers on how to place high in the standings. For our first installment we caught up with Chad Bartlett and Sean O’Donnell (Team TOMS Shoes p/b Kindhuman Sports) at the MABRAcross Championship in Taneytown, Md., to find out more about their unique bobsled style starts.

Although their technique may seem a bit unorthodox, it put them in position to finish third on the day. Ultimately, though, they were bested in the finishing stretch by a tandem with a nine-year-old stoker and one with a thirteen-year-old stoker after resorting to the same bobsled technique for the sprint.

Thanks for watching.

Tille churns Rockburn sand

Rockburn Cross, day 2 of the Howard County Double Cross and race #9 in the BikeReg.com MABRAcross series, takes place Sunday, November 21. Twists, turns, ups and downs make Rockburn a favorite for many cyclocrossers in the Mid-Atlantic. Although there may be a different turn here and there, the word I get from the race organizers is that the course will not undergo any major changes for 2010.

Back with us again for course commentary are the dynamic duo of Dan Tille (fulcrumcoaching.com) and Chris Mayhew (JBVcoaching.com). If you like the work these guys have done on the previews, let them know this weekend. Maybe even buy them a slice of pie. Mmmm pie. Chris will be a sporting a blue JBV Coaching kit and rocking the mic on Saturday at Schooley Mill. Dan will be decked out in the black and orange of Fulcrum Coaching and piloting the XXXL Guru cyclocross machine.

Thanks for watching.

Rockburn Cross

Julie Cool at Schooley Mill

Schooley Mill, the first race in the Howard County Double Cross weekend,  takes place Saturday November 20 in Highland, Md. In its second year, the Schooley Mill “Steeple Chase” is an opportunity for the diesels to get their groove on.

Last year’s course had nice long power sections but also a good deal of ridable mud bog that favored racers that can churn out the watts. With a good drenching in the Mid-Atlantic region this week, the mud should return for an encore performance.

According to the HoCo2xCx blog, the course is undergoing a couple changes, but I have it on good authority it will still be wide open. The barriers are now located near the pits and the climbing sections have been broken up a bit. There is also the “disembowled death spiral” that  I reckon we are all going to have to just experience for ourselves on race day. From what I understand, it’s a lot of swoopy turns at speed.

For this course preview we are pleased to have back in the studio Dan Tille from Fulcrum Coaching and Chris Mayhew from JBV Coaching. They not only give you the low down on getting through the course fast and efficiently, but they also throw in their normal dose of riding tips that are applicable to this race and any other race you may enter. These guys know their stuff. If you are looking for a coach to get to that next level, click on their names above and give Chris or Dan a shout.

Thanks for watching. We will be back tomorrow with the Rockburn Cross preview.

2010 Schooley Mill Course (disembowled death spiral not shown)

Mayhew wants you to wash your bike.

Many parts of the country not located in the Pacific Northwest have spent the season racing cyclocross in dry, temperate conditions. Not having to deal with the mud and the grime on a weekly basis can lull you into a state of complacency when it comes to keeping your race bike, or any bike for that matter, clean and well maintained.

A proper bike washing not only makes your bike faster and shinier, it also gives you the opportunity to inspect your frame, fork, drivetrain and brakes. Better to find that hairline crack in your carbon fork while washing it than to find out about it on a highspeed off-camber descent.

Although cleaning your bike is a fairly straightforward affair, there is a process you should follow. Chris Mayhew, associate coach with JBV Coaching and frequent CXHairs contributor, is back to take you through his bike wash routine. The video is about twelve minutes long and that is about how long it should take you to complete a bike cleaning.

Thanks for washing. And for watching.

“If you ain’t first, you’re last!”

-Ricky Bobby

Too often in life we subscribe to Will Ferrel’s lovable character’s motto from the movie Talledega Nights and we focus solely on the “winner” or “champion” and forget about the rest of the competitors. Look at the great Laurent Fignon, who just passed away. He will be remembered more for the one memorable race he lost instead of the many he won. And it’s not just on the professional level. Just last year I came home from a race after turning myself inside and out to come in second place. I get out of my car and my neighbor, who has no idea what a tubular tire is, asked me how the race went. I proudly told him I crossed the finish line a few seconds behind the winner to claim the second spot on the podium and his response was, “Great, first loser”.

If you race cross long enough and move through the various categories you will find yourself at some point in many different positions in the race. One year you might be fighting it out each week for a podium spot and the next just trying not to come in last. I am currently facing the latter. Last year, I was getting front row call-ups, winning holeshots and picking my own lines. Now, I am five rows back and “rubbin’ paint” as we fight to get past the prologue! (my second NASCAR reference. What do you expect from a Mississippi boy?) But as we all know, unless you are lucky enough to be leading a race, it doesn’t really matter where you are because one thing is always certain in cross: there is always someone in front of you to catch and pass. This is where most of us spend 100 percent of our race.

Schempf battling in the sand at Charm City.

The purpose of this article is to look into the minds of a couple of the prominent racers across the Mid Atlantic and get a sense of what they are feeling during the “chase.” Do these guys hurt like we do out there? Do they have negative thoughts and consider packing it in? I think you will enjoy their insights and may even learn something from their experiences.

Wes Schempf, a fellow C3-Athletes Serving Athletes teammate, is considered one of the best in the area. He is a former overall MABRAcross and MAC Elite title winner. Wes has had a few memorable experiences racing against pro mountain biker Jeremiah Bishop. Wes explains what it is like for him to fight it out with the former U.S. Champion in MTB short track and marathon in a cyclocross race.

“As you mentioned, Bishop and I have had some experiences,” Wes told me. He explained that his battles with Jeremiah fall into a routine script. “I know that mental preparation is almost as important as physical preparation,” Schempf said. “For some reason, Bishop has a mental voodoo blocker on me. I just can’t seem to get around the fact that he consistently beats me. This has led to a negative feedback loop where if I know he’s racing then I start to think that I’m racing for second.”

Wes said that this “psychological beating” usually plays out in the race. “I was a little more prepared last season at the Hagerstown weekend races to suffer. My thought was that if I could stay in contact, or a couple bike lengths away, for most of the race that would be great. Unfortunately, his fearlessness gave him an edge on too many of the corners and I couldn’t stay in contact.”

Wes categorizes his thoughts of seeing Bishop take off as “oh boy this is going to hurt more … Yep it really hurts … must stop the hurting.” He adds that other times it is more like “okay, you know it’s gonna hurt … stay with it as long as you can and then a little more.” And once the elastic snaps, Wes says it’s almost a relief. “Generally, the effort to stay with him creates a gap that I can nurse home to the finish.”

Despite, or possibly because of, the psychological beating, sometimes it all goes right. “Winning Reston last year—beating Jeremiah for the first time—was phenomenal,” Wes told me. “At no point in the race was I worried about him and maybe that was the key. I was relieved to see that he wasn’t close and it also helped to know I had a teammate just behind me, too,” he recalled. “That day was when all the stars aligned and it was a perfect day. I was honestly more excited to win a UCI level event and the MAC overall than beating a specific person.”

Adam Driscoll focussed at DCCX 2010

Unlike Schempf, who has been at the top of the Mid-Atlantic pecking order for some time, Adam Driscoll is a racer that quickly went from the “Hunted” to the “Hunter” when he moved from the Killer Bs to the Elite race. The Adventures For The Cure rider, who is a Type 1 diabetic, says one huge difference from the B or 3/4 race to the Elite men is how one mistake can put you in “chase mode” immediately and practically cost you your race.

Adam told me that before a race he is telling himself that he needs to be at the front of the group so when a move is made he is ready to roll with it. “So the start of a race is very important for me as I am new to the elite group and cyclocross,” Adam explained. “When the gun goes off I feel like I don’t actually think again until I am alone and by myself.”

Driscoll said that in a group he is constantly just trying to hold the wheel of the leader and not make a mistake. But once the group begins to separate, “that is when my brain really starts to say you are tired and only go as fast as the guy behind you.” Because of this, Adam believes that that the key moment in the race is usually the third or fourth lap when the attacks really start to unfold. “I need to be ready as it will slow down once the group separates some. At least that’s what I try to tell myself to make it easier!”

Driscoll also said that last year at Tacchino the elastic broke and he found himself off the back of the front group. There was a group of seven and around the fourth lap several attacks kept firing and being the last one in the line seemed to affect him to the point that he could not respond anymore and started to fade. “That is where I play the mind games like can I go faster and catch back on or just go as fast as the guy behind me,” Adam explained. But during Tacchino, Driscoll’s blood sugar dropped below its normal level, which quickly drained his energy.

“After the race I try to think what I did wrong immediately and how I can improve at my next race,” Adam said. “For me to improve I need to be in the race making moves of my own, too. I also need to be well rested, which means less workouts during the week.”

It is clear from these great crossers that we can all take solace knowing that the pain we feel on the weekend when we come out to do battle in the dirt and mud is universal. The same can be said for the doubts and negative thoughts. We might not all get to step up on a podium but just remember, you are always seconds away from someone screaming words of encouragement or a photog snapping a picture of you with a snarl on your face that will be uploaded to the World Wide Web for everyone to see. And if your legs are screaming from lactic acid build-up and your mind is telling you to pull the ripcord, stay focused on the task at hand of chasing that person in front of you and take it all the way to the finish … even if it is for 47th place!

Jay Morali is a masters elite cyclocrosser who races for C3-Athletes serving Athletes.

When it comes to race day gear, Mayhew is a man of excess.

One of the unfortunate rituals many bike racers maintain is the race-morning cycling-gear scavenger hunt. It usually goes something like this, “where did I leave my gloves … why can’t I find my helmet … have you seen my sunglasses?”

Our goal today is to break you of this pre-race stresser. And it turns out that the solution is easy. All it requires is a designated gear bag that contains everything you need to race.

Shoes, helmet, embrocation, skinsuits. It all stays in the bag. Let me repeat that, because it is key. It all stays in the bag.

Wash what you use and then put it back in the bag. It sounds so simple yet I cannot tell you how many times I have arrived at races to find a friend fretting in the parking lot because he forgot some critical piece of gear. 

The one difficult part of the process, other than training yourself to keep everything in the bag,  is figuring out how to initially stock the race-day gear hauler. Instead of just giving you a checklist, we thought it would be a bit more interesting to dump out a well-stocked bag and see the gear laid out.

Here to help us do just that is JBV Coaching Associate Coach and CXHairs contributor, Chris Mayhew. On the road most weekends during ‘cross season, Chris is the perfect person to show you all the right bits to have readily available in your gear bag. 

Thanks for watching.

Frattini and Myerson battle at the front of the 2009 Charm City Cross

Charm City Cross goes off September 18 and 19 for a full weekend of cyclocross goodness. Always a crowd favorite, the addition of a second day of racing gives race organizers C3-Athletes Serving Athletes more latitude to tweak an already amazing course. Run it backwards? Add some new sections? Only the promoters know for sure at this point. Fields are filling up fast and a couple on Saturday have already closed. So if you want to be on the line with 124 of your closest friends, go here now and register.

Last year at CXHairs.com we introduced helmet-cam footage to great success. Now that we have a healthy library of race footage to pull from, we are ready to unveil a new feature on the site. I think you are going to like it. The plan is to release a new video roughly a week before a selected race. The new video will include the helmet-cam footage with the addition of full race commentary. A rotating cast of cyclocross insiders will walk you through the ins and outs of the course as the video rolls.

Where is the best line? How should you set up for a barrier? This is the type of inside information we hope to provide with these videos.

So let’s get started. Charm City Cross is the traditional season opener for many in the Mid-Atlantic. Especially for those that travel North to the race. The event makes up the second and third round of the MAC series and is the dress rehearsal for the MABRAcross series that starts the next weekend with the Ed Sander Memorial Cyclocross race. Your commentators for this race are Chris Mayhew, associate coach with JBV Coaching, and Dan Tille, head coach at Fulcrum Coaching.

Thanks for watching. And as always, your feedback is important. Drop us a line at CXHairs@gmail.com or on Twitter or Facebook.

Jeremy Powers Demonstrates the Dismount at the JBV & Fulcrum Clinic

Last Friday afternoon a group of Mid-Atlantic CX diehards welcomed Cannondale-Cyclcrossworld.com rider Jeremy Powers to the DC-region by hitting the single-track trails at Maryland’s Rosaryville State Park. Normally a favorite destination for the area’s MTB crowd, Rosaryville’s smooth and fast trails turn out to be ideal on the ‘cross bike. 

Powers, in town for the JBV Coaching & Fulcrum Coaching Cyclocross Clinic that went down August 28, was coming off a 30 hour training week and a couple hours of sitting on a plane. Needing a little extra time to get his legs going meant that I was just about able to hang on his wheel for the easy first lap and get a little helmet-cam footage. The other folks in the group were Steve Fife (Bike Doctor), Rusty Williford (Fulcrum Coaching), Bruce Buckley (The Bike Lane), Dan Tille (Fulcrum Coaching) and Kate Graham (BioWheels). 

A couple caveats before we get to the video. First, what you see is more or less a warm-up lap. Sure, seeing JPow ripping through these trails would be sick footage, but by the time he was doing that, I was hanging off the back and running into trees. Next time, I’m giving the camera to Rusty. Second, my filming skills are still in pre-season form and the camera angle is not ideal. Too many treetops and not enough action in the center of the frame. Finally, stick around for the end of the clip to see a little bonus coverage of JPow taking some time out of the ride for a session on one of Rosaryville’s skinny sections. 

Soundtrack by The Hood Internet. 

Thanks for watching.