In The Crosshairs

Steevo clearing the Charm City natural barrier.

The seventh running of the Charm City Cross happens this weekend in Baltimore’s Druid Hill Park. What started as a one day event with around 300 total riders has quickly grown into one of the premier East Coast events with two days of UCI and non-UCI racing and over 1000 cyclocrossers pinning on numbers. We stopped by race sponsor, Twenty20 Cycling Co., last night to record a course preview with Twenty20 co-owner and C3 bossman, Kris Auer, and C3 stalwart Bad Andy Wulfkuhle.

The preview covers the Saturday race, which according to Bad Andy, will be set up “as close to last year as we can manage, in the dark, at 4 a.m. on race day.” Sunday’s race will be the traditional Charm City course in reverse. Crazy! I know. Keep in mind it is not 100 percent backwards. You will not climb down the steps and the finishing straight will remain the same as last year, absent the asphalt climb.

So you can follow along while watching, here is a rough map of Saturday’s course (click on map for large view).

Saturday's Charm City Course

And here is the video commentary with Kris and Bad Andy.

 

This is what you are looking at for Sunday’s race (click on map for large view).

Sunday's Charm City Course

To get an idea of the set up for Sunday, here is last year’s course commentary with Fulcrum Coaching‘s Dan Tille and JBV Coaching‘s Chris Mayhew. Keep in mind THE COURSE WILL BE REVERSED.

 

Thanks for watching and we will see you at the races.

P.S.-if you see me this weekend and want the super sweet In The Crosshairs SwiftWick socks, recently donned by Jeremy Powers, don’t be shy. Ask. I have PLENTY. They will also be available at the Team Money ‘n’ Stuff tent.

In what has become a can’t miss annual event, U.S. pro cyclocrosser Jeremy Powers (Rapha/Focus) will once again join forces with JBV Coaching and Fulcrum Coaching in a full day cyclocross boot camp. Building on the overwhelming success of the last two years, this one-day cyclocross indoctrination—sponsored by the Bike Doctor of Waldorf—is the perfect way to kick off a successful 2011 ‘cross campaign. Ideal for new and experienced cyclocross racers, Jeremy and a staff of four top-notch instructors will give you the inside scoop on everything you need to know to step up your game.

Fulcrum Coaching's Rusty Williford gives one-on-one instruction.

The 2011 event kicks off September 3 at 7 p.m. with a free Jeremy Powers Meet & Greet and Q&A at the Bike Doctor of Waldorf. The clinic takes place the next day, September 4th, at Rosaryville State Park in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. A short drive from Washington, D.C., and the site of MABRAcross’ Tacchino Ciclocross, Rosaryville’s varied terrain gives clinic participants the opportunity to learn and hone their skills on most surfaces found in East Coast cyclocross racing.

Attendees can look forward to a jam-packed day of technique, tactics and skills, as well as one-on-one instruction from JPow and professional coaches. “Everyone learns something which is my number one goal with this camp,” Powers said after last year’s clinic. “The coaches make our best effort to get everyone nailing the techniques the correct way,” he added. “We hit on the fundamentals of cyclocross so all participants have the tools to get a result in their upcoming races.”

This clinic is designed to help the beginner and accomplished cyclocross racer. With four coaches in addition to Jeremy, every attendee will receive individual instruction tailored to improve their technique, tactics and training. Participants will be divided into groups by experience so beginners are not left behind and experienced racers are constantly challenged to improve their skill set. All coaches, including Jeremy, will work with each group several times as the day progresses.

Jeremy Powers (Rapha/Focus) Addresses 2010 Clinic Attendees

Where most clinics give you a couple hours or a half-day of instruction, the Fulcrum Coaching and JBV Coaching clinic goes all out. Not only do you receive a full day of instruction on all facets of ‘cross racing, a Chipotle lunch, and an end-of-the-day mock race to put all your new skills into practice, but you also get the opportunity to pick Jeremy’s brain at the Friday night ‘cross talk session at The Bike Doctor in Waldorf, Maryland.

Friday night’s cross talk event at The Bike Doctor of Waldorf is 7 to 9:30 p.m. Although the cross talk event is free, you still need to register to attend. Saturday’s clinic at Rosaryville State Park will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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

Check out photos from last year’s clinic here

If you have any questions about the clinic contact Chris Mayhew at chris@jbvcoaching.com or 724.413.7441.

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.

The Cincinnati UCI3 International Cyclocross Festival kicks off this weekend with three days of top notch racing. The capper on the weekend is the UCI1 race at Harbin Park presented by Biowheels and United Dairy Farmers. If you ask seasoned racers that have competed across the country to list their favorite races, Harbin Park is without exception at the top of the list.

To give you a look of what to expect and how to approach the Harbin Park course, we asked JBV Coaching associate coach Chris Mayhew and Dan Tille from Fulcrum Coaching to walk us through all the twists and turns. A big thank you to Mitch Graham of Biowheels and Masher’s Media for providing the helmet-cam footage shot by elite racer Phil Noble.

Thanks for watching.

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.

Coach Mayhew rails the off-cambers at the clinic despite the bad wing.

JBV Coaching and Fulcrum Coaching hosted their second annual cyclocross clinic with Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com rider Jeremy Powers at Rosaryville State Park in Maryland, August 28th.

Over fifty participants joined JBV Coaching associate coach Chris Mayhew and Fulcrum Coaching president Dan Tille for a day of drills, instruction, entertaining commentary and friendly competition. Tille, Mayhew and Powers were joined by Fulcrum Coaching’s Rusty Williford and C3-Athlete Serving Athlete’s Marc Vettori.

In the coming days we will have some great posts to share with you from this clinic. Until then, here are some photos to give you an idea of how the day went. Check back every couple days as the set is sure to grow.

The full set of photos will eventually be available here. Below is the appetizer. Thanks for viewing.

Update: My gallery app that should be below doesn’t seem to be working great. You can click here and check out many more shots from the day.

Killer Bs hit the course.

We are wrapping up coverage of the 2009 Charm City Cyclocross with the traditional ‘In The Crosshairs’ podium finisher interviews. You’ve heard what the pros had to say, now let’s hear how your fellow competitors saw the day. Thanks for reading.

What was your favorite part of the course?

Michael Yozell (VisitPA.com, First place, Men Masters Elite):C3 built a great course. I’d have to say there isn’t one particular section that was a favorite but I did think the stairs in the outer field was a nice touch, very creative and much better than the old barrier placement. The course had good flow throughout.

Adam Driscoll (Adventures For the Cure, First place, Men’s 2/3/4): My favorite part of the course was definitely the natural barrier where you have to do a 180 turn around a big tree. This was a great place where we had lots of spectators.

Robert Sheffield (Squadra Coppi/IM SAAB, First place Men’s 4): The two sets of single track around the trees on the far side of the course separated by the stairs. It was fast and really smooth.

Jonathan Seibold (Family Bike Shop/DCMTB, Second Place Masters Men 3/4): The stairs and the new swoopy section right after them. I also like the planter box around the tree. 

Chris Mayhew (JBV Coaching, Third place, Men’s 2/3/4): The planter box. I’m a big fan of natural obstacles. It feels a bit old school since they’re really high. And it’s such a natural focus point of the course with the pit and BBQ right there. It’s always the loudest part of the course. 

Lindsey Hillesheim (Squadra Coppi, Third place Women’s 3/4): All of it. Charm City has great flow with turns that are wide enough that you don’t to brake much and enough obstacles to keep it interesting and technical.   

Jay Morali (C3, Third Place Masters Men 3/4): I really liked the stairs on the back side. A nice addition to the course this year.

Jesse Leifert (Route 1 Velo/Arrow Bicycle, Third Place Men’s 4): I actually really enjoyed the whole first lap. Having never done a cross race before, the experience of riding on wet grass and dirt around trees with 125 of my fellow cyclists was a pretty cool experience. Also, having staged towards the latter third of the pack you could really see everyone getting freaked out by the proximity of everyone. I ended up following Tim Brown from Bike Rack and we passed a bunch of people for the first two laps as we tried to make our way back to the front. It was a blast.  Continue reading »

Before we get knee deep into the season, let’s take a look back at the August 21 cyclocross clinic with Jeremy Powers hosted by JBV Coaching and Fulcrum Coaching.

Chris Mayhew Addressing The 'Campers'

I had the opportunity to track down the coaches and a handful of the attendees from the clinic to get their thoughts on what they expected to get from the day and how it panned out. If you are new to cyclocross or even if you have been racing for a year or two, take a look at the responses and consider making a clinic part of your preseason routine. Here’s what the ‘campers’ had to say about their day:  Continue reading »