Oh man, less than 3 weeks until the xXx Relay Race… less than 6 weeks until the official start of the CCC at Jackson Park. There’s lots going on all over the place and this update is a big one… fasten your seat belts and please read all the way to the bottom.

– The CCC is still accepting 2011 series sponsors. If you’d like to be involved please email us at [email protected].
 – EJ’s Place in Skokie returns to sponsor the CCC for what seems like the 82nd time. EJ’s will be sponsoring the overall series prizes for the Juniors (10-14 and 15-18, Boys and Girls). All juniors still race free (no entry fees) thanks to our generous promoters.

 
– Spidermonkey Cycling. New to (officially) sponsoring the CCC is Spidermonkey Cycling who will be supplying the Juniors prizes every week (10-14 and 15-18, Boys and Girls). Make sure to swing by the big yellow and orange 312 tent and say Ka-Kaw!

 
– Pactimo. New this year the CCC will award Pactimo Leaders Jerseys to the Cat 4A, Cat 4 Women, and both Juniors categories. The overall leader in each of those 4 categories will receive a Pactimo Leaders Jersey after each race that they will be required to wear at the next CCC race (in that category… so if you’re a woman or junior racing in another category you do NOT wear your Pactimo Leaders Jersey from the Women 4 or Junior races). We’re starting out with just the Cat 4’s and Juniors since we realize the masters and higher categories like their team skinsuits. But if things go well this year we’ll expand the Pactimo Leaders Jerseys to other categories in 2012.

– The New Year’s Resolution race sponsorship proposal is now available here. If you’d like to have your name in bright lights at a UCI race the week before CX Nationals email us at [email protected].

– Apparently you all really do want to race CX. Online pre-reg for xXx Racing’s Relay Race is already starting to fill up.

– CCC series races that are already permitted have online pre-reg opening now. We match rider information to your USAC license number so please make sure to update your BikeReg.com rider profiles as needed. Online pre-reg for all other CCC races will be available as those races are permitted by each individual promoter (likely very soon).

– Online pre-reg for Patriot CX is also open. Jason Rassi will allegedly be in attendance.

– If you’re new to CX remember you can race at your USAC (or NORBA mountain bike equivalent) category or one category below. For example, if you are a Cat 3 on the road you can race as a CX Cat 3 or CX Cat 4. There are no Cat 5’s in CX. All upgrades must be submitted to the USAC upgrade coordinator via your MyUSACycling account. See USAC’s page on the subject here. The CCC is not in the business of forcing riders to upgrade… but any egregious sandbagging will be dealt with accordingly.

– Got kids? Two entrepreneurial young ladies whose parents race CX have started Cyclo-Cross Sitters to watch your infant to teenage children at races (so there is no excuse NOT to race). Contact the Cyclo-Cross Sitters here.

– The great thing about CX is that every year each course changes from the year before, making it Feel Like the First Time. Sometimes just a little bit, other times quite a lot. But the same general terrain at each venue does stay the same from year to year. Since so many new people try CX each year we thought it would be a great idea to consolidate in one place all the helmet/handlebar camera videos from over the years to get a general idea of what each venue “feels” like. It turns out there are a ton of videos out there… but thankfully local Cat 4 lady racer and professional Andy Schleck TDF heckler Vanessa Buccella (Spidermonkeys) has a PhD in YouTube searching techniques and helped us scour the Interwebs for the best videos. Check them out here. Also as we mentioned, courses change every year, so please do NOT try to pre-ride courses now… they won’t be the same anyway, you’ll have plenty of time to pre-ride on race day, and most importantly some park groundskeepers are very sensitive about their grass.

– Half Acre Cycling hosts their Ladies Cross Skills Clinic on Saturday 9/10/11 in Humboldt Park. In addition to Cannondale p/b CyclocrossWorld.com’s Kaitie Antonneau, French CX National Champ Caroline Mani will help lead the clinic. Please RSVP on FB here.

– We’re still looking for entries for the 2011 CCC series T-Shirt & Sock design competition.  Entries are due by midnight on Sunday August 14th (less than 1 week from now!). Otherwise we’ll need to design these things ourselves… and no one likes stick figures.

– The CCC tries to be as green as possible and one sore spot we’ve recognized over the years has been the large number of Tyvek bib numbers that end up in landfills because of our weekly bike parties. This year the CCC will do its best to recycle old bib #’s using these Tyvek recycling kits from Waste Management. If you’d like to help us out by either purchasing kits or helping to gather old bib #’s at each race please let us know.

– And finally… Last year more and more promoters starting having food vendors at their races to literally feed the hungry masses. A few trips to a city taco stand that serves killer margaritas got us to thinking maybe we could have even more options at races this year. Food trucks are all the rage these days and the CCC (through some friends who know a guy who knows a guy) have an inside line on getting this truck and this truck (designer cupcake handups?) to some of the city races. But if you have a favorite food truck or trucks you’d like to see at the races, the next time you’re chowing down on a taco, burger, cupcake, fro-yo, hot dog, etc… print out a few of these schedules and invite the driver to stop by. Tell him/her over 500 ravenous skinny people on bikes will buy them out of whatever they’re serving!

– And finally… FINALLY… the CCC and long time friends at Mad Alchemy Embrocation have been thinking for a while the CCC is ready for its own embro blend and this year our collaboration finally came to fruition. We asked around to see what scent you all preferred to slather on your legs and responses varied from fresh cut grass to pumpkin spice to bacon to Jack Daniels to Twinkies. Fortunately for your significant others and co-workers Pete at Mad Alchemy told us he will only work with the highest quality, all natural, essential oils (we thought bacon WAS an essential oil). But in the end MsChiCrossCup had a spark of genius that led to the final blend we’re calling the Chicago Cyclocross Cup Pome d’Embre Embrocation blend. We think you’ll all really enjoy the scent of the blend that is evocative of Autumn and the holiday season and can’t wait to get the stuff on your legs. Mad Alchemy’s brew monster is working overtime getting ready for CX season but the CCC custom blend should be available soon over on the store page. We’ll let you know as soon as it is!

– xXx Racing kicks off the Chicagoland CX season with their Jackson Park Relay race. Reg opens on BikeReg.com tomorrow! Make sure to read the rules on how to register and how the high fives work. We look forward to seeing everyone there!

– Online reg for Patriot Cross is already open on BikeReg. This will be a great race just outside of Chicagoland to sharpen your knobbies ahead of the full CCC series. On top of the cash payouts promoter Wildcard Racing has secured over $2,000 of  extra prizes and tells us call-ups will be based on reg order. Special call ups for anyone in “patriotic dress”. We’re not sure if something like this or this would count, but we’re guessing it wouldn’t hurt.

– Speaking of online pre-reg, we’re sure you all are chopping at the bit to reg for the series. Online reg for all CCC races will once again be on BikeReg.com (same it with us… Reg… like REGistration) and will be open in the next few weeks for most races. While we would love to offer a season pass for all races, please remember each race is hosted by a different promoter and we’ve got too much going on to keep track of transferring money all over the place… so you’ll still need to reg for each race separately. Thank you for understanding.

– Half Acre Cycling hosts their Ladies Cross Skills Clinic on Saturday 9/10/11 in Humboldt Park. In addition to semi-local superstar Kaitie Antonneau, French CX National Champ Caroline Mani will help lead the clinic. Please RSVP on FB here.

– The CCC is still accepting 2011 series sponsors. If you’d like to be involved please drop us a message at [email protected].

– We know it might seem like there hasn’t been much activity here at the CCC, but we have at least a half dozen projects we’re working on for the upcoming season. We’re finalizing details this week on many of them, so check back next Tuesday for updates on things like… something new for overall series leaders, course previews, incentives for juniors, bib #’s, smelly smellies, food trucks, and more!

– 2011 CCC series T-Shirt & Sock design competition entries are due by midnight on Sunday August 14th (2 weeks from now). Anyone can submit designs and anyone can win.

– Apparently in France they have ‘cross races on the sides of mountains!

– And finally… we always like to think of the CCC as one big, crazy family… so we’d like to officially welcome the newest member of the PonyShop CX Team U1 Age group, Maxwell Klug, into the (CX) world. Mom Holly is doing great and Dad Kevin has already been back out doing interval workouts. Congrats to you all!

– Just a few quick updates this week.

– Half Acre Cycling continues to support ladies cyclocross with their Women’s skills clinic on September 10th 2011 in Humboldt Park. Just announced last week current women’s U23 CX champ Kaitlin Antonneau (Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld) will help lead the clinic.

– The xXx Racing Relay race will be on Saturday Sunday August 28th. Check out the race’s FB page for updates.

– The 2011 CCC series T-Shirt & Sock design competition entries are due by midnight on Sunday August 14th (3 weeks from now). Anyone can submit designs (shirts and socks can and probably should be different) and anyone can win.

– CCC series sponsor Mad Alchemy will have a new CX Vegas flavor available September 1. The new scent sounds delightful and we wonder what other new blends MAE might have up their sleeves… or rather leg warmers.

– And finally… while this may not be CX we think everyone can appreciate the enthusiasm and creativity that goes into such an event… and we’re guessing all of these guys would easily fit into a CCC heckle crowd just fine. Congrats to Chicago native Nordic Thunder on his championship.

We at the CCC are elated to announce Iron Cycles has signed on again to be the CCC’s 2011 series Title Sponsor. Brandon and the guys over at Iron Cycles stepped up in a major way last year to sponsor the entire series and had so much fun they decided to do it again in 2011. Follow Iron Cycles on Facebook, Twitter, stop by their tent at any CCC race, or swing by the shop at 3134-3136 W. Montrose Ave Chicago, IL 60618 and let them know how much you appreciate their support for the CCC.

The CCC feels very fortunate to have Iron Cycles and all of our sponsors (past, present, and future) who allow us to avoid that awkward debt ceiling discussion and to do fun “extras” for our riders throughout the season. Look for more announcements over the coming weeks about our other 2011 series sponsors. And if you’d like to become a series sponsor yourself take a look at our 2011 proposal and drop us a line at [email protected].

– The xXx Racing Relay race is in its final stages of planning. If you’re looking for a teammate post in the comments below or head over to the race’s FB page.

– We still have NOT received any entries for the 2011 series T-Shirt & Sock design competition. Entries are due by midnight on Sunday August 14th (4 weeks from now). Voting will commence the next morning and close the following weekend (so we can have the socks by Jackson Park). Send in a design and you might just win! Shirts and socks (as well as another item we have a feeling you’ll enjoy) will be sold on the CCC store page.

– We’ve heard about a few CX practice groups starting up already (really? its 999,426 degrees out there). Just a reminder to please respect your local parks and the other people recreating within them. It only takes one angry non-cyclist to throw a stink and get an actual CCC race cancelled because a CX practice got in their way. Stay friendly, wave hello and who knows… you might just convince someone to race CX too!

– Around this time of year as we’re getting geared up for the impending season we always start asking ourselves all kinds of questions. Things like…

• Will anyone show up again this year? Seriously, do you people still like to do this crazy stuff?
• What’s the craziest hand-up we’ll see this year?
• Who will have the most blinged out bike?
• How many thousands of photos will be taken?
• Will Flannel Mike wear spandex shorts AND a bicycle jersey?
• How many new CX specific teams will pop up this year? Will Piz-met add yet another team to their stable?
• Will anyone besides John “Metal Legs” Gatto challenge the Sheriff in the 30+ category?
• Who will perform the most spectacular sand pit endo and what will the score be? We’re not sayin’… we’re just sayin’.
• How many CCC’ers will kick butt at Nationals in Madison? CX Masters Worlds in Louisville?
• Who in their right mind will step up and challenge Psimet as the most prolific heckler?
• Why in the world do we keep doing this to ourselves?
• What can we do to make the series bigger (really, can we even do that?), better, more sensational, more over the top, and even more fun than last year?

The last one in particular we contemplate for quite a long while… sometimes days at a time living off nothing by CarboRocket and bacon wrapped, Twizzler stuffed Twinkies. Its the thing that keeps us up at night and gets us up in the morning (okay, maybe its really all of the bacon). In the end we always come to terms with the fact that while yes, we’ve finally figured out how to decently run a race… its you the CCC racers that really make it all happen and have all the truly creative and forward looking ideas. So if you have an idea or three (big or small) let us know. We’re not saying we can always make them happen (especially in the short term), but we will definitely listen to your ideas as long as you continue to come out and race, heckle, cheer, and keep the party going.

– Speaking of keeping the party going… check in tomorrow at 10am for an exciting announcement about the upcoming season!

– And finally… Just as we’re getting ready to start a new season, sadly we have to say goodbye to two CCC mainstays from over the years, technical photo–phenom Chip Williams and 2009 Masters 30+ IL State CX champ and CX glamour shot model Eric Sondag. Chip is heading to NC to teach photography and Eric to NYC to conquer the world. We wish them both the best of luck in all their new adventures, on the bike or not.

– The heat has finally arrived in Chicago and the summer criterium racing season is in full swing, so we’ve decided to retreat a bit further into the CCC evile layer so as not to melt… and to work on a few special projects. While we’re busy just a few reminders this week:

– xXx Racing is again hosting its Relay CX race on August 28th. Find your buddy now and practice your high-fives.

– The 2011 CCC Series Sponsorship Proposal is now available here.

– You can book your room at the Hilton Indian Lakes Resort (ILR) for the New Year’s Resolution race. Remember to use the group code “CYC” when you call or click for the discounted rate.

– Entries are due by the middle of August for the CCC 2011 T-shirt AND sock design contest.

– And finally, with all the crashes occurring in the first week of that little bike over in France we can’t help thinking how good we have it with just a few dirt and grass stains on a our skinsuits every now and again. We wish all the injured a speedy recovery. Also, did you hear Jens Voigt finally joined Twitter? We can only imagine what would happen if Jens decided to race CX. What would those Jens Voigt facts look like?

– We hope everyone had a safe, fun, and happy Fourth of July. Now that the temps are finally warmed up, and the days are already getting shorter (wait, what?) its probably time to start thinking CX.

– Hey ladies… want to meet other female riders and racers in a friendly, low-key environment? CCC superstar and Miss October 2010 pin-up model Becky Welbes is hosting an event this Friday that’s great for seasoned cyclists as well as newbies—come with questions or just come ready to meet new friends, say hi to old ones and be a part of Chicago’s growing female cycling community. Already racing? Well just come and hang out, catch up with some friends off the bike, and maybe help out some newbies! All are welcome. There will be a raffle for a pair of Sidi Dominators, Chrome Bags, tune up packages, and a bunch of other cool stuff. See the Facebook invite here.

– Our friends to the north race CX too. Its been out for a while, but see the Wisconsin CX schedule.

– Are you old? Do you still like to race CX? Want to test your mettle against the best old guys in the world? Well then you better check the Eligibility Guidelines for 2012 Masters Cyclocross World Championships. Most importantly, note you’ll need a UCI international license.

– Speaking of eligibility… we’ll mentioned it several more times before the season is almost done, but if you want to race New Year’s Day at our New Year’s Resolution race, you’ll need to renew your USAC license for 2012. Yes, we know its only one day past 12/31/2011… but rules are rules and unfortunately we don’t make them, but we do have to enforce them. Luckily, you can painlessly renew your USAC license online for 2012 starting 12/1/2011 and the license will be good until 12/31/2012… so don’t get caught out.

– Speaking of rules… the UCI has made a few modifications to the CX rulebook for the 2011/2012 season. Most if not all of these changes do NOT affect us here in the CCC, but take a look and see all the red tape (not course tape) the pros have to deal with.

– Speaking of non-rules… we’ve updated our FAQ after recently answering a bunch of rider questions. Check it out first and see if you have any additional questions. CX Magazine also put together “Eight Tips for Starting Cyclocross“.

– And finally… on 6/30/11 USA Cycling announced a revamped system for call-ups at CX Nationals. We were told about USAC’s new proposed national ranking system when we attended the CX summit in late April, but at that time details were still being finalized. What we do know is that the new system depends on timely and accurate results, so the CCC will (of course) continue to submit results for all of our races to USAC immediately after each race so our riders will be ranked correctly. We will update everyone as USAC releases more details.

– The 2011 CCC Series Sponsorship Proposal is now available here. Since many of our sponsors went above and beyond last year we are now offering a new “Cowbell” category for those individuals/companies that want to be involved a bit more, but don’t want to stretch all the way to title sponsorship. Take a look and let us know if you’d like to be involved by emailing us at [email protected]. The New Year’s Resolution race will have its own set of sponsors which will be separate (but hopefully many of the same) from the CCC series. Look for that proposal in a few weeks.

– We’ve heard a few of you have already booked your rooms at the Hilton Indian Lakes Resort (ILR) for the New Year’s Resolution race. The more of you that book now, the more rooms ILR will open up at the discounted rate. Remember to use the group code “CYC” when you call or click for the discounted rate.

– Remember this guy? The CCC is again holding a t-shirt design contest for 2011… and this year we’re adding socks by SockGuy! Start working on your t-shirt and/or sock designs now… we want to start early this year so we can have all the clothing ready by September. You can submit as many entries as you want, but we’d prefer quality over quantity. Entries are due by the middle of August (specific date forthcoming) and the CCC populous will again vote on the winner(s). See full previous rules (which we’ll more than likely just copy & paste and change the dates) here.

– The CCC promoter’s got together last week for our annual 4 day summit in luxurious Caicos and Turks (okay, actually we just had a conference call with okay quality one night) and everyone is pumped and getting ready for the 2011 season. We discussed many topics and all agreed on the following:

1. We will again use the same category schedule throughout the day as last year, with the addition of the 60+ starting with the 50+.
2. All 12 races will again count towards the overall scoring. We realize some other series drop a race or your worst placing, but the CCC feels our series is a cohesive whole and the best performing and attending riders should win the series. Note that in 2010 only three categories were decided before the last race (Montrose) and the overall was decided on the last day for all other categories.
3. Payouts (as well as entry fees) will remain the same as last year (with the addition of a separate 60+ payout). See the revised schedule here. We’d love to increase payouts across the board, but considering our (still) weak economy and the drop in participant numbers at road races this summer (sorry, sometimes we ride on skinny tires too) we prefer to play it conservative and not dig our promoters our ourselves into a financial hole.
4. Juniors will again race for free throughout the entire series.
5. All field sizes (# of racers on course at the same time) will be increased to 100 this year. We tried this out at the last 3 races of 2010 and things went fine. This should really only affect the Cat 4’s as we would be amazed to see a 100 person Men or Women Cat 1/2/3 field.
6. There will be NO Category 4B overall winner awarded this year. Since the 4Bs are truly a beginner/fun/get-your-feet-wet category and we’d like to discourage sandbagging as much as possible we have decided to discontinue the overall series winner in that category. We will still score all 4B racers at each event (the 4B’s still count for upgrade starts/points), we will still have overall standings for call ups at each event, and you certainly are still welcome (and encouraged) to do all the crazy and fun stuff you do at each race… but there will be no cowbell at the end of the year in the 4B’s. If you have the most number of points at the end of the series you may proclaim yourself as the best of the worst for bragging rights, but if you want the swag you’ll have to race Cat 4A.
7. Several other surprises are in the works outside of what we mentioned above, but you’ll have to wait at least until next week to hear about them.
8. The CCC wants your feedback. What’s on your mind? What would you like to see different, the same, better, filled with more Twinkies? Post your comment(s) below or shoot us an email at [email protected].

– And finally… at least one new “team” is getting ready for the 2011 CX season with new kits. We’d tell you to look out for them, but we’re not sure how you’d ever miss them.

Did you miss us? Its been a while since our last post (137 days to be exact) but the Chicago Cyclocross Cup is officially back and getting ready for the 2011 season. We’ve got a few ideas to improve the series again this year, but as in years past we can only put up the canvas… we rely on you the racers, spectators, hecklers, and supporters to paint the picture and make the CCC truly great. Look for more detailed updates over the next few weeks as we approach September. But in the meantime below are just a few reminders:

1. Schedule – The tentative schedule is up on the schedule page. Remember these dates and locations may change. Official race announcements and flyers are forthcoming. Online registration through BikeReg should be available (at least for a few races) sometime in early August.
2. NYR – The CCC is hosting the UCI New Years Resolution (NYR) race on New Years Eve AND New Years Day this season at the Hilton Indian Lakes Resort (ILR) as a lead in to CX Nationals in Madison, WI (the following week). See our post below or visit the new NYR page of the site here. Discounted rooms at ILR are available to be booked now (call or click) using the group code CYC.
3. Updates – The CCC does NOT send out an email newsletter. The best way to stay up-to-date with all things CCC is to add our site to your favorite RSS reader. You can see our Twitter feed over there on the right (–>) but if you’re going mobile, download the free Twitter app. Sorry, no Facebook.
4. Involvement – Do you want to do more than just race and/or heckle in the CCC? We’re always looking for volunteers throughout the season to help with all kinds of projects and little odds and ends. Everything from helping set up at each race to designing logos to baking cupcakes and churros to making coffee and donut runs. Drop us a line at [email protected] if you’d like to be involved during the 2011 season.
5. Sponsorship – The CCC doesn’t run on Twinkies and bacon alone. Series and NYR sponsorship information will be available next week. We’re already had several 2010 sponsors sign on again for 2011 but would love to make additions to the CCC family.

We here at the CCC are really excited to host another great season of CX and can’t wait to see you all out there playing in the dirt and grass, having a great time, and doing the amazing, crazy, nutty stuff you do. As always, if you have any questions, comments, concerns, gripes, praise, embro flavor ideas, etc… send them our way at [email protected].

It’s official… while watching the Elite Men’s CX World Championship this morning the CCC official found out it will be hosting a 2 day UCI C2 race on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day (12/31/2011-1/1/2012) at the Hilton Indian Lakes Resort. We’ve been working on this event for a while (okay, only since October/November) but we’ve been thinking about doing it for a long, long time. The CCC New Year’s Resolution will be organized by the CCC but hosted with the help of several clubs, teams, and local businesses. The race will be a perfect warm up for locals (and out of towners and pros) looking to perform well at CX Nationals the following week just up the road in Madison, WI and CX Master’s World Championships the week after that in Louisville, KY.

More to come as we receive details from the UCI and USAC, but suffice it to say we’ll need some help hosting this event. If you’ve like to be involved please email us at [email protected].