– You high fived and raced at the CX Relay (also hosted by xXx Racing)… you road tripped and raced at Patriot CX… now its time for the big leagues. This Sunday starts off the 8th season of the Chicago Cyclocross Cup, once again in Jackson Park and hosted by xXx Racing.

– Remember the parking lot at Jackson Park is metered, but only costs about $9-10 for all day. We don’t want anyone getting a ticket, so you’ve been warned. If the lot right next to the course fills up, there is parking to the west of the course on Hayes Drive.  However, the lot south of Hayes Drive south of the main parking lot is off limits.

– Please note that the CARA 20-mile run will again be taking place along the Lakefront Path on Sunday morning. xXx and the CCC urge all CX’ers riding down to Jackson Park for the race to exercise due caution and courtesy when traveling along that route.

– The CCC is trying to be green… take a look under the floor mats of your car, dig into to seat cushins and bring your own safety pins to properly attach your bib number. But how will you remember to bring pins each week? We suggest visiting one of your favorite local bike shops and purchasing a patch kit… we like the Genuine Innovations large patch kit in the green plastic boxes. Whether you use the patches is up to you, but we like to put a handful of safety pins in the plastic container and always keep it in our race bag. Mother earth thanks you!

– Online pre-registration on BikeReg.com (say it with us… Bik Rej… like REGistration) closes tonight at midnight. Entry fees increase $5 on race day. Huge thanks to the 567 of you (most # of CCC pre-reg’s ever) that have already pre-reg’d. If you show up early in the morning, please let the 40+ racers pick up their bib numbers first since they start promptly at 8:45am. Also thanks to the 14 of your that donated to WBR when registering. If you’d like to donate your race winnings to our WBR drive, please see us after your race.

– Series sponsor CarboRocket will be out on Sunday with big coolers of CarboRocket mix and coffee (in the morning). Swing by and fill up your bottle, mug, or canteen. Temps are forecast to be in the upper 60’s with an 70% chance of awesome, but we all need to stay hydrated.

– This year we are running 100 rider field limits in all categories. In combined fields (Women 1/2/3 & Masters 50+/60+ and Women 4 & Juniors) that means only 100 riders are allowed on course at one time. We don’t anticipate hitting 100 riders in these fields, but if we do please understand there are USAC rules we must follow. Both Cat 4 fields are filled and the Cat 3’s and 30+ are in the 80’s. So if you want a spot in a non Cat 4 field please pre-reg now!

– Concerning waitlists… we’ll start waitlists for each filled category (Cat 4A & Cat 4B) when registration opens at 7:45am. First come first served. 20 minutes before each race is scheduled to start (yes, even if we’re running a little behind we will still close reg at the scheduled time)(we will be running on time though) we’ll close out the race and reassign bib numbers to those on the waiting list. If you are pre-reg’d and show up after this time your bib will already have been reassigned and you will NOT be allowed to race. Period. If you are racing more than once and would like to give your number up to someone else so they have a chance to enjoy the thrill of heckles and whatever else goes on, thank you, and we certainly can accommodate that. Just make your way to registration as soon as possible and the reg staff will switch you in start list (just don’t give your number to the other guy/gal).

– Please remember to register for the correct category/age group. We cannot allow you to race outside your cat/age group and the reg staff will be checking licenses thoroughly all day long. If you have a question, please ask us or a USAC official.

– Concerning call-ups… we will again randomly pull numbers out of a hat for the first 10 call ups and then after that you will be lined up like any other CCC race, 10 wide in the starting grid. We’ll have a nicely painted starting grid for you and both we and the officials will be making sure all fields are only 10 wide… so please do the right thing. However, if you want to be on the 2nd row, you’ll have to get there yourself. Last year’s placings have nothing to do with it. That being said, please do not fight over starting positions… after all this is just bike racing, its a long season, and karma can be a b!@tch.

– Concerning the 80% rule… we ask the USAC officials to leave as many riders in the race for as long as possible. However, pulling riders is still at their discretion in line with USAC rules. If you are told you are being pulled (always near the start/finish)… please exit the course immediately. You will still be scored and given a laps down designation.

If you decided not to finish the race on your own volition, please let a USAC official know so you can be marked as DNF. This makes scoring the entire race a lot easier.

Full results will be posted on the CCC Results Board at the race (somewhere near registration) and online at usacycling.org/results later Sunday evening. Series standings will be posted here (please bookmark it) following each race. Remember we’re presenting podiums to the top 3 in each race immediately before the next race. So if you’re in the top 3, head to the podiums right after you’re done ripping legs off. The Spidermonkeys will be presenting awards to both Juniors categories.

– We are also awarding Series Leader Jerseys by Pactimo to the Women 4’s, 15-18 and 10-14 Juniors, as well as the Cat 4A’s. Determining the series leader after the first race is easy and we’ll present the jersey on the podium. So if you won, please be present.

– The CCC will of course be on Twitter all day… so feel free to follow us for up-to-the-minute updates. We may even have a LIVE surprise.

– The CCC is supported by many, many, many generous series sponsors (29 in all so far!), many of whom will personally be attending and racing at Jackson Park. If you see one, please make sure to stop and say thank you for their continued support. Our little series would NOT be possible without them.

– The Mad Alchemy Pome d’Embre CCC custom embro is here and we’ll have all pre-orders available for pick up on Sunday. T-shirts and Socks will be available soon but you can pre-order both on the store page.

– Below is the tentative 2011 Jackson Park course brought to you by the twisted minds of xXx Racing and the Bonebell.com. Please remember the map below is only an approximation as we may need to make adjustments on race day. The course runs clockwise. The wheel/bike pit is dual sided and currently near the finish line but may be moved to be more in the middle of the entire course. Please see you friendly USAC officials (and say thank you) for the actual location on Sunday.

– And finally… thanks to everyone for coming out and racing the Chicago Cyclocross Cup… again! 2009 was a banner year… 2010 was enormous and great… so we’re not even going to guess what 2011 will bring. If the pre-reg numbers are any indication 2011 is going to be even more gihugimouser than 2010. So let’s race, cheer, heckle, and have a great time! See you Sunday!