• Thanks to the Chris Henning and everybody who helped make the George Garner Sr. Memorial CX Race @ Melas a success! Thanks also to Mother Nature for not dropping a foot of snow on us the day before. Temperatures were downright frigid but the racing action was hawt! Results are here and photos are on Snowy Mountain and Tipping Point
  • Remember 12 months ago when we had to cancel the Melas race? For anyone who last year commented “The Belgians would have raced” in the snow, did you hear they had to cancel the Koksijde World Cup on the coast of Belgium this past weekend due to a storm and destructive high winds? That’s not a 10X10 pop-up tent in that link. Safety first… always.
  • Up next and finally… but still 2 weeks away… the CCC heads back to the city proper for its finale and the 2016 Illinois State CX Championships at Montrose Harbor hosted by Ten27 Cycle Club and Spidermonkey Cycling. We’re not even going to try and guess what the weather will be like this far in advance. In the past we’ve had everything from 60 degrees and sun to negative temps and a bunch of snow. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
  • In the meantime, this weekend why not check out Big Marsh? THIS BLACK FRIDAY 11/25 choose to #OptOutside @ BIG MARSH for the inaugural race at the newly completed BIG MARSH BIKE PARK! This event is a fundraiser with all proceeds benefiting Friends of Big Marsh for continued build out of park features. There are categories for all levels, and your neither your USAC, CCC nor CrossResults standings will be impacted from consuming too much turkey and stuffing because this is NOT a USA Cycling sanctioned race. Pressure’s off! However, you’ll want to make some effort because the prizes are AMAZING. Effort not your thing? Then buy yourself a race lead with a purchase of a Big Marsh Cycling Kit or Chainring Donation! Or just come take a walking tour of the park then throw down come cash and win yourself one of our many equally impressive raffle prizes. Either way online pre-reg closes TONIGHT 11/22 @ 11:59PM CT. This park was built for YOU, the off-road cycling enthusiasts of Chicagoland, and a ton of work has gone into race prep from your fellow racers across several teams – so if you are in town on Friday, do your part to say THANKS by showing up to participate. We’re still looking to fill some volunteer spots too – contact Chris McAuliffe with your availability between 7AM – 4PM. See you there!
  • The week after Montrose don’t forget about Afterglow – A Cyclocross Race hosted by the Chicago Cuttin’ Crew, which gets back to its roots in Humboldt Park! This race is serious about having fun, sitting back and enjoying the Afterglow of a great CX season here in Chicagoland. Online pre-reg is open on BikeReg and all profits go to the great causes of West Town Bikes and Blackstone Bicycle Works which are 2 of the 3 places all series donations go toward (the 3rd being Big Marsh).
  • And finally… we’ve mentioned it many times over the years, but especially during this week it bears repeating that we like to think of the entire CCC as one big family and we are very thankful for all of you racing with us. Sure there are many different teams and maybe at times we’re a little dysfunctional, but what family isn’t? However, in the end we’re all here because we enjoy riding our bikes and being in each other’s company. That’s what makes all CX communities so great. Our differences, strengths, weaknesses, merits, faults, and perspectives make us stronger and better as a whole. With that in mind we wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving! Whether you’re enjoying tofurky and kale or bacon wrapped turkey with a side of Twinkies and a handful of Skittles… have a wonderful long weekend off with your non-cycling families and we’ll see you all in 2 weeks at Montrose Harbor.