– 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?

– 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].

Photo: Amy Dykema

– Thanks to everyone who came out to EJ’s Place and for the 2010 CCC Awards Dinner. Special thanks goes out to the entire staff of EJ’s for inviting us in and letting us use their restaurant during non-business hours on a Sunday for our little event. Everyone here at the CCC enjoyed seeing you the riders, racers, hecklers, supporters, etc one last time for the season… especially in a nice warm restaurant (we didn’t even need embro to stay warm). Amy Dykema was in attendance and nice enough to grab some snaps of the awards presentation. You can see them all here.

– Better late than never… the ChiCross Photo Collective (Liz Farina Markel, Chip William, and Luke Seemann) recently made a $70 donation to World Bike Relief from the profits of the 2009 coffee table photo book. Books will continue to be for sale on Blurb and now that the CCPC is in the black $10 from each purchase will go directly to WBR: Visit www.chicrossphoto.com for more or head right to the online store here.

– As we head into 2011 remember now is a great time to renew your USAC license and/or apply for that pesky upgrade. The fastest and easiest way to do both is in the My USA Cycling section of the USAC website. Just look for the “Purchase/Renew License” link in the upper/middle left.

– Yes, the rumors are true… no one at the CCC won the recent $350 million Powerball jackpot… but we do have some exciting things in the works for 2011 AND 2012. Those of you at the awards dinner heard a little bit about it, but the rest of you will just have to wait until we hear back from certain people in a small neutral country in Europe.

– And finally… this will likely be the CCC’s last post for a while (yes, realize Brian Conant’s image will be the first thing people see when they visit the site for a few months). We’ll have some news to share at certain points in the spring and early summer, but you’ll have to wait until at least July (maybe even August) for regular weekly dates. So until then, ride safe and have fun… and we’ll see you all soon!

– Welcome to 2011… we hope everyone had a safe, fun, and Happy New Year. From what we’ve seen and heard on the innertubes many of you rang in the new year in style… and then got up early the next morning to ride you bikes… no rest for the wicked!

– We’ve also heard from a few of you that you really miss cyclocross season and can’t wait for September. Well, we won’t disagree with you, but we would like to suggest that you get on your bikes and start training now. Besides the fact that CX Nationals is practically in our backyard (Madison), Masters Worlds isn’t too far away either (Louisville), we’ve seen a boatload of Cat 4’s and Cat 3’s (both men and ladies) upgrading, and there are several new Chicagoland CX projects currently in the works that will extend the season, make it more fun, and faster at the same time. We won’t spill the beans yet, but we’ll post notes as more info becomes available.

– But just in case you’re looking for more CX and a party at the same time, remember the CCC Awards Dinner is this Sunday at noon at EJ’s Place in Skokie. If you plan to attend, please pre-reg here by noon on Friday so EJ and his crew can order enough food. Thanks. We’ll have music, door prizes, and of course CCC cowbells and awards for the overall winners. We hope to see you all there.

– Still need more CX? Look who has a new blog.

– We’re still looking for a full recap of last weekend’s CAMBr Fundraiser which featured Jason McCartney, Christian Vande Velde, John Vande Velde, and Robbie Ventura. But from the few pictures we’ve seen the event was well attended.

– UPDATE: The CCC was mentioned in today’s WBR blog post here.

– And finally, CCC series sponsor The Bonebell has been posting some great content recently, including an interview with Barry Wicks and New Years Toast. While the CCC site sees plenty of traffic during CX season we’ll go dormant in a week or two while some of us ride around in smaller circles on the pavement. So for all your dirty news head on over to see what el Maya, Stiggity, Nevada Dave, DaDoubleG, and Julia Goolia have to say. And if you don’t want your roadie and trackie friends to know you hang out with us CX’ers while they’re watching large men play with oblong balls made of animal hides, keep Chicago Bike Racing open in your browser just in case.

So for those of you still following along at home, we have some really big news to report today!

What does the number 53 represent? No, its not the number of day, weeks, or month until the next CX race… its the total number of bicycles the racers, hecklers, promoters, and sponsors of the 2010 CCC just donated to World Bicycles Relief.

And what does the number 106 represent? With WBR’s anonymous donor matching all donations dollar for dollar through 12/31/10… that’s the total number of bicycles we’re all responsible for this year! The great folks at WBR tell us that’s enough bikes to outfit an entire school of children.

Through direct donations at races, series t-shirt sales, and series sponsor & promoter donations, we as a community raised $7,102 for World Bicycles Relief. At $134 per bicycle that equates to 53 bikes… all between September and December. That’s more than double what we raised last year and well exceeds our 2010 goal of $5,000. So cheers and thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who raced, donated, bought a t-shirt, or supported the CCC and WBR in any other way.

Photo: Nathan Schneeberger

– And we’re spent… thanks to Half Acre Cycling and the Cuttin’ Crew for hosting one last ‘cross race in Chicago. Temps were low but spirits were high, the sun as well as plenty of smiles and high fives were out to help warm everyone’s souls. HAC has a recap here. Congrats also to Natalie Evans & Mike Kirby (xXx Racing) who raised >$400 for West Town Bikes by “racing” in the tandem category and Mike Young who hosted the afterparty.

– No course preview to look forward to this week… but we’ve got some great big, big news about the CCC coming out this Thursday. Swing by at 9am to read what all the fuss is about!

– Already looking forward to 2011? CAMBR’s Cocktails with Christian event will be held on January 2. People can hobnob with Christian Vande Velde and Robbie Ventura at Tin Fish in Tinley Park and help CAMBR South raise funds for building trails. Details are at here.

– Speaking of upgrades… we’ve been seeing plenty of Men AND Women CX Cat 3 upgrades coming through… looks like 2011 will be much faster than this year! Congratulations to everyone who has requested and received their upgrades. For those of you sandbaggers who still haven’t upgraded… we’ll be watching!

– Is it the end of this IL CX season of the beginning of the next? Team Mack released their flyer for the Tour de Groundhog near Springfield.

– Now that the Chicagoland CX racing season is finally, totally, completely, 100% done… time to fuel up for next season!

– Congratulations are also due to Half Acre and xXx Racing for both being named Club of the Year by USA Cycling. Yes, both teams do lots of other cycling related activities, but just in case you weren’t paying attention this year, both teams helped to host two CX races each (Relay, Jackson Park, Hopkins Park, & the Afterglow). So kudos to HAC & xXx on some well deserved recognition at the national level.

– And finally… a short (really short) video from the Afterglow.