- No series racing again this coming weekend.
- The next series race is Sunday 10/25 at ABD Sycamore Speedway.
- Racing up in Wisconsin this coming weekend.
- Great course and racing this past Sunday at the Screw City CX Classic.
- And finally… we’re lucky to have some really great weather right now… get out and enjoy it as we all know it’s not going to last for long!
- Thanks to the Sasquatch Squadron and Northbrook Garner Bicycle Club for a great event at the new venue Lords Park! Results are posted and linked here.
- Next up the series takes an unprecedented two weeks off. Then on 10/25 the CCC returns to ABD Sycamore Speedway hosted by Athletes By Design. Note there is also a non-CCC warm-up race there on Saturday.
- But fear not, in the meantime there are options for you to race:
- Screw City Cyclocross Classic is on Sunday 10/11 in Rockford, IL. Patrick and crew have been big supporters and participants in the CCC for a long time and put on great events. Head West to check it out!
- Also on Sunday, a little event called the Chicago Marathon is happening. Good luck to everyone running!
- Also, also on Sunday, the Friends of Big Marsh are hosting their 10 year Anniversary event from 12-5pm at Big Marsh. Hopefully things have dried out!
- Next week check out racing in Wisconsin at Sunnyview Cross on Saturday (maybe, reg is not yet open?) and the Battle of Waterloo on Sunday.
- Remember if you’d like to upgrade your racing category and take half your points with you to the next level you need to do so BEFORE ABD Sycamore Speedway. See our Rules and FAQ page for more details. In fact, since we all have 2 weeks off, now would be a great time for everyone to read through that page and understand the rules. There’s a lot there so if you have questions, please email us and ask!
- And finally… the weather is turning chilly and crisp Autumn days are here. Get outside and enjoy it!
- NEW VENUE
- Cohosted by the Sasquatch Squadron powered by Main Street Bicycles and the Northbrook Garner Bicycle Club.
- Online reg is open until Friday night on BikeReg.
- Preliminary staging will be posted here Saturday.
- Numbers are always on your left SIDE (not your back).
- A friendly reminder, DO NOT EVER overtake a rider who is still finishing their race. We thankfully have not had any complaints yet this year about pre-riders getting too close to racers still finishing. Please give everyone the respect you would expect while you are racing. Thanks!
About Lords Park
- The road through the park is NOT a continuous loop. There’s parking all along the loop but the most parking is on the Southern section that goes past the zoo. The parking lot is by the aquatic center.
- The park is excellent for families. There’s a zoo with Bison and Elk! There are TWO playgrounds, two ponds, and a creek with a path. Go explore, but don’t miss the start of your race(s)!
- There’s ONE indoor permanent restroom building and it should be open. We’ll have port-o-lets as well.
- There’s NO onsite water. BYO pressure washer if you need one
Set up
- DO NOT park in the grass. Park in designated parking spaces.
- Drop off equipment on the North side. There’s a large turn around that the South side does not have. Both the South and North side allow you to back up into a parking space and unload your gear right where you can set up. Pick up your number(s) while you’re at the turn around.
- Set up your team tents on Sunday. We’re not permitted to have tents left overnight and it’s not advised.
Food
- Unfortunately there is NO food truck this year. Sorry, but the park did not allow this.
- There are plenty of restaurants around the corner on Summit Ave. (Rt. 58). After your races, please check out downtown Elgin for food. Elgin Public House, Kubo Sushi, and Shawarma Stop are some favorites.
Course Details
- Staging is in the Northeast corner of the large field.
- The course runs Clockwise.
- No A/B line this year. Just a straight up cyclocross course as we figure out the park and what works best. We wish there was a sand volleyball court but, sadly, there’s no sand.
- The two-way equipment pit is between the two sections of the parking loop. It’s right around the 50/50 mark based on our GoogleMaps layout. We’ll see how much that changes after setup. Racers will pass the pit be shortly after the start.
- After the last 2 days of rain this weekend’s weather looks great. Lords Park drains well and the race directors have kept the course out of the lowest areas that have the most potential to retain water.
- Wow, a great season opener, double race weekend at Glenwood Academy hosted by South Chicago Wheelmen.
- Links to all Results are here.
- Photos by Ned Bowen are here:
- Next up, the series heads West to a new venue at Lords Park. This is the new venue Northbrook Garner Bicycle Club & Sasquatch Squadron have secured to replace Wheeling’s Heritage Park which is under construction. Please go to LORDS PARK in Elgin. Looks for the course preview on Thursda morning. Online reg closes Thursday over on BikeReg here.
- And finally, all CCC series events are now up and open on BikeReg.
- Happy Autumn Equinox!
- The weather situation this past weekend was unfortunate at best and TBH downright horrible. xXx Racing, our USAC officials, Kenny, PSIMET, and we were all at Big Marsh well before dawn to assess the venue and had to make the difficult decision to cancel the event. Besides the lightning which forces us to halt racing, the roads getting to the Big Marsh were under lots of water (just ask PJ!) and ~80% of the course as under several inches of water. Concerning rescheduling the event, unfortunately possible future dates do no work for xXx Racing, so Big Marsh is fully cancelled this year. Be on the lookout for an email from xXx Racing concerning next steps about your registration.
- Just a reminder, for situations like this past weekend, we’ll post official real time updates on our X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram accounts and we’ll also update this website and BikeReg as soon as humanly possible. The CCC does not have a Facebook, TikTok, or Slack account, nor do e have an email newsletter, or any other service.
- On a positive note, we still have 9 more events on the schedule for the rest of the season. Next up the South Chicago Wheelmen host us at Glenwood Academy for not one but TWO days of racing this coming Saturday and Sunday. Online registration for Saturday’s races will close Thursday evening while Sunday’s races will close at the regular time on Friday evening. Look for the course preview at the regular time on Thursday morning.
- And finally… if you plan to be at the races and taking pictures, videos, drone videos, etc. please email us as we’d like to chat.
SERIES SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT
- We’d like to again welcome back our great long time Series Sponsors for another year! If you’d like to get involved we always have room for more so please get in touch with us!
- Pactimo – Cycling clothing, series winner jerseys
- PSIMET – Wheels, tires, coffee, chamois creme, bike shop
- ABUS – Locks, helmets, and more
- Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd. (CBBEL) – Civil engineering
- Keating Law Offices – IllinoisBicycleLaw.com – Don’t get in a bike accident, but if you do…
- Main Street Bicycles – Bikes, on Main St!
- Michael Heagney, SFR – Realtor in IL and WI “Make Your Move”
- Simple Endurance Coaching – Paul knows bikes and coaching. Also “The Voice” of Wisconsin cycling.
- We hope everyone had a great time at Relay Cross at Big Marsh.
- Next up the series kicks off this Sunday at the first race, Big Marsh CX hosted by xXx Racing. Look for the course preview on Thursday at 9am. Register now on BikeReg by clicking on this link. There will be day of registration on site, but make it easier on our yourself and everyone else by registering online, but do so by midnight on Friday night.
- Most series events are open on BikeReg but we’re still waiting on a few to finish up some paperwork and they will open as soon as possible.
- The series is still looking for volunteers and sponsors. If you’d like to get involved to help out and ensure the series continues successfully into the future, please email us.
- And finally… let’s have a great season together filled with positive competition and friendship!!
- Hey gang, we hope everyone had a nice long Labor Day weekend, now back to work!
- xXx Racing Relay Cross is this weekend at Big Marsh. Sign up now on BikeReg. This is the official un-official kick-off to the CCC season, but is not part of the season, so no series points are on offer. Race, high-five, and have a great time!
- Series races start next weekend, also at Big Marsh and also hosted by xXx Racing.
- If you have questions about the series or want to help out in any way, please email us.
- Let’s go!
- Hey everyone, it’s been a while!
- Relay Cross is in 4 weeks, the series starts in 5 weeks. BikeReg pages will be open soon.
- We’ve updated the Schedule page:
- We have 10 events in the 2026 series.
- Two double weekends (Glenwood and Groundhog)
- One new venue at Lords Park in Elgin since Heritage Park in Wheeling is under construction.
- The Sunday event at Groundhog PSI-clocross on 11/08/2026 will serve as the Illinois State Championships.
- Besides Thanksgiving the CCC has 2 weekends without races. But there are other events to keep your racing legs sharp… Screw City, Pumpkin Hop, Midwest Championships.
- We’ll have one Open category.
- We’re still considering one more change to the race day schedule, but we’ll have the figured out by next week.
- Here’s our annual call for volunteers. If you’d like to help the series in any way, email us and let us know.
- We’re also always looking for series sponsors to help pay the bills and pad the swag pile at the awards party. Please email us and let us know if you are interested in being part of the CCC family.
- And finally… get your bikes ready now, not the week before Big Marsh. There are plenty of local bike shops that are willing and able to help get your race rig race ready. Stop in and give them some business!
- Hey y’all… with the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships taking place this past weekend, the 2025-26 CX season has officially come to an end. Congrats to everyone who raced in Hulst, and indeed everyone who threw a leg over their bike this past season and competed anywhere.
- The CCC website will be more quiet over the next few months until at least June or July, but we’ve already started planning for the 2026 CCC series. If you’d like to be involved or have input our email inbox is always open.
- In the meantime, if you’d like to be involved with local amateur bike racing, the Illinois Cycling Association (ICA) is hosting their annual Race Directors Meeting this Sunday Feb 8, 2026 during the bike swap at the Kane County Fairgrounds. Find more info here: https://illinoiscycling.org/race-directors-meeting-feb-2026
- And finally… thanks again to everyone who in 2025 raced, cheered, supported, volunteered, officiated, photographed, handed out hand-ups, set up, tore down, popped up tents, held jackets at the starting grid, glued wheels, lubed chains, waxed chains, did laundry, encouraged everyone to do their best, and all the other things that go into making the Chicago Cyclocross Cup great. We greatly appreciate you and look forward to racing with you again in 2026!
- Happy New Year! We hope you all had a great holiday season and are ready to get after it in 2026.
- Even though we don’t have any cyclo-cross races for 9 months, Paul Warloski at Simple Endurance Coaching is hosting a free Webinar on 1/14/2026 at 6:30pm covering:
- Strength training can make or break your gravel racing season.
- Most masters athletes don’t know what actually works.
- 5 essential exercises for gravel racing
- How to fit strength into busy schedules
- Live Q&A for your specific questions
- Join masters athletes learning how to train smarter.
- Register here: https://grow.simpleendurancecoaching.com/blank-live
- No fluff – just practical advice for serious gravel racers.
- And while we may not have any more CX races this season, we still have some awards to hand out at the 2025 Chicago Cyclocross Cup Awards Party at Specialized Fulton Market this Saturday January 10, 2026. Please RSVP here on BikeReg so we know how many of you to expect. Similar to years past we’ll have food, drinks, a raffle for some rad swag, and of course we’ll award the overall series winner cowbells and jerseys.
