Photo: Snowy Mountain Photography

– Thanks again to Jeff Provisor and the entire Main St Bikes/Sasquatch Squadron for hosting yet another great addition of Carpenter Park CX this past weekend. Barriers, creeks, moguls even a petting zoo, Carpenter Park had it all. It was another sunny Sunday, a little crisp in the morning but warmed up nicely to the mid 50’s by the elite races.  Kelli Richter (PSIMET Racing) won the women’s elite race over Emma Swartz who won in week 2.  This gives Kelli her 2nd win in 4 races, widening her overall series lead over Sarah Szefi, also of PSIMET racing.  In the men’s race Joseph Maloney (KS Energy Services/Team Wisconsin) continues to make the most of his appearances in the CCC by winning his 2nd race in as many appearances.  David Reyes (Heritage) hangs onto the overall lead with another consistent podium finish. Results were uploaded to USAC & CrossResults and Overall standings were updated Sunday night.

– Next Sunday the CCC series heads slightly South to Sunrise Park in Bartlett, hosted by Athletes By Design and uber CX racer/fan Jim Nowak. Look for the course preview at the regular time on Thursday.

– Speaking of Sunrise Park… remember if you want to take half your CCC series points with you to the next category you must upgrade before Sunday’s race. And by before we don’t mean Saturday night. So get your upgrade requests into USAC now through the USAC website since there is absolutely no glory in sandbagging (looking at you Cat 3’s and Cat 4’s). Also note that we do review each week’s results and will be alerting the USAC upgrade coordinator concerning mandatory upgrades.

– The weather was a little less ideal, but a good size contingent of Chicagoland dirtbags were down at Big Marsh having a time this past Saturday. Read all about it on The Bonebell.

– Here’s some exciting news for Junior racers at the State Championships at Montrose Harbor. Thanks to some behind-the-scenes work by The Chicago Cuttin’ Crew, the Pony Shop, Ten27 Cycling Club, Spidermonkey Cycling, and the Illinois Cycling Association the event will award expanded age group champion jerseys. All the same rules apply (riders must hold an annual license, be an Illinois resident, and US citizen… races must have a 3 person IL podium, etc) and riders will be staged the same as other CCC races (i.e. Jr 15-18 and Jr 9-14)…. but jerseys will be awarded to both boys and girls in age groups 9-12, 13-14, 15-16, and 17-18. So giddy up and get ready to race in December!

– Speaking of Championships… Pro Bike Express is offering their “Pro Not Bro Service” at Cyclocross Nationals in Austin. This year PBE has limited the number of riders they will support, so space is limited. Register Early and “Travel Like You Train…” For more information please contact Wesley Smith/Pro Bike Express: [email protected] Registration is up on the website: www.probikeexpress.com

– A quick note on Waitlists. If you reg for a waitlist on BikeReg your credit card is NOT charged right away. You may see an authorization transaction on your credit card statement, but you are NOT actually being charged. If a spot opens up in the race before race day (i.e. a kind soul emails the race promoter and tells them they won’t be able to make it) riders will be transferred into the race based on their reg day/time. At this point only will your credit card be charged. So if you show up to the race and haven’t received an email through BikeReg stating you made it into the race… you are not yet in the race and your credit card has not be charged.

– And finally… remember all of this CX pedal biking stuff is just for fun, so tell your family, friends, mechanic, photographer, cat, race course designer, dog, pet turtle, GoPro drone pilot, etc, etc, etc… that you love them every day before its too late.

– #CarpenterCX and more on the preview page. Preliminary staging will be posted here before the race.

– Carpenter’s Park hosted by Main St. Bicycles Sasquatch Squadron (owned by CCC director and all-round race fodder  Jeff Provisor) is held along side the Carpentersville Oktoberfest. The festival has a beer garden (which is located right next to the course). Great food vendors, live music, raffles, kid rides (inflatables), a petting zoo, face painters, and much, much more. Note that Main Street Bicycles and North Branch Cycling started  hosting this race in 2005! Once again, grand master Todd Busteed will be handling the race color commentary throughout the day.

– Registration is in a new spot roughly 100’ to the west of the band shell (NorthEast corner of the park), closer now to the Staging/Start/Finish area, set under a large blue Main Street/North Branch tent.

– Jeff and the village of Carpentersville have asked that we please keep the beer drinking in the beer garden (Sam Adams Oktoberfest and Miller Lite). If you spot someone with a can or two of High Life on the other side of the course, please ask them to be respectful of the park, other spectators, and racers. Bacon and Twinkies are allowed and in fact encouraged to roam freely.

– Overflow parking will be East of the park – in the lots of  Cross Container off of Maple (the road the borders on the North, and just to the East across from Comcast).

– There will be many tasty food options… Roasti’s Pizza and Beef, El Somborito, Good ‘Ol Dogs and Brats, and more!

– D’angelo Natural Spring Water will be provided for the racers, no cups provided, please bring your bottles.

– Carpentersville Rotary will be hosting a Sasquatch Hunt near the farm field, come try your luck and win food and beer vouchers.

– The course: Similar to last  year, only totally different. The Carpenter Park course has been described as the most Belgian of all the CCC race, featuring creek crossings, a little nub of a hill which is always great for spectating and taking photos, and the infamous farm field dirt roller section. Near the center of the course, just beyond the “nub”  will be a double sided wheel pit. The separated Start/Finish area will remain in the North field and the course will run in the new fancy anti clockwise fashion. There will be a bike wash area at the hydrant near the dirt roller section. Bib #’s will go on your left.

Race day can be a little stressful. Certain stressors; pre- hot date, pre-roller coaster ride and certainly pre-race jitters, can be a good thing.  These are referred to as “eustress”.  They’ll hone your senses via hormonal and heart rate changes.  After racing bicycles of many forms for a long darned time, along with looking at heart rate files from many people competing in all disciplines of cyclosport, I’ve found that a lack of nervousness on the line normally translates to a lackluster performance.

As mentioned in this article though, even too much of this positive stress can take away from performance. A good speech teacher will tell you that the best way to combat the fear of public speaking is to show up completely prepared.  Racing a bike is the same, so have your routine down.

An important part of this, especially for the violent effort right out of the gate that cyclocross requires, is the pre-race warm up.  Arrive with enough time to be able to casually ride the course when officials allow it, and do this 37 minute session on a stationary trainer leading up to staging:

15 minutes in zones 1-2 heart rate/power, nice casual spin with increased cadence as you progress.

Do two 30 second intervals at maximum effort with 5 minutes recovery between them

Take 3 minutes recovery after the last 30 second interval

Begin an 8 minute interval at 30 – 35% below FTP. Slowly increase power so that you are at FTP by the fifth minute.  Hold that pace for the final 3 minutes of the 8 minute interval.  As example; if your FTP is 300 watts start at 200 and slowly bring it up to 300 over the first 5 minutes.  Peg it at 300 for the final 3.

Spin in zone 1-2 for 5 minutes and then go to staging.

Give this a try during training on a day when you’re planning to do some hard work on the bike. You may want to tweak it a bit to suit you and best to try new things prior to race day. A good warm up before a crazy interval session will also improve your results.

Thanks for reading!

Rob Kelley

TRAINING BIBLE COACH

www.ROKcoaching.com

Photo: Ben Laforce

– Thanks to Beverly Bike-VeePak for another great Dan Ryan Woods event. In the third race of the series we once again saw huge fields thanks in part to racers commuting from out of state.  That was pretty much the story in the elite ranks as both our men’s and women’s top races had out-of-towners take the top spot.  In the Cat 1/2/3 race Sven Baumann (Wolverine Sports Club) of Michigan escaped in the later laps of the race after a tight race with David Reyes (Heritage) to take the win with Michael Dutczak (SCW) in 3rd.  In the women’s elite field Samantha Schneider (Tibco/To the Top) from Milwaukee won her field with plenty of time to look around in front of Kelli Richter (PSIMET) in 2nd and sister Skylar Schneider (Tibco/To the Top) in 3rd. BBVP changed things up a bit in the course design, but returned with their infamous half barriers, this time adding a long jump contest to the last barrier to add even more excitement for the spectators.  There were plenty of records broken as the day went on along with plenty of crashes as racers went for it. Full results are on USAC and all pre-reg’d riders were emailed results and lap times immediately after their race thanks to One2Go Event Services. Overall standings are updated here.

– Next up the CCC series heads NorthWest to Carpenter Park in Carpentersville. Look for the regular course update on Thursday but in the mean time read the static preview here.

– Remember the CCC series is only 11 races this year, so please do not show up at the Golf Farm in Wauconda on Saturday. Enjoy the day off, or better yet go check out the Big Marsh. This Saturday The Bonebell and SRAM are putting on the Big Marsh Mashdown, an informational event geared toward showing riders around the Big Marsh Bike Park Project. The day kicks off with tours of the site to learn about the eco-restoration effort and development plans for a world-class bike park on Chicago’s southeast side. Tours are free, open to the public and attendees have the option of a 10 a.m. hiking tour or 11 a.m. biking tour. After the tours everyone is invited to join in the afternoon’s three fun, casual races, which are each open to all skill levels and all off-road bicycles. Race proceeds will benefit Friends of Big Marsh. Registration for tours and races closes Thursday at noon, but walk-ins are welcome Saturday morning. More information will be posted on The Bonebell throughout the week.

– A gentle reminder about pre-riding the course. If you are not racing, you should not be on the course until given the okay by the chief USAC ref. And after given the okay you may only enter the course past the finish line and even more importantly do not ever, ever, ever ride in front of racer still racing. This is especially important during the designated course preview before the Cat 3 race. The Women Cat 4’s and Junior 9-14’s are still finishing up their race, so please for the love of all that is good and green on this earth, do not ride in front of that last Junior who is finishing up his/her race.

– And finally… let’s have a short chat about alcohol. Its great that this year we have plenty of free flowing beer from Lagunitas, Goose Island, Half Acre, etc… but please remember that part of drinking that sweet nectar responsibly is NOT providing it to anyone at an event who is underage, on the course or off. We know giving a beer handup sounds like a great idea but we can all get in a lot of trouble if those suds end up in the hands of someone under 21 years old. Many times in the excitement of the moment riders will grab whatever you are dangling out in front of them even if they have no idea what it is. Think about it this way, if someone is handing up a Twizzler or Twinkie or bacon… or a bacon wrapped Twizzler filled Twinkie the rider knows for sure what that is. If they are handing up a bottle or cup with no label… they have no idea. Therefore it is incumbent upon you, the handup-er to be aware of who the handup-ee is, and more importantly, their age. If you really want to give a great handup, especially to a junior, break out the lincolns, hamiltons, jacksons, grants, or benjamins! And for all riders, don’t just grab the first thing someone dangles in your face. Be smart and think about what you are doing, or better yet… keep riding your arse off. This is a race after all, not just a party.

– This weekend Beverly Bike*VeePak is bringing you some fun additional adventures to Chicago’s Southside and rolling out the carpet – check out the dismount near the stairs!

– Additional details can always be found on the preview page.

– Preliminary staging for Sunday’s CCC event will be posted here by Saturday. If you recently upgraded and are eligible to take 1/2 your points with you, please email us at ChicagoCrossCup at gmail so we can update our records. Staging for Saturday’s Beverly HILLS race will follow CrossResults.com rankings and will be posted here.

– 5K Trail Run: To try something new, BB*VP will be kicking our Saturday off with a 5K Trail Run using part of our afternoon cross course. The 5K starts at 10 am. The first 50 preregistered runners will be receiving a free t-shirt and a chance to run through the park on a fun yet challenging course.

– Afternoon of Cross: A fun preview of Sunday’s full day of racing. Check out the Bunny Hop Challenge at 3:15 pm. You must sign up and sign a waiver to participate. Highest jumper gets $25!

– This Sunday stop #3 of the Chicago Cyclocross Cup heads to Chicago’s Southside at Dan Ryan Woods-CCC#3.

– Food: Make sure to bring snacks to get you through on Saturday. We will have water on hand for the runners at the end of their run but we will not have food or water on hand for the Saturday afternoon cross races.

– On SUNDAY for all PRE-REGISTERED racers, BBVP has once again graciously contracted some good eats for all of our racers. This year we are mixing it up and we are trying something new again. This year we will be a free made to order crepe from culinary and pastry students from Kennedy-King College and Le Cordon Bleu. We will have two kinds: Sweet and Savory. Sweet includes bananas and Nutella. Savory includes ham and cheese. BBVP is paying for all of this food… so preregister and ENJOY! Tickets will again be stapled to your your bib #’s for redemption at the crepe station. Do not lose the ticket and if you enjoy it, make sure to tip your chefs. We do not expect to have more than preregistered quantities so preregister now.

– Water: BBVP will NOT be supplying water (saving the world with less plastic). There are two water fountains on site, but hydration by riders should be planned for by bringing fluids with.

– Coffee: Hardboiled Coffee will be providing complimentary coffee during the 5k. Heritage Bicycles will be sharing coffee throughout the day. Please make sure stop by their tent to say hello and enjoy a hot cup of coffee.

– Beer: New this year, BB*VP has teamed up with Imperial Oak Brewery. In doing so, we will be offering the first 450 preregistered riders – aged 21 or over of course – one free beer coupon. They are valid while supplies last at the venue but coupons can be retrieved onsite at the Imperial Oak Brewery tent or saved and used within the week at Imperial Oak Brewery. A choice of Dubbel, Saison or Wit.

– Again this year, BBVP has hired One2Go Event Services for professional timing and results. All preregistered riders (with valid email addresses included in their RunReg & BikeReg profiles) will receive race results and lap times for their race via email shortly following their race. Riders must be preregistered to enjoy this feature. Results will also be tweeted by @One2Go_Results on twitter following each event.  Your #’s go on your left SIDE! Failure to follow properly place bib #’s risk you not being scored and potentially a $20 fine.

– Safety Pins: The CCC supplies pins for riders but we ask that riders recycle their pins and use them each week.  We also ask that if you forget pins, that you only take the 4-5 needed, not small handfuls that would take care of 2-3 other riders.

– Runners will be required to wear a bib # on their front stomach area.

– Parking: Parking is free, and the best spots are off of the 8500 S Western Ave entrance to the park… follow parking lot to the South.

– The Chicago Marathon is being run on Sunday so please plan your travel times to and from the race accordingly.

– Online pre-registration on RunReg.com and BikeReg.com closes TONIGHT at 11:45 PM. Please remember on-site registration closes 30 minutes prior to each race’s scheduled start time. All bib #’s must be picked up prior to registration closing so please be timely and considerate to all those you race with and don’t show up 15 minutes before your race expecting to still get in. We will be doing a hard cut off 30 minutes prior to handle waitlists. If you’re late, you go to the end of the wait list. No exceptions so come early and get your numbers!

– Slow Roll Chicago will be out all weekend spreading the word about their organization!

– The weather looks great for this weekend.

– The Course: Runs anti-clockwise. The course will once again be offering a little something for everyone. It will have straightaway power sections, hills (and we do mean hills), technical turn sections, and the infamous bunny hop barriers will be back (although spread out on the course this year). Note that registration is in a different location this year, and most of the course has shifted to the West. Energy management will be key. Bring your awesomeness!

Recovery between efforts in a sport like cyclocross is huge.  You have to go in with the confidence of knowing that your body can recover quickly and re-set after hard core efforts.  Just as you train yourself to produce as much power as possible for specified periods of time, you also must train to be able to bring the heart rate down over and over again.  Even as little time as it takes to go through a series of turns can be enough to bring it down a few beats, and in cross every little bit helps.

Pyramid Intervals are a great way to develop this.  Go all out for each interval.  Focus on relaxing and bringing your heart rate down at the end of each interval.  It does help to consciously remind yourself as that type of mental repetition will help make the concept stick even during the most stressful race situation.  Giving yourself the opportunity to recover now and then can be the difference between being able to hang on or POP!:

Warm up for at least 15 minutes in zones 1-2

One Set:

30 seconds at your max/30 seconds recovery

1 minute at your max/1 minute recovery

1 minute 30 seconds at your max/1 minute recovery

2 minutes at your max/1 minute 30 seconds recovery

1 minute 30 seconds at your max/1 minute recovery

1 minute at your max/1 minute recovery

30 seconds at your max/30 seconds recovery

Take at least 6 minutes off between sets if you decide to do more than one of these.  You can manipulate them anyway you want by adding or subtracting to or from the duration of each effort.  More importantly, reduce the recovery time between efforts.  Power and heart rate are not only important for the hard part.  Look at how quickly your heart rates goes down after a hard effort and work to reduce that over time and adjust recovery between these intervals accordingly.

As example, you’ll probably need the full 30 seconds to recover after an all-out 30 second interval the first time you do these.  After a few sessions of focused work that may begin to creep down toward the 15 second mark.  Take note when this happens and shorten the recovery for the next pyramid session and you’ve just increased your capacity to recover.

Good luck and go fast!

Rob Kelley

TRAINING BIBLE COACH

www.ROKcoaching.com

– Thanks again to Robots pb <3 and Axeltree for hosting yet another great Hopkins Park cx event. Full results are here and here, CCC overall standings are updated here, and lap time reports courtesy of One2Go Event Services are here.

– Up next, the CCC heads to the South side of Chicago with our hosts Beverly Bike-Vee Pak for Dan Ryan Woods with the added bonus of the Beverly HILLS CX race the day before on Saturday (which also includes a 5K trail run). One2Go Event Services will be out again providing results and lap times for both races, including the 5K. The Saturday race is not part of the CCC series but should be a bunch as fun. Remember the Chicago Marathon is on Sunday so please adjust your travel times accordingly. Online pre-reg for both CX races closes Thursday evening. Looks for the course preview on Thursday morning.

– From our friends up North… “Grafton PumpkinCross, sponsored by BelgianWerkx, is offering Chicago Cross Cup racers a chance for two FREE entries to our race in addition to the previously mentioned $5 off tollway discount (“IL”) for all other CCC racers that aren’t lucky enough to nab the free spots. Simply be the first two people to register at: https://www.usacycling.org/register/2014-2846, enter code “CHI”, race for free, take our prize money (!!!) and have a great time on this rad, technical course. You won’t be disappointed!”

– Online pre-reg is now open for CCC race # 10, Melas CX Basin Racin’, back for another year at Melas Pak in Mt Prospect.

– They keep rolling in…

 Say hello the CCC’s newest 2014 series sponsor, SPY Optic who is furnishing some rad specs for overall prizes.

– And finally… are you #WookieApproved? Local wrench extraordinaire Chandler Snyder who is half of Pro Bike Express will be offering their “Pro Not Bro Service” at Cyclocross Nationals for the 3rd year in a row in Austin this January. If you haven’t heard of what it is they offer, you can hear it straight from clients’ mouths from Nationals in Boulder here. This year PBE has simplified their pricing and limited the number of riders they will support, so space is limited. Register Early and “Travel Like You Train…” You will have your “Home Away From Home” right among the other Teams and Vendors so no worrying about lugging anything with you. Trainers will be provided and onsite coffee service too. For more information please contact Wesley Smith/Pro Bike Express: [email protected] Registration is up on the website: www.probikeexpress.com