2017 NJ CX Cup Schedule

MadisonDan

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
The freeze cycle is a little different typically in much of the CX hotspots of europe.

Shifting our calendar forwards a month lets us skip the BS in January.

BS? Yeah, you know, like racing frozen ruts of death in a snow storm in Hartford.

I've done a bunch of races in actual snow and on frozen ground, they aren't fun.

The radness you are describing was Supercross Cup Day 2 11/20/2016 Overnight rain turning snow that thawed and turned the hillside course into a mud pit. Fun, challenging, cold, windy, miserable. Cyclocross.

October and november CX is the best. September is fast and still fun. Totally not pointless. Come October you're flying. August CX is a novelty reserved for the few of us that have something wrong in our brains. I guess you could say the same about January CX too.

That Saturday in Hartford changed me. It took 5 months for me to be able to drive by Riverside without getting overwhelmed with anxiety.

I 100% agree here... I'm all for adverse conditions, but Natz was insane. Nearly all moving parts needed to be either replaced or professionally cleaned on BOTH bikes after that race. I think Supercross only destroyed my brake pads and rotors. And chain. Falling/crashing in mud sucks, but that's all. Doing the same on mud that's hiding frozen ice ruts underneath hurts. Another race that was dope in shitty conditions was Elm City. There was this layer of fog hovering over the snow/mud... pretty cool.
 

Delish

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Notice that for the most part, Cross in Europe does not start until October.

https://www.cxmagazine.com/2016-2017-uci-cyclocross-calendar-world-cup-c1-c2-national-championships

Dirt, sunshine, crit cross races are a US invention. For the life of me, I do not understand why folks want to race cross in Early September. Without cold and mud, cross seems pointless IMO.

Yeah, and it goes almost to March. Who wants to race cross in the Northeast thru late Feb?

I'm not saying that you don't prefer cold and mud but the data doesn't support that preference within the general population. Folks (myself included) love to glamorize racing in the cold and mud but, and while it makes for great Instaface fodder the reality is that American crossers die like grapes on the vine as soon as the first frost hits and they start having to replace derailleurs, chains, bearings, brake pads every Monday. As @Norm will attest, we have promoted December races and the economics just don't pencil.

Sept races draw big numbers and IMO can be just as interesting as December mud-fests. I also believe that crit cross is just as technically demanding as at ludicrous speed as MTB cross. They emphasize different aspects of technique but both require really solid bike skillz. And, lets not forget that thanks to climate change, the parade of late summer tropical storms we now get have given us some of the muddiest races of the year in September.

Cross in the USA is not unlike like Pizza, French Fries or American Idol. We take something Euro and make it work in the new world. Then in a strange but predictable twist of fate, Pizza Huts and McDondalds' and
Carrie Underwood concerts start popping up in Bruges and Brussels, and pinwheels start sprouting up on Soudal Classics and Superprestige tracks. When a clone of @seanrunnette starts commentating races on Sporza I might start to worry. In the mean time, long live American CX in all its forms.
 

seanrunnette

Brain Damaged Ray Romano
Team MTBNJ Halter's
This is how I imagine the Sporza guys. I'm always confused when they cut to the studio and it isn't
Beaker.jpg
 

onetracker

Well-Known Member
Yeah, and it goes almost to March. Who wants to race cross in the Northeast thru late Feb?

I'm not saying that you don't prefer cold and mud but the data doesn't support that preference within the general population. Folks (myself included) love to glamorize racing in the cold and mud but, and while it makes for great Instaface fodder the reality is that American crossers die like grapes on the vine as soon as the first frost hits and they start having to replace derailleurs, chains, bearings, brake pads every Monday. As @Norm will attest, we have promoted December races and the economics just don't pencil.

Sept races draw big numbers and IMO can be just as interesting as December mud-fests. I also believe that crit cross is just as technically demanding as at ludicrous speed as MTB cross. They emphasize different aspects of technique but both require really solid bike skillz. And, lets not forget that thanks to climate change, the parade of late summer tropical storms we now get have given us some of the muddiest races of the year in September.

Cross in the USA is not unlike like Pizza, French Fries or American Idol. We take something Euro and make it work in the new world. Then in a strange but predictable twist of fate, Pizza Huts and McDondalds' and
Carrie Underwood concerts start popping up in Bruges and Brussels, and pinwheels start sprouting up on Soudal Classics and Superprestige tracks. When a clone of @seanrunnette starts commentating races on Sporza I might start to worry. In the mean time, long live American CX in all its forms.

Interesting observations. Dsespite the rationalizations, arguments about destroying bike parts and the regional weather pattern comparisons, I still maintain that without cold and mud, cross seems pointless IMO.

Not all American "innovations/versions" are good for the record and American Cross and Pizza Hut may be a good way to form a comparison. Early fall cross is a watered down version of the sport of cyclocross just like XCO is a watered down version of MTB racing. However, it is true that American Cross and Short Format Mountain Bike racing may in fact get more folks riding/racing bikes in the future which is awesome.
 

Joe J

Well-Known Member
Interesting observations. Dsespite the rationalizations, arguments about destroying bike parts and the regional weather pattern comparisons, I still maintain that without cold and mud, cross seems pointless IMO.

Not all American "innovations/versions" are good for the record and American Cross and Pizza Hut may be a good way to form a comparison. Early fall cross is a watered down version of the sport of cyclocross just like XCO is a watered down version of MTB racing. However, it is true that American Cross and Short Format Mountain Bike racing may in fact get more folks riding/racing bikes in the future which is awesome.

Your a big time Race Director now so you should put on a XC in Oct and a CX in Jan:)
 

MadisonDan

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Ummmm.... You're not Cat 5 anymore bro....

Call up Protocol: The call-up protocol (with exception of the Cat 4/5 Men and 9-14 Men and Women) will be based on the latest MAC Series rankings as posted on the MAC Series website for the first 3 rows (24 starters) as posted on the MAC Series website, followed by Crossresults.com standings, followed by order of pre-registration. Call-up protocol for the Cat 4/5 Men will be based on order of registration. Bib number will indicate your start grid position. Note: If you are ranked, but do not pre-register, you forfeit your call-up placement and will be placed on the start grid behind the last pre-registered riders.
 

hotsauce

Well-Known Member
Ah yes you're right. I was confused a bit. First race is based on prior year MAC result but 2nd race (Nittany) is based on result after Whirlybird. I was missing that step.

I'll be lining up at the back since I didn't race any MAC 3/4 races last year...
 

ChrisG

Unapologetic Lifer for Rock and Roll
I've heard it said that the NJ CX Cup is moving back to the 35/45/55 Masters breakdown this year, as the MAC has always employed.

Anyone have any insight to this?
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I've heard it said that the NJ CX Cup is moving back to the 35/45/55 Masters breakdown this year, as the MAC has always employed.

Anyone have any insight to this?

I have not heard anything along those lines. It may be true, IDK. But does NJ have the numbers to support that?
 

ChrisG

Unapologetic Lifer for Rock and Roll
I have not heard anything along those lines. It may be true, IDK. But does NJ have the numbers to support that?
That's a good question.

Last season, the 50+ was consistently one of the largest, sometimes the largest, of the fields in the NJ races, while the 40+ and 60+ were generally a good bit smaller.
 

hotsauce

Well-Known Member
KMC Cross Fest flyer is out and creating a bunch of buzz. Cat 3 on Friday afternoon and Sunday only. 9-16 juniors on Friday at 9:30 AM.

This is taking a beating on Twitter/FB. Have at it!
KMC17-Race-Flyer_VR5-edits4.jpg
 

Santapez

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
That's confusing, if you're CAT 3, can you register for the 2/3 instead of 3/4? If you're really competitive I'd imagine you'd do 3/4 on the Friday with less competition but it's not nationals.

KMC is dead to me. If you can't fit it into a vacation weekend with the significant other it's a hard sell, it's a racetrack with not much around it. Plus the registration fees are so high compared to more local races.

I know, I know, it's a great race, or at least when it was in Providence.
 
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