for the record
September 19th, 2008 |Le Mans start in cyclocross race is the single lamest thing anyone every came up with in the history of the universe.
It should be banned in permanency and with extreme prejudice.
“Where hacks come to spew nonsense” - B2B
Le Mans start in cyclocross race is the single lamest thing anyone every came up with in the history of the universe.
It should be banned in permanency and with extreme prejudice.
27 Responses to “for the record”
how dare you…
http://bloodlinefour.blogspot.com/2008/09/cyclocro ss-course-design.html
regarding your criteria:
- technical sections -twisty/turny, unique barrier placement: YES
- endurance sections - long climbs, sand pits, mud: YES
- single track -this needs no explanation: NO, cross is a road event. No single track ever.
- wide open sections - allows for passing: YES
- a mixture of surfaces - grass, pavement, dirt/other surface: YES, 200% yes.
- the famed le’mans start - drop your bikes 50-100 yards from start line and run to them and commence cyling: NO, 1000 times no. Not ever, totally lame without question. Horrible idea. Drop it now and forever. Let’s never speak of this again.
- something interesting or unique - water bars, the ’spiral of death’…etc: ? NO CLOWN RACES, quit trying to make cyclocross a joke event.
- weather- over which i have no control: The weather is what it is.
- a final wide straight-away - for sprint finishes: YES, on the flats. No uphill finishes.
single track- 3 meters wide, as a sport in the US cyclocross must be both a mtb and road event…
water bars
What about oxygen bars on the course?
@bloodline: and I would ask: why?
@Smithers: to attract former mountain bike racers, and make them into all around bikers, complete the cycle and end the use of the ‘mountain bike’ as we know it…
I’d agree with Smithers on all points except long climbs. The problem with them is that it turns a race solely into a hill climbing event because they are errr - long. Case in point was the Back to School CX at St. Olaf. The whole race was about going up the big hill. Not very technical, and honestly not very fun. Oh, it really didn’t help that they had that dumb singletrack section which only served to induce flat tires.
@bloodline: So the lack of single track would turn off mountain bikers? Any evidence of that? I don’t think I buy that one.
I think what would turn off mountain bikers is that it’s waaaaaay more intense for a shorter amount of time. Seems to be totally different than a MTB race.
You MTB types can correct me on this if you want?
@dan i: Yea well, I guess it depends upon what a “long climb” entails. I considered last Sunday’s practice race climb to be “long”.
st. olaf was the best race i attended in 2007
You will never see another le’mans start in MCF cyclocross….they went out in the 90s
Not looking a gift horse in the mouth here… Back to School CX was still fun overall and well run. I liked it better zig-zagging up the hill rather than straight up like the year before. Just think they could done the course differently and at least not use the singletrack section. Oh well - it’s coming back so water under the bridge.
I guess I come from the MTB side, and my take is that a lot of mountain-bikey people see CX as being “too roadie”, a.k.a. to super-serious-competitive and not fun. I don’t think it is myself, but unlike a lot of them I also dabble in road (and track just this year) racing.
Oops! I meant to say Back to School CX is NOT coming back.
@wah: i was there for the last one then..
lot of mountain-bikey people see CX as being “too roadie”
It is, under UCI rules, a road event.
Damn straight it’s a road event. That’s the only reason people used to ride Nationals… because you could wear your stars and stripes jerseyand get free entry in all road events for a year.
As for LeMans starts, I prefer the Yukon start where you start in your sleeping bag with your boots off.
did someone say circus race?
Cyclocross miss and out race? dumb.
@Smithers: @T3: fucking roadies, single minded ‘my way is the highway’… scumbags
next year, lemans starts at the track…
@bloodline: Scumbags? WTF?
I hate those right wing MFers!!
i’m consistent — i hate miss and outs on the track too
just kidding…i’m a roadie at heart
For the record; there might not have been ANY CX races in the mid-90’s if singletrack wasn’t used. Bassett Creek was THE course after Wirth was discontinued. There were plenty of sections to advance and pass if needed. I see nothing wrong with technical aspects being used. There was a backlash and some riders whined, so people started to put on races totally devoid of barriers, ups and downs, water crossings, sand, etc. They also were totally devoid of fun.
my 2 lame-o cents:
No singletrack. MTB’ers welcome but this is cyclocross, not MTB. I’m all for plenty of technical sections cause it lets me gain back some of the distance/pace I loose to everybody with better fitness but that doesn’t mean you need singletrack. Course designers should ask themselves: how would the Belgians do it?
And please leave the XC bike at home (with potential exception for newbs trying cross for the first time or two).