MN cross season
February 13th, 2009 | |
| From Boom Island Cyclocross Race |
The UCI cyclocross calendar for next season goes from October 4 2009 to January 31 2010. Four months.
The global cyclocross calendar for 2008-2009 goes from September 9 2008 to February 22 2009. Six months.
The draft cyclocross calendar for Minnesota starts on September 26 2009 and goes to November 15 2009. Not quite three months.
At the HUP UNITED team meeting yesterday we were discussing promoting a cyclocross race for 2009 and had the idea of promoting the first race of the season. This would take place on the weekend of September 19-20. It would push the Minnesota cyclocross calendar one week earlier than normal.
Our debate is whether this is too early in the season to start cyclocross racing. The road and track season has wrapped up by then, but are racers ready for the cross season by mid-September?
I noticed that there are some dates on the Minnesota cyclocross calendar that are still to be determined. We could look at filling one of those dates, but I am curious to get input regarding starting the season one week earlier.
Let me know your thoughts. Thanks.
17 Responses to “MN cross season”
i wish the season went deeper rather than started early. i like cyclocross better in the cold. however, any additional races on the calendar would be great.
It seems like to me that everyone checks out of the road season in July. I would like some earlier cross races in warmer weather.
Cheq Fat Tire 40 is Sept 19th weekend. Last MNSCS Race is the Singletrack Escape in St. Cloud on Sept 26th. I’ve skipped early CX races before for mountain bike races instead.
Regardless, CX in 70F temps just doesn’t have the same appeal. I’d rather we worked towards later races in November. We should have a TC CX event on Thanksgiving weekend. December starts getting sketchy though.
I would also like to see it later into the year, not earlier, in keeping with the rest of the world. I recognize that it’s colder here than in Belgium of course, but it still ends pretty early here.
I’m up for what ever. Earlier. later. Longer. Deeper. Wider.
FPA
I’m with FPA.
Chequamegon moved out a week in 2009, which is why the tenative MN Cross calendar starts a week later. We can have races that weekend (Sept 19-20), those promoters just have to realize they are going up against Chequamegon.
@JimmerC: Chequamegon? Does anyone still do that race?
Maybe have the cross race on Sunday to allow for Jared’s “double dip”?
I wish it went later.
I am just ready for F1 season.
I don’t do Chequqmegon anymore. It was cool back in the 90s, now it’s just annoying
start early and run late..cross burn-out also occurs late in the season
Honestly – I’ve got nothing against cross season going later in the year, but realize that with the season the way it is, turnouts drop pretty rapidly after mid October (save for state championships). I think “training series” style events could still be successful with the predictably small turnout it would have, since it would keep expenses low (and not require officials).
Please, however, keep cyclocross out of July and August.
later rather than earlier…if you race past MN state champs it actually is more fun and less stress also you can design the ‘perfect course’ since you will have seen many courses and be pissed off/inspired by them
I had a promoter in Illinois tell me that Thanksgiving was a good weekend for him because there were lots of people around that were sick of spending time with their extended families and looking for an excuse to get out of the house.
I remember way back in the day we had some cross races in the early spring, before the road season got underway. Just a thought.
Anyway, I think the more races the better, thanks for promoting!
It is right the way it is now.