Originally Posted by santiago
The thing about CX racing, the mindset in particular, is that they look for racing efficiency. They don't see the need for extreme granny-gearing because if the hill is that steep, you're faster running it. In the pic above it looks like the guy figured it would be quicker to run that particular mud pit rather than try to power through it.
I actually noticed that there doesn't seem to be a speck of dirt on the bike.