ryand

So, is anybody here going to be racing in Charlottesville this weekend?

dutret

urban charlottesville????

what is this?

dirtyphotons

it's ****ing adorable. and it reminds me how little civilization there is in that whole area of virginia such that charlottesville looks "urban" by comparison.

sort of a waste though, since i bet there is some beautiful natural stuff in that area that would make a great course.

Lithuania

i was planning on doing this but im signed up for iron cross instead.

dutret

Is this a real cross race or an alley cross thing? If that later I assume it's just urban because the hipsters at UVA think urban riding is cool whether or not what they do really counts. If the former I've baffled.

The roads are amazing in that part of VA though.

dirtyphotons

oh it's legit.

https://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=5373

i'll be interested to see what the pics look like, i couldn't find any online. i'll be stuck in the district for the weekend.

shapelike

Anyone have a link to the junkyard urban cross race that happened awhile back? I seem to remember something about a run-up through an old trailer. Assuming everyone's tetanus shots were up to date that must have been good times.

Edit: here we go ...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/phillyb...7594405092671/

ryand

Apparently last year was wicked muddy.

cardstock and I are going to be racing this after a friend's wedding this weekend.

I'll post pictures.

ryand

That is Bilenky Urban Cross. Its on December 9th this year. You can find information and pictures from last year here: https://bilenky.com/Menu.html

dirtyphotons

that one was outside of philly.



and it's happening again this year. december 9, i'll be there.

truckin

I was in C'ville last weekend and bummed that I missed this race since I can't make it this weekend, but I had fun MTBing at Wintergreen, Walnut Creek, and the O Hill trails.

jfmckenna

There is not a whole lot of info on this race. What is the course like? Is it part of the VA CX Series? I remember doing some races at Panarama (sp) Farms but I guess they closed that venue down.

ryand

Yes, it is race #2 in the VA CX series.

I found a link for photos from last year, but the link was dead.

I did find one blog entry that only talked about how muddy it was last year.

acorn_user

I'm doing it, assuming I can put aside the mechanical trouble I've been having this week.

I'll take Albemarle vs NoVA civilization any day, except that most of the students come from NoVA anyway

The course is going to have a sandpit this year. There are a few blogs on last years course. It was super muddy. It's bone dry right now. I'd imagine that there will be lots of obstacles! Many of which I get to pull down at the end...

SaddleBags

I raced it today. It's callled Urban Cross for being inside beautiful C-ville city limits. It's tucked in a old warehouse area that's been renuvated into commercial space.
The course was pretty technical with a sand pit, tight turns, quick run ups, lots of loose gravel, tricky off camber downhills, and some turns on pavement where you can carry some speed.
I did the C race and ended up 16th after suffering 3 dropped chains and a crash.

Hey Acorn - what race were you in? Were you the guy in the UVA kit?

ryand

I raced C. Took the hole shot and let the first lap. Finished up the second lap around third and then I bonked a bit. Ended up finishing 11th after a crash.

Super fun course, I'll write up a more informative race report later and post pictures tonight.

Cardstock took 3rd in the A's (his first race as an A).

dirtyphotons

whoa congrats ryand and cardstock and saddlebags! those are awesome placings.

moar about the crash? anybody get hurt? is the bike ok?

SaddleBags

That was a smart move on taking the hole shot. The pack was a cluster-f*** after somebody layed their bike down on the first turn over the curb. I watched as you guys took off down the pavement as the pack tried to get by the wreck. My wreck occured after the sand pit area on the grassy incline. I hit a hole and did an endo. I thought for sure my Mavic was tacoed with the speed I was carrying but it stayed true. After I checked my bike and bones, I got up and laughed off the wreck. I got some good laughs and jokes as I came around the announcer by the sand pit wearing the course on my jersey.

The guy who won the C (Elliot from W&L) was on a regular road bike. He fit some 30's up front but had a regular road tire in the rear. I was talking to him before the race and offered up my pit wheel but he had campy. I was waiting for him to flat but he never did.

I didn't have the right gearing for the course. I ran a 42x12/27 and wished I had a 39 upfront for some of those climbs. That course was fun but that off-camber downhill turn was a tough one.

ryand

That sandpit was ****ing awesome.
10' wide, 40' wide, and about 10" deep with a slight turn, but if you picked the right line, you could power right through.

I washed out around a hairpin due to very dry, loose ground. The fall was enough for the person behind me to get pretty far in front of me.

I have to go see if my boss is in yet, then once I figure out what my day is looking like today, I'll start a race report.

ryand

Julie posted some photos.

Here is Ben at the end of the sandpit:


Here is me leading lap 1 through the barriers:


See that very little green Salsa Chili con Crosso behind me?
That kid was 14, won the juniors race and then took 4th in the Men's C. Beastly.

You can see more of Julie's photos here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/chimbly...7602433337437/

jfmckenna

WOW now that's a sand pit!

SaddleBags

Thanks for the photo link. Photo wiz Kevin Dillard (https://www.velophotos.net/) was there and took 5th (i think) in the C's. He should have some pics posted on his sight soon.

ryand

Yes, he took 5th.

That 14 year old that won the Juniors took 4th.

I can't wait to see Kevin's pictures.

acorn_user

I was indeed the C racer with the UVA kit. And the repurposed trekking bike.

That was a lot of fun. I probably saw you guys on the course then. I started cautiously and then got in my stride and started moving up the field as people tired. Unfortunately, I got a puncture just after that nasty off camber turn (and just as was catching the man in black). The tyre became unrideable just before the sand pit.

Now, since I was worrying about the tyre, I fluffed my dismount and went headfirst into the sand! Whoops. I then had to run the rest of the course. Ugh. It was still fun though. I nearly had 12th or 11th, but wound up 17th, which is still pretty good

Look forward to further reports! Did anyone do Corkscrew cross?

SaddleBags

That was me that passed you soon after you started running. At least you got the biggest cheer after Ruth announced that you ran your bike almost the entire last lap.