Although new to the club, I would like to add this review to the Cyclocross section, as it is clear OVW is a purists club that I think would appreciate any info or review to do with all things bike.
Last winter I found myself watching the UCI Cyclocross champs on TV and thought how much fun it looked and how I wouldn’t mind giving it a bash ‘one day’.
I had made my decision last winter that after 15 years it was time to retire my winter bike for good (or sell on Ebay) and look for something new for this winter. With Cyclocross (CX) always in the back of my mind, and with one thing leading to another, I bought a CX bike with the intention of competing this winter, and then converting the bike to ‘tarmac spec’ and using as my new winter bike, once the racing was over.
So, I have competed on an almost weekly basis now in the Welsh Cyclocross League, and I would now like to enlighten you with my findings;
I will start by saying this has been one of the most fun and exciting few months I have had on a pushbike in a long long time. The events, attended by British Cycling referees, are incredibly well run and organised by every club, with a real family feel to every event, as much homemade cakes and flapjack as you dare to eat before a race, and plenty of friendly banter afoot. The courses offer tests of ability, agility, skill, fitness, and in my case, that chance to try out different crashing styles! The courses are always clearly marked out and suitable for all abilities (kids race the courses first, just to make sure they are nice and churned up for the adults!!) well marshalled with plenty of cow bell ringing encouragement for each and every rider.
Vets and women racing for 45 minutes and seniors 1hr over various styles of course, most offering an opportunity to carry the bike over a man-made or natural obstacle (usually a steep muddy bank!), all but 2 events have been chip timing, with results available immediately via the club website, or the British Cycling website. British cycling members pay around £10-£15 a race but day licences are available at the venue if you just ‘fancy a go’.
The most standout observation has to be the family/community feel of every event, often with Mums&Dads cheering on kids in the morning, and kids&wives cheering on Dads in the afternoon!
With only 3 rounds remaining I am already acknowledging that I will miss this new adventure terribly, and that next season cannot come soon enough. A truly welcome change to a long cycling (Triathlon in my case) season, that has been uplifting and morale boosting, that I think all purists should try at least once, and maybe something for the club to consider hosting an event in the future, as a great way to generate new members?
