Cheshire Cross, Cheshire, CT – 11/19/2012 (from Christian Edstrom):

With morning temperatures in the 30s, it’s the time of year when cyclists start eyeing the deeper recesses of the closet to find that winter gear.  In an attempt to keep the legs warm and enjoy the receding days of autumn, Darren McNeill and I headed up to Cheshire to contest the 4s race at Cheshire Cross, the 4th round of the Connecticut Series of CX.  Joe Tramontano was flying the Signature Cycles/Rockstar Games flag in the 1-3s.

The CX course at Cheshire Park is a genuine woodland adventure.  The start is a grass dragstrip with a quick right-hand u-turn and then another grass section before heading into the woods and a short log-stair run-up.  After the run-up, the course descends into a mile-long section of tortuous roller-coaster single-track, which ends with a short bridge and an 80 meter climb and gentle descent onto the front of the course.  The front winds around the tennis courts, bbq area and baseball fields, providing ample opportunity for spectators to offer their encouragement or condolences.

Darren and I managed a mid-pack line up, and got off pretty well, avoiding any drama in the 180-degree pileup-to-be at the end of the first start.  About 3/4s of a mile in, I overcooked an off-camber single-track downhill and took a digger, letting a few riders by.  Back on the bike, we battled for position with a group of 5 riders for the first couple of laps, until Darren closed the gap on “the Climb” and passed me, adding some in-race heckling for encouragement.  Laps three and four were the usual cyclocross joy – “Oh, god this hurts” and “Oh no, last lap already?” – combined with some close racing on the more open sections of the course.

After crossing the finish and letting the heart rates subside, we ended the day cheering for Joe and relaxing on the tailgate of the car, savoring the last warming rays of the sun and the gentle burn of the embrocation.  – C.E.

BUBBLE CX, Bubbling Springs Park, West Milford, NJ – 11/4/2012:

Lucia M, Lucia D, Kristine and Luci headed out to West Milford, NJ for Bubble Cross.  We had a really great time racing together and Luci even picked up a podium spot – #2 in the Women’s Cat 4 field. An album capturing the ladies racing is on FB, but here is a group photo:

A successful weekend, and a successful photobomb by Tara.