Slideshow: ‘Cross is coming…are you ready?

Mud and smiles coming soon.
– Watch slideshow below –
(Photos © J. Maus)

There is no denying that the cyclocross season is upon us.

The first sign is always an increase in sales of ‘cross bikes and parts on the OBRA email list. Then, I hear shop employees telling me how everyone is coming in to gear up for the season. Eventually, local bike bloggers start writing about it, Forest Park and Willamette Blvd (which riders use to loop back from Forest Park) begin to fill up with ‘cross riders, and friends I would never expect to try it, start saying they’re excited to race for the first time.

In ‘cross, spectating is almost as fun as racing.

And finally, someone involved with the Cross Crusade emails me to say:

“It’s that time again. Cross season. All hell breaks loose.”

In honor of that quote, I went through my archives and selected 60 or so images from last season. The soundtrack is live audio from a Cross Crusade event recorded by Dan Kaufman of Crank My Chain! Cycle TV. Watch the slideshow below (for best results, try it in full-screen mode):

Here’s a quick and dirty (how appropriate) cyclocross primer:

• Pain on the Peak is next weekend — it’s the first ‘cross race of the year.
• The Cross Crusade is the largest ‘cross race series in the world! There are eight races in the series and the action starts October 6th.
• Hone your skills or learn the basics at the ‘cross clinics at Alpenrose Dairy (each Weds., there are two more left).
• Race Cyclocross! is a cool, locally produced ‘cross blog.

And there’s a lot more ‘cross coverage to come…stay tuned to BikePortland.org for all the action.