On Sunday, the Cross Crusade brought its legendary brand of bike racing to the Washington County Fairgrounds in Hillsboro, just a few miles west of Portland. Along with another stellar turnout of racers and spectators, Mother Nature made an appearance in the form of rain, much to the excitement of all the true cyclocross fans.
There wasn’t anything close to the steep and long climb of last weekend, but the course was still just as challenging. Unrelenting bumps and slippery mud took their toll on racers. One corner in particular became packed with spectators (as corners where people crash often do at bike races). It was an extremely tricky, 90-degree turn. The approach was off-camber and there was a short, steep pitch that had to be negotiated along with the right-angle bend.
