Cyclocross Musings

This fall I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried cyclocross for the first time, starting with Tree House CX (which I spectated last year) and Northampton CX the following weekend. 

What is cyclocross? Imagine a combination of road cycling, mountain biking, trail running, and steeplechase over a ~2-mile looped course that includes various man-made and natural features like barriers, steep run-ups, stairs, and sand pits.

In short, it’s hard. Although these races are “short” by cycling standards, there are few sports that require as much intensity, skill, versatility, tactical decision making, and adaptability as a ‘cross race.

To excel at ‘cross requires a unique combination of skills and abilities, both on and off the bike. A well–rounded “complete” athlete will probably do better at ‘cross than someone who is more one dimensional, even if they are really fit and good at pedaling their bike on the road.

Here is a short list of the qualities needed for ‘cross from my limited experience:

Strength - Upper body/core strength for carrying/shouldering the bike over barriers and unrideable terrain. Lower body strength for high torque efforts, sprints, and running up steep hills.

Mobility - Especially the hips and lower body for frequent mount/dismounts to run over barriers and other features. 

Bike handling/skills - Cornering, bunny hopping, riding over roots and rocks, through loose sand, grass, mud, and pavement, often while bumping shoulders with other riders. Skills sessions on specific terrain and doing more CX races are the best way to get better at this.

Running - Transitions where you go from riding, to running with your bike, and then back to riding are really taxing on both the lungs and the legs. You don’t need to be a marathon runner, but you need to at least practice some transitional running in workouts to prepare for this demand during races.

Anaerobic capacity and repeatability - These races are all out smash fests from start to finish, where you need to be able to sprint hard, settle, surge, and do that over and over again for 30-60 minutes with minimal recovery. If you enjoy micro-style intervals like tabatas or 30/30s, then you might like (or at least not hate) cyclocross. If you prefer riding steady or time trials, maybe not so much. 

This was a great way to finish off the 2024 season, and I’m looking forward to doing more of this in the future!