Cyclocross Champs Update - Online Entry and Short Track XC

Morgan

Entry Criteria
There has been some recent discussion about licence requirements for this race. We would like to assure riders that both 2009 and 2010 licences will be accepted at sign-on. You can see the full entry requrements here.

Online Sign-On
An Online Sign-On form for the event is now available. We encourage all participating riders to pre-register for the event here. Please enter your details and pay your entry fee on the day. This will greatly speed-up sign on before the race.
Online Registration Form

Short Track XC
In addition to the championship race there will also be a Short Track XC race earlier in the day.
This race will be on a modified course (no dismounts required!) providing an exciting race for riders and spectators alike.
It will be suitable for mountainbikers of all abilities, and cyclocross riders who do not qualify for the Championship event are also welcome to enter.

Event Website
For all event details, please visit:
http://sites.google.com/site/irishcxchamps

Regards,
Greg May
DCU Cycling Club

Morgan O'Connell
Cycling Ireland Offroad Commission

billy.fish

One Day left folks then this kicks off

Even if you arent racing come out and cheer on those who are. Course is running well, going to be an interesting days racing with the top slot open to at least 5 riders.

Hope to see you there

Greg

RobFowl

Mental note don't start adjusting brakes at 23:00 when you should be going to bed!!!

Good luck to every one doing this and hopefully see lots of you there.

billy.fish

How did people find it?

bcmf

went there with the kids.
Missed the start of the underage race
But having said that my 8yo did a lap* and loved it.
Something that I did notice ,although I didnt hang around for the main event, while walking of a good bit of the circuit on foot was the amount of people out walking dogs and buggies on the open part's of the circuit. I know it is a popular park more or less in central Dublin on a Sun morn.............



*he didnt climb the steps and didnt do the "hill u turn" but still..............

billy.fish

Yeah the dogs are an issue, but we cant stop that.

Compared to the days we were training on the course, there was about 500% less incidents with dogs on race day. We had HUGE issues one day with a certail labrador!

But nothing we can get done with park authorities as the people who police the dog walkers are not available on weekends

What did you think of the main race? good to watch?

Lumen

Race reports please!

billy.fish

Give me an hour and i'll give you the race orginiser/rider perspective!

Pigeon Reaper

you'll always have problems with dogs and buggies in the park on a Sunday. Maybe next year put a few posters up around the park a week before hand to let the locals know about the race and to come down and support the race. The 5km run the previous week did that and had a great response and support.

billy.fish

Did that last year and got complaints

bcmf

Regardless it looked like a great course in a great spot.

RobFowl

Lumen wrote: »

Race reports please!

Here you go !

Lovely morning dry with a slight chill in the air. Arrived at St Annes aroung 12. Wouldn't usually consider riding a National Championships but I used to live beside the park and thought it was far too good a chance to miss.
Met BCMF there and saw his young fella tearing around the trails.
Sign on was straight forward especially as I'd pre-registered.
Then changed and went to warm up. First impressions were good. The course was in good shape. Firm sections mixed with a few very muddy stretchs. Fast as well. I'd a 46/36 and even warming up didn't have to use the little ring.

At the start line chatted to the other Swords guys riding one of whom is just back from injury and got a slagging from others who turned up to watch. There was a good crowd watching even at the start line.

The start itsself was a bit chaotic. Despite the organisers best efforts the riders kept pushing forward and wouldn't get behind the start/finish line. NExt thing a whistle went and we were off. Or rather everyone else was , 25 years experience and couldn't get my foot into the clips
The start was fast and hit a sharp left then right before a narrow archway. about 9-10 skipped this turn and this cheating honest mistake made for even more congestion going into the arch.
Some muddy paths lead into a short steep climb followed by a short steep descent. The spectators here were great. Lots of noise and even a horn of some description. Back onto a gravel path and up a slight drag (spectators having a BBQ on the corner!) then more singletrack through trees with some fab twists a turns, back onto paths then into the trees again. Over a path up the banking then sharp left into trees , around a football ptich then over another bank onto paths then a sharp right into the muddiest section of the day. To me the easiest line was as sharp as possible. The wider you went here the softer and deeper the mud. Hit that section on lap one and barely got through it. I was lapped by the winner here on lap 6 (for the second time...) and he just seemed to glide over it. From this a fast section then another right into the mud !! Twice I got the line wrong and the front wheel just plugged. Even the exit was muddy and got slower and slower each lap (or was that just me).
Back aroung the "old" lake , paths the over a bridge under anothee arch, left , left again and into the trees . A super fast s shaped descent which I managed to get wrong every time but just about stayed upright and then the steps. Rough cut ones first under an arch the 2 sets of 4. I don't know how many in total but ran the the first 3 times ran the walked the next 2, walked on lap 6 and the last time was just pure pain.
The lap finished with a nice section with a short ramp into a steep descent and back onto the tarmac and start/finish line.
Sports psychology talks about goal setting and visualisation being vital. Elite atheltes have clear and identifable goals. I'd a clear goal which I thought was unachievable. Try not to make a tit of myself and try not to finish last !
Twice I fell off when the front wheel plugged. Once was ok as there was no-one about. The second time 3 mountain bikers saw every second from the look of panic when I'd realised I'd missed the ridable section tot he clumsy stall and fall to the less than graceful sight of dragging the bike out while up to my ankles in mud. So missed ny first goal.
To my surprise though I wasn't last...
Anyway the course was as good as I've seen. Lots of variation, Fast (Big ring all the way round), beautiful setting, Cafe at the finish and marshals every where they were needed.
It was a nice surprise to see so many spectators as well and the dogs were ekpt under reasonable control.
The winner rode a great race and lead almost from the start. Well done to Joe McCall and to Ryan Sherlock and Liam McGreevy in 2nd and 3rd.
Well done to DCU for organising the event.
The Swords riders finished 21st, 33rd and 44th (quess which one was me ) although one was just back from injury otherwise would have been top 10 at least.
Stiff and sore today but yesterday was one of the most enjoyable races I've ever done.
Roll on next season.

RobFowl

Loads of pics here

http://pix.ie/poochiem/album/368342

And some pics and a video here

http://picasaweb.google.com/cnahern/CyclocrossNationalChampionships07_02_10#5435575514019916930

billy.fish

*intake of breath*

Yesterday was probably one of the most stressful days in my life. Trying to run a national championships and compete in one on the same day. In my head in the lead up i thought; 'Sure if Robin can do it, so can I'. Suffice to say i was wrong.

The weeks leading up to the event were hard, postponing an event like this did not go down well, either with me or the cycling community as a whole. Not much could be done with the country under snow. But i digress.... The rescheduled dates clashed with another event that meant i lost half the marshals that said they would work on the day. Stress level 1.

Rock on the week before and people start dropping like flies , random statements coming out in the press about licence conditions that had no grounding in the truth, and the park still frozen in ice. Stress level 4

Day before, have scrounged enough marshals through emails/twitter/beer promises. Getting all the last bits sorted, meet the park, walk the course, de-flood the section 2 foot under water (bet you cant guess where that was). Everything was in place except my head. Stress level 5

2am, before the race, up in 5 hours to start marking the course. Cant sleep, cant eat, stomach in bits. Stress level 7.

7am Breakfast time...ooh food. Stress level 5. 7:30am arrive at the park and start taping out in the dark. Stress level 4.

9am marshals and helpers arrive, keep taping; stress level 5.

10am Phone call from Ollie, timing computer is not working. Ring Dave for spare. Stress level 7.5 ish. 11am, timing still shagged. underage race to start in 30mins, only 2 but gotta get them out. Stress 8.

11:45am underage race goes, only 2 riders. Get sent the wrong way by the 'leader'. Bodes well.....

12pm Timing is still down, tell the MTB race we are going to be at least 15 mins late. 12:30pm MTB race starts....god i feel bad. Stress level 8.

12:45 i leave my race radio down, and ride over to the room where my kit is. Race is starting in 15mins. No time for warmup time to get into kit, cram a gel in, grab a glass of water, get Stu to pin on my number and 'race'. Stress 3, this was the calmest moment of the whole day and at this point i almost thought about just leaving and going home.

1:10pm On the start line with people i thought i knew acting like idiots. This moment goes into my mental trove of times i will remember for the rest of my life, and one that has changed opinions of people for me for ever. You know who you are.

1:15pm Race starts, gridded at the back with no stress.

8 laps later race over. I'll write about that later.

Lumen

Christ on a bike. :eek:

Too late now, but if I'd known you'd had that many dropouts I would have come along to marshall. (hangs head in shame)

Good man anyway for ploughing on regardless.

billy.fish

*turn off organising brain, turn on race brain*

Ok why am i at the back? This sucks, normally second row. This start is going to suck. Ok, roll with it, you can make time up you're ready to rock. No wait you didn't get a warm up. What gear am i in? Whistle? WTF where is the god damned warning!

Clip in, clunk clunk clunk, sprinting hard, on the brakes again. Ok that's 10 places easy. Left, tight right cut it wide, grip on the grass sprint again. Cut the corner at the bush, go in high to the tree, tight cut back left. Ok that's another 5 places. Into the tunnel, watch number XX shoulder a guy into the wall, give out **** to him as i ride past. Bad sportsmanship makes me sick.

Sprint along the banking up and over getting another place as i take the alternate root behind the tree after the descent. Tunnel, left turn (watch for snakebites, hit the little gap), sprint uphill, tight right with massive cheering crowd, right into the trees cut it high cut it tight. Singletrack, bermed right hander, rutted left (slippery over roots, high on the right), tight slippy left powersliding both wheels as you hit the tarmac, onto the main straight to recover.

More singletrack, grass exit, down the steep, into the tight RH over the very slippery grass. Into the crux of the course, mud alley, two rutted sections about 5m long with a break in between, followed by a bumpy mud exit. Stay central, stay loose, the tubs will take care of grip. Exit to fast downhill, RH turn to long uphill (watch the stones on the right, stay left its harder ground), over the bridge (RHS will snakebite), up to LH turn, tighter LH turn, mud section off camber grass, through tunnel, over roots (Gonna get slippery later), tunnel, tight RH, (use the berm to exit), tighter LH, super tight right (try to keep speed) onto slip sliding hell and sprint up to the steps.

36 steps to my bike again, run them run fast, split after the tunnel to the right, over take, back on bike long straight to RH turn into singletrack again, up/down/left/right onto the main straight.

Repeat x 9, puke, wonder why i do this sport. Pat people on back. Collapse.

Memories of the race: Flanders flags, BBQ, Shouting crowds, playing tag with Niall, Dave and Will.

Stress level: 0

I love to race my bike.

ryan_sherlock

I put together a quick video of some footage my brother took - use 480p and on a new screen (so it is widescreen).

Report soon - I promise (once everything else calms down!)

http://ryansherlock.blogspot.com/2010/02/2010-irish-national-cyclocross-video.html

ten speed racer

I went along to watch with my wife and son. It was an enjoyable event to watch--well done to the participants and organizers.

Assuming a beer tent is out of the question, a coffee stall at the start/finish would have been nice.