Category: Spooky Cross

Be Very Afraid -- From Spooky to Nationals

10/22/2021

"It wouldn't be a true Spooky Cross if there weren't new additions, right?" teased Race Director Justin Guiter, of Zealous Racing. "I wish I could tell you we had added a monstrous sand pit, some steps for a run up, or a stone wall to navigate over, but all those things you'll have to find at other venues, at least for this year.

"I actually tried to go in a different direction this year and make the course . . . easier.
That being said, easy is
a relative term."

"Our courses can benefit both the mountain biker and the roadie, and with this venue it maybe leans a little more toward the mountain biker's side of the spectrum due to the geography. With a couple tweaks here and there, we've come up with a course that flows well and settles a little more in the middle of the two disciplines. A couple final adjustments will depend on if we have full access or even partial access to the road like we did a few years ago."

Angy Snoop (angysnoop.smugmug.com)

Unfortunately Spooky will only be one day this year, Saturday October 30. "When I first contacted the city about Spooky, things were still a bit uncertain as far as where we'd be at with Covid, restrictions, and safety measures," explained Guiter. "In the end we just opted for the one day event. As always, the City of Altoona has been amazing to work with and has continued to support our racing community. This has been an odd year of racing and I'm thankful we're back to hopping barriers again."

Dress for Success

Of course, the highlight of every Spooky Cross is the two lap Costume Race. Guiter promises a photo of this year's trophy on Facebook this week, just so you know what's at stake. To make it your own you have to win over the judges based on:
1.) Your finish in the race
2.) Your costume
3.) Theatrics (your character)

Angy Snoop (angysnoop.smugmug.com)

The Costume Race is free and everyone is encouraged to participate. For the rest of the Spooky Cross race schedule, register at BikeReg.com today.

Note on parking: Parking will be very limited this year. Please do not park in the Altoona Campus parking lot to the east of the buildings. On the map yellow is good, red is bad, and the green is a trail to get over to the course.

Lion's Park to the north also has parking and you can ride the bike trail less than two minutes to the course. More details will be emailed to registered riders, so register now.

Six Weeks to Nationals

Losing most of the 2020 season to the pandemic has made us feel lucky to race cyclocross at all, but we've lost some race opportunities. With six weeks until Nationals -- in Chicago, no less -- Iowa has only four racing days on offer after Spooky. Anyone wanting to race their best at Nationals, or score some points before then, will need to broaden the scope of their race calendar.

Montrose Harbor, courtesy of SnowyMountainPhotography.com

As detailed on the CRANDIC Calendar, the Sunday after Spooky is Campton Cross just west of Chicago. The first weekend in November will feature two races in the Iowa City area, City Park CX Saturday November 6 and Creekside Cross Sunday November 7. If you'd rather travel for a big race with better points, Groundhog PSI-clocross that Sunday is a great choice, or maybe the two day Fulton Star CX in Minneapolis.

SnowyMountainPhotography.com

Again near Minneapolis is Croix Cross November 13 & 14, and the Minnesota State Championship November 20 & 21. Closer to home Saturday November 20 is Valley Cross in West Des Moines or even the Wisconsin State Championship at the Trek headquarters in Waterloo. Sunday is Wheeling CX in Chicago.

Over Thanksgiving weekend South Dakota's State Championship is Friday in Sioux Falls. After that it's just the Iowa State Championship in Altoona Saturday December 4 with the US National Championships starting just a couple days later in DuPage County Illinois (speaking of which, discounted "early bird" fee ends November 2 -- sign up now.).

Montrose Harbor, courtesy of SnowyMountainPhotography.com

Still "TBD" -- but sure to be sweet if it happens -- is Montrose Harbor in Chicago Sunday December 5, just before Nationals. Typically the last race of the Chicago Cross Cup, the Illinois State Championship, and recently a very worthy Midwest Regional Championship, sandy Montrose Harbor is about as challenging and fun as a race can be. If you're lucky enough to attend the whole National Championship, start your visit a couple days early on the shores of Lake Michigan. You won't be sorry you did.

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So Fun It's Frightening

10/21/2019

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“Spooky Cross stood out from all the other races last year," said Luke Arens of Corridor Devo. "It was a fun, warm, and fast race. I loved the long off-camber early in the race because usually races don’t have challenging off-cambers like that.”

“Last year was my first year but definitely not my last time racing Spooky Cross. I recommend it to anyone looking for a fun race that will help you grow your skill but also is not impossibly hard.”

Another relative newcomer, Kimberly Breuer of Waterloo, agreed: "My first cyclocross race was actually Spooky Cross two years ago! I had never raced anything before, I don't know a lot about bikes, and my back wheel came off in the practice lap. I still had enough fun that I came back again."

photos by Angy Snoop (angysnoop.smugmug.com/)

Last year, when Spooky moved to its new venue Altoona Campus, Kimberly was not disappointed. "The venue and atmosphere of this race are both really spectator- and beginner-friendly. The course has a nice variety of terrain with flat sections, long uphills, wide open sections, and some weaving through a wooded area.

"There was a more challenging part of the course that had an off-camber dirt section that turned immediately into a steep hill. I fell off my bike on that section, somehow landed on my feet, and someone yelled 'great dismount!'

"I did not dress up or race the Costume Race, but I had a blast watching it. Some guy pulled a beer trailer behind his bike on the course, which was great."

This second year at Altoona Campus will build on the success of 2018. "Last year was a bit of a scramble to get things in place and a course put together," said Race Director Justin Guiter. "This year we were able to get the course mowed in a lot earlier, which was great to do get some laps with a mower. From the feedback we received we decided to keep a lot of the same course with some slight changes for Saturday and Sunday.

"We added 'Cooper's Climb,' a short punchy climb through an eerie tree section. You may recall 'Gopher Hole Hill' from last year. We added that in following 'Cooper's Climb,' but not to worry, we tamed it down a bit."

Some plans for the course are still up in the air for now. "On Friday we learned road construction would close the north (main) entrance to the Altoona Campus for about two weeks," explained Guiter. "All the traffic to the Campus would be routed to the west entrance. That was a bit problematic as we used the west entrance road as part of the course. We had to get a little creative with the course design and change up a few things from last year, including the installation of a bridge across the creek that dissects the course.

"As of now we have three courses in the books. The road construction is moving quickly and hopeful the north entrance of the Altoona Campus will be open for the race weekend. But if it is not, we have our plan in place."

That infamous off-camber-to-climb section from Saturday last year? It'll be back. "The run-up from Saturday will be more of a true run up than last year. It will be a definite challenge to ride this year. I'm excited to see if anyone can."

Spooky Cross is next weekend, October 26 & 27, at the Altoona Campus. That's just over an hour and a half from Iowa City, about two from Cedar Rapids. Registration is at USA Cycling.

Spooky Cross is a fundraiser for JDRF.

Nothing Says Cyclocross like a Halloween Costume

Save some energy if you race Saturday morning, or get a good warm up if you race later, because at 1:30 Saturday it's game on for the third annual Spooky Cross Costume Race.

"The Costume Race will have the same format as last year with a shortened course and two laps," explained Guiter. "There are three criteria our judges will be looking at in crowning the winner: 1) Your finishing position in the race, 2) Your costume, and 3) Theatrics (your character).
"This will be the third year of the Costume Race and I'm anxious to see if our returning two-time winner will take it again this year. I'm not sure on the algorithm the judges have for determining the winner, but I'm sure it's quite complex."

BIKEIOWA's Jason Scholbrock offered some advice for newcomers to the Costume Race: "Make it fun, make it clever (see Vance Fletcher last year), and make certain you can ride your bike in it.
"Josh Rice from Lincoln won the first two Costume Races and rightfully so... in 2018 he rode a cargo bike disguised as a beer truck a la Smokey and the Bandit, complete with a hefty stash of cold Busch Lights which were consumed on the steep run-up.
"Oh, and I am very much looking forward to it. The Costume Race is the highlight of every Iowa cyclocross season!"

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Be Very Afraid -- From Spooky to Nationals

Dress for Success

Six Weeks to Nationals

So Fun It's Frightening

Nothing Says Cyclocross like a Halloween Costume

Races &
Topics

Archives

Authors

'crosswords

Be Very Afraid -- From Spooky to Nationals

Dress for Success

Six Weeks to Nationals​

So Fun It's Frightening

Nothing Says Cyclocross like a Halloween Costume

Races &​Topics

Archives

Authors

'cross
words

Six Weeks to Nationals

Races &
Topics