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Night   at   the   OVal   is   Back   Tuesday

5/7/2021

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​Night at the Oval is back Tuesday, starting with a night of bike racing at Hawkeye Downs presented by Goldfinch Cyclery. Financial support from area bike shops makes Night at the Oval possible, but Goldfinch isn't stopping there. ​
"We'll bring our tent and some service essentials to take care of any mechanical needs for folks," said Logan Orcutt. 
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"The shop team will be on-site with grillables, NA beverages, and good energy. We'll offer the hospitality free of charge but accept cash donations towards the Corridor Devo Junior Cycling Team's upcoming season." 
​Below, a few Night at the Oval testimonials from 2018, though all still very true today.

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(photo by Joanne Konrath McKillip)
Ryan Bimson, CRCX

"The latest NatO was Cam's first and he really liked it. He loved how each race was a bit different and really liked the race that started on the big oval for a lap then the mid oval and then the small oval." [Larry Howe's "Spiral of Death." Ew.]
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"I enjoyed watching all the races but the last one [the 'Granny Gear Race'] with everyone in their easiest gear for the one lap race was my favorite. That was funny!
"We are excited to be there this Tuesday and this time I will race too. See ya Tuesday!"

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Kat Porter, Twisted Spokes

"Love the Oval - I have been going for years. The different race formats are fun and make you think and get your strategy going.

"My favorites are the 'C Race' and points races. NatO gives folks an opportunity to ‘road race’ at a lowered risk level and practice drafting and lead out skills."

Kaden Snoops

"I recommend NatO to anyone, whether you've done any sort of crit or pack racing or not. This is a really good event to learn skills about road racing since it's a closed course, and it's nothing too serious."
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(photo by Angie Snoop)
Mario Czarnomski, ICCC

"The Night at the Oval is a fantastic race-like workout that preps you for crits and sprints. Get a good warm up because the intensity is high from the GO!"


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Steve Tygrett,
​CRANDIC Racing Club

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"Nato has quickly become my favorite road race.  It's great for beginners like me because it allows you to practice riding in a pack at race speed, with relatively low risk of crashes.  
The races mainly take place on the 1/2 mile oval, so the terrain is flat and predictable, allowing you to just focus on staying with the pack, and timing your sprint.

​"
At NatO there are multiple races in a night, which gives you the chance to try out different strategies.  If you mess up  your first race, just wait 10 minutes and go at it again with a new strategy.

"The best part is the relaxed and friendly atmosphere.  While it is competitive, everyone is there to have a good time on their bikes on a Tuesday
 night."

Erik Bandy,
Johnson County Flyers


“Night at the Oval is a great atmosphere to practice sprint finishes and team tactics without the fear of being dropped miles from the finish.”

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photo by Angie Snoop

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(photo by Angie Snoop)
Keith Snoop

"My favorite race is the 'Big C' as it requires technical skills to get through the tight corners. NatO is a great racing experience for beginners as it is low key and low pressure. It is also a great way to get in some interval training on a Tuesday night."

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Victor, Youth Off Road Riders & Goosetown Racing/New Pioneer Food Coop

"It's a great opportunity for kids to get to know their community and to meet new people and share new experiences with them. Especially those that mountain bike often but are trying to get into road racing.

My favorite race is the "Miss and Out," because it's very tense at times and relaxed at other times. I enjoy having to sprint often."


Wayne Fett, Goosetown Racing/New Pioneer Food Coop

"The Oval races help everyone with their race skills no matter how long they've been racing.  It also provides an excellent interval or sprint workout."

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"I started racing 10 or so years ago. I've done NatO every time since...when I'm in town. I've been leading out Karl 'The Sprinter' Rosenberg when we were both at HBA, then New Pi and now CRANDIC." (photo by Angie Snoop)
Rob McKillip, CRANDIC Racing Club

​"NatO is the Cliff Notes of bike racing ... just the important bits, none of the long, boring miles. It's a unique chance to try out the strategies you normally only ready about, or see on TV.

"Just try out different strategies, be bold ... if it didn't work, who cares, try something different in the next race, ten minutes later. It's an awesome workout. You will get to hear rates you'll just never see in your basement ... and have way more fun doing it!

"There's an A and B group, so don't have to worry about being slow. Besides, everybody is nice. Also, it's fan friendly -- you can see the entire race, so bring your family. There is no better way to learn to race.

"Come challenge the Snoops in the Granny Gear Race, or Rob in the Big Gear Race ..."

Read   more   About   Night   at   the   Oval

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Inside   a   Night   at   the   Oval

4/24/2021

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Night at the Oval is always fun, but each night of track-inspired bike racing is also a bit different.
Part of that is down to who shows up and how many people are racing. Another part is how many races we can fit in and which races we do.
So how does it all work?
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Stephen Mally/The Gazette-KCRG TV9
Each night racers are divided into groups depending on how many are racing. Often that's just A & B, but we'll see. The groups take turns racing on Hawkeye Downs' 1/2 mile, 1/4 mile, &/or 1/8 mile tracks, allowing for multiple short races with rest periods between.

The   Fun   Stuff   (Races)

How many races we fit in and which we do varies from night to night. Here's a rundown on the types of races we might do. But don't study this too hard, as before each race a handsome USA Cycling official* will remind us all of how the race is run. (*Yes, I'm kissing up shamelessly, but NatO would never happen without our handsome USAC officials.)
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Most nights each group starts out with a scratch race. This is a straight forward criterium (a circuit race on a shorter circuit) with no turns. However-many laps around the 1/2 mile oval track and the race is scored entirely on the finish order. Why is it called a scratch race? I dunno. If you know, leave a comment.
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photo by Angy Snoop (angysnoop.smugmug.com)
Another favorite is the points race. Points are awarded to the first three riders on every sprint lap, usually every second or third lap. Riders who score points are placed based on their total. Riders who don't score points are placed behind them in the order they finish the last lap.
"I run the snowball quite a bit," says (handsome) USAC official Larry Howe. "It's a variant of the points race. Sprint laps every other lap, but only first place gets points. How many points increases each sprint: two for the first sprint, four points for the second, six for the third sprint, and ten points for the finish." Riders with points are placed accordingly. Riders without are placed behind them based on their finish.
Win & out is just what it sounds like: the first rider across the line on each lap wins the lap and retires from the race. The winner of lap #1 wins first place, of lap #2 is second, and so on for however many laps. Riders remaining on the final lap are scored in their order of finish.
Devil take the hindmost isn't quite as grim as it sounds.
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Bruce Timmerman and Larry Howe making it happen.
Basically, it's miss & out -- the last rider each lap is removed and given the respective finish placement. Lap #1's last rider will be last place, lap #2's last rider is second to last, etc. (While cycling would love to take credit for "devil take the hindmost," the proverb predates the bicycle by at least 300 years.)
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In the big C race things start to get a little crazy. Both the 1/2 mile and 1/4 mile ovals are used to create a circuit like an outline of a C. This multiple lap criterium involves the closest thing to turns and elevation change you'll see all night. It's scored by the finish order.
The spiral of death/spiral of life gets even crazier. One lap each of the 1/2, 1/4, & 1/8 mile ovals in a spiral .... then back out. The course is unique, to say the least
By tradition, the two last 1-lap races of the night don't count in the night's overall results. They're just fun.  Big gear is one lap in ... your biggest gear. Start with both feet on the ground, and it's a rush to clip in and grind up to speed. You're not allowed to shift out or your big gear.
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Little gear is one lap in your smallest gear, and the same rules apply. Goofy enough that it's probably good that big gear and little gear don't count. Still, we'll list how everyone finished just for bragging rights.

Scoring   the   Night   at   the   Oval

Night at the Oval is an omnium, a track term for a collection of shorter races. Every racer gets points for each race, and the fewest total points wins.
In each race, explained Howe, "the winner gets one point, 2nd place gets two points, all the way down the line, so 34th place gets 34 points."
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photo by Scott Wall (douglasaveimages.smugmug.com)
Sit out a race and you get the maximum points (so one night when 40 people were suffering in the heat, eight people got 40 points for skipping a race and the very last person who actually raced got 32). "The tie breaker is the rider with the highest place finish in any race. If that is equal, it's the finish in the final race of the evening."
Speaking of scoring, with any luck at all racers will be able to follow along as the night's results unfold on CRANDICRacing.com. Fingers crossed...​

Sponsors   and  . . .  Prizes ? ! ? ! ?

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Night at the Oval has never made a lot of money. Renting Hawkeye Downs isn't exactly cheap (even when they cut us a deal), so many years the event barely broke even. This year, however, NatO has received a lifeline through the generous sponsorship of four area bike shops: Goldfinch Cyclery, Geoff's Bike & Ski, Sugar Bottom Bikes, and Northtowne Cycling & Fitness. If you enjoy racing Night at the Oval, please let them know that you appreciate their support.
Finances aren't the only reason that prizes are a bit tricky here. We're not even sure which groups will race -- A & B? add a Juniors Group? or Women? a C group strictly for beginners? -- and in the past we couldn't finalize results for days afterward (again, working on it).
In the future hopefully we can offer more prizes, cash, or whatever. For now, though, we can at least do this: in each of whatever group races, the top placed male and female will get a night of free racing whenever they choose at Night at the Oval. Except Juniors, of course, because you all race free anyway.
Registration for Night at the Oval is online only at BikeReg.com.
Come race your bike.
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Two   Series,   Too   Fun

4/24/2019

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CRANDIC   TT   &   Night   at   the   Oval

CRANDIC Racing Club is thrilled to present two bike racing series over the summer of 2019, the CRANDIC Time Trial Series at Big Grove Solon and Night at the Oval at Hawkeye Downs in Cedar Rapids. Two very different races that we love dearly.
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Thanks for photos from Joanne Konrath McKillip, Angy Snoop, and Matt Hartman.
At first glance these races couldn't seem more different: the time trial is "the race of truth," just you against the clock, while Night at the Oval is track-inspired pack racing at its finest; the TT in Solon is along Sutliff Road, one of the most beautiful and bike-friendly spots in the Corridor, while NatO is in industrial Cedar Rapids at Hawkeye Downs, a race track typically reserved for cars, go-cart, semi trailers, and the like. Despite their differences, a closer look at these two races reveals both their similarities and the reasons that we love them so.
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A great place to start
In their own ways both races are perfect for  beginners. Hawkeye Downs is a big, wide track without so much as a corner, so NatO riders have all the space they could want as they practice pack riding and racing techniques. On the other hand, in a TT riders start at set intervals, nearing each other only to pass, so beginners can go all out without worrying about bumping elbows or touching wheels.

CRANDIC   TT   
on   Facebook
Night   at   the   Oval 
on   FaceBook
Just as important, both series are mid-week, informal events that are welcoming to beginners but hard enough to challenged even seasoned racers.
Simple, but never easy
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Every wanna-be racer has ridden a time trial. The minute we feel competitive on a bike we test our strength on a set course by timing ourselves. A time trial, simple as that. What makes it hard is concentrating, pacing, and wanting to go faster next time.
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While at Night at the Oval each race is different, they mostly come down to a sprint. But the nuances of drafting other riders, finding the right position, and timing the jump to perfection make every sprint different, and every sprint a challenge.

Hit the road
It may not be the sexiest thing out there these days, but road cycling is the basis of all bike racing. Navigating a cyclocross start is all but impossible without pack riding skills. In the right conditions drafting features even in gravel or mtb racing. Pacing well is essential to any race. And all bike racing disciplines reward fitness won on the road.

​Bike racing came from the road. Its most essential skills are still right at home there.
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Two series, too fun
CRANDIC is committed to making these races fun for everyone. For the crusty old roadie that's not hard at all: Yell "go" and they're happy, and they'll find plenty of competition at either of these races. For beginners – whether they're new to the road, or to bike racing in general – we say welcome, ride hard and have fun, and let us know if we can help.
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We're CRANDIC Racing Club. We love to race.


TT:   Do   a   Fast   Ride
Nato:   Pack   Riding   101
The CRANDIC Time Trial Series begins Wednesday, May 1. Night at the Oval begins Tuesday, May 14. Find more info on both at CRANDICRacing.com.
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Round   and   round    –   A   Night   at   the   oval

4/21/2018

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How's your sprint? Do you even know? How many chances do you get to try different finishes when win or lose you're done until next weekend? Imagine instead sprinting every few minutes for 5 or 6 laps in a race, then resting a few minutes and going at it again. Welcome to Night at the Oval. 

Long a staple of the Hawkeye Bicycle Association in Cedar Rapids, Night at the Oval has been sorely missed the last few years. Fortunately this year Goosetown Racing Club has brought the series back to life. "We need  more beginner-friendly race opportunities, and this is a very safe and easy venue to set up," said GRC's Larry Howe. 

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Pack   Riding   101   –   a   night   at   the   oval

4/20/2018

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Riding in a group means drafting, riding close to others to save energy. It takes practice, balancing safety, comfort, and speed. But it really isn't difficult: ride smoothly and predictably, anticipate others, guard your front wheel, and relax.

Fortunately Night at the Oval offers a perfect chance to practice pack riding skills. Racers are staged in appropriate skill levels, and as CRANDIC Racing Club's Rob McKillip explains: "The track is huge. There is a ton of space. Get in the pack if you're comfortable. If not, sit at the back, or even attack and try to time trial away. Either way, it's a safe way to have fun and get a killer workout." 

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    John Stonebarger

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