October 17/08 10:29 am - Cross on the Rock Race #3: Preview, Race Guide and news

Posted by Editoress on 10/17/08
 

Cross on the Rock Race #3
Courtesy Normon Thibault

We are pumped to have Providence Farm as our venue. We did like the twisty-turney race last year BUT we have always dreamed of racing at Providence Farm. PLEASE. PLEASE. PLEASE....LISTEN UP. This venue is not normally open to bikes because of the work they do there with horses, disabled people etc. SO PLEASE.......lets put it this way....DON'T UPSET OUR HOSTS!!! Don't ride where you should not be. Don't park where you should not be.....etc. PLEASE be on your best behavior as we Island Crossers normally are....IF you are on an "off day" and not on your best behavior....well we will just have to ask you to leave unfortunately....and no one wants that!

Providence Farm Website: www.providence.bc.ca

Money awarded to Cross on the Rock Racers for National Champs
We made an announcement a couple of weeks or so ago asking for applications from our Cross on the Rock Racers if they needed a bit of $$ Financial help/assistance to get to the National Champs that were held last weekend in Edmonton. I wanted to thank everyone that applied for the "Travel Bursaries" (as we were told to call them). Our panel of judges ended up picking 4 of the applicants for $250 each to help them with their travels. Here are the four athletes that we were proud to support:

1. Jaymie McGowan. Female Elite

Jaymie was consistent last weekend placing 10th in both the Nationals Championships as well as the Jim Horner race the next day. Jaymie is one of those racers that is always working hard, never gives up and is always improving.

2. Dawn Anderson. Female Elite

From Dawn's application; I won the series last year. I think that I did them all except one. As for the year before??? I think that I only did two race, one was an Island Cup and the second was Nats (they were in Nanaimo). Prior to that, I didn't own a cross bike.

Dawn had a spot of bad luck during the National Champs where she was caught in a crash on the first lap and bent her rear wheel. She did not have a spare bike so we swapped the wheel out after lap 1....unfortunately the swap did not go smoothly as there was a crazy problem with the FSA Skewer and her frame-rear DR. After about 45 seconds Andrew Brown offered his bike which she took for 1⁄2 a lap until we had her bike sorted out again. Once on her own bike Dawn went to work catching girl after girl until she ran out of time with a 4th place finish. The next day at the Jim Horner race she placed on the podium with a 3rd. We are hoping that Dawn makes it to the World Champs this January in Hoogerheide, Netherlands......we will be contacting you all about support!!

3. Nick Holatco. "The Kid" Junior

From Nick: Cyclocross is so sick!! It is just a totally different race. It combines my two loves Mtn Biking and Road Cycling into to one wicked race. I have only done 3 races so far and Nationals is going to be my 5 race but Cyclocross has just come naturally to me. I feel incredible comfortable on the bike and have no fear of taking corners hard hacking and choping lines and just straight out killing myself.

Nick is only 16 so a few more years in the junior category. At Nationals he placed a tough 10th place after getting caught in a bad crash on the first lap. The next day he placed better at 6th place but totally went for the first lap prime.

4. Kevin Noiles. Men's Elite

Needless to say Kevin kicked some major ass in Edmonton. His 5th place in the National Championships came 150 meters after a crazy last lap altercation with an Alberta Rider who from a dead stop gave Kevin a two handed shove while that rider went onto 4th place......the officials did nothing..... The next day Kevin followed up his amazing Nationals performance with a 6th in the Jim Horner race.

Event Guide
The full event guide is posted HERE. This guide, which we do for each event that has all the information that you usually need. Usually..... BUT if you have a question please feel free to e-mail us.

Event Preview of Experience Cross at Providence Farm
Sean Lunny from Oak Bay Bikes will lead a BEGINNERS ONLY pre-ride and mini clinic at 11:15 before the beginners event that anyone that is registered for the event can sit in on.

The cyclocross course at Providence Farm will be one of the fastest and most scenic races of the season to date!! The course starts off with a swift and challenging descent into a 200 m stretch of bumpy field at the base of Mount Tzouhalem. A few short but humbling climbs, fun twisty sections on footpaths through the trees, a nice muddy stretch, obstacles and ... the rest you must come and see for yourself! The forecast looks good! I just got the report on the prizes and there are LOTS (Kona , Norco and Specialized coming in as additional sponsors for this race)! For the first time in the series this year there will be a kids race and the usual categories for beginners, intermediate men, women, masters and elite.

There are toilets on site. There is a sheltered area for registration and food and spectators. Please stick to the course or the roads for warming up etc. There are gardens and grassy areas that we are not allowed to ride through so when in doubt stick to the road. There will be other people using the site on Sunday so make sure to represent the sport (and yourself... I will not expand further) well. We would like to be welcomed back to this venue as it is a great one so please keep that in mind.

Any help with cleaning up after the race would be appreciated.

Saturday Morning Victoria 'Cross Clinics
We leave Oak Bay Bikes at 9am, and head to various appropriate locations and help riders develop their cyclocross skills. From riding up and over curbs and logs to flying over barriers and riding up steep walls, we'll help you with whatever you need to become a better 'cross rider! Our attendees have gone on to be Provincial and National Champions! (Well, not yet at least!)

These clinics will be run every Saturday morning until the final 'Cross on the Rock race in November (with the exception of the double-header weekend), all are welcome, and it's free! Experienced riders encouraged as well, to share your knowledge and experience. For more details, email Dave Shishkoff: vegantrackie@gmail.com

Trail Day in Duncan
We are having a trail building weekend sponsored by ECC and IMBA... on Oct 25th and 26th... classroom and practical sessions on Cobble Hill mountain on how to build sustainable trails... a group ride to follow Sundays morning of work. I have posters and will send out a more formal email later but if you think of anyone who would be interested they can contact me. tara altimas tealtimas@hotmail.com

Arrowsmith Cycling Club Cross Clinic
FREE "intro to cyclocross" clinic (must be GRMBA club member or else purchase day-of for $10).

* 9:30 am October 26th, near Parksville, exact location TBA

* clinic will be aimed at first time/beginner racers & will include intro to the sport of cyclocross, basic skills, mini race course...basically everything you need to know to get started in the sport.

* duration = approx 1-1.5hr. Be prepared to ride (bring bike, helmet etc..) and dress with many layers to stay warm in whatever the weather brings us that day.

Interested participants must reply to: arrowsmithmtbclub@gmail.com

Any Questions?
Feel free to contact me at this e-mail address.

Normon Thibault at normont@islandnet.com

www.island-multi-sports.com