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All-terrain cycling: Cyclocross has a large following in Madison

Scott Shafer
Correspondent for The Capital Times  —  10/02/2008 5:55 am

For one full hour, a cyclocross racer is challenged on many fronts: tight serpentine curves, straightaways and run-ups, where riders carry their bikes over obstacles, often covered with mud.

In other words: racers get their butts kicked.

Over 400 cyclocross riders did just that last weekend at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie for the inaugural Jonathan Page's Planet Bike Cup.

The weekend ended with pro racer Jonathan Page winning the Elite Men's division each day of the two-day event named after him and Madison West High School senior Anna Young placing fourth and third in the two Elite Women's races.

Just what is cyclocross?

Renee Callaway, an accomplished rider from Madison and the Planet Bike Cup race director, explains that cyclocross competitions last between 30 and 60 minutes on a looped course of different elements including pavement, grass, dirt and gravel. Also, there must be at least one obstacle that requires riders to dismount and run over it carrying their bike.

"That is the thing that really sets it apart (from other disciplines), the fact you are getting off your bike and running with it," Callaway said on Sunday, moments before about 60 racers started their 45-minute race on the third-of-a-mile clay oval of Angell Park, winding around the speedway's grounds multiple times.

The high point of the cyclocross season is autumn and winter, and the sport was likely conceived by road racers as a way to get training in after the road season ends.

"Because you get off and run with your bike, it is easy to stay warm when it gets colder out," Callaway said. "When there is snow on the ground your feet would get too cold just riding around, so you are getting off and running too. It started out as a little offseason activity and now it has grown into a really popular activity of its own."

In addition to being home to Trek Bicycle Corp. and Pacific Cycle, Wisconsin boasts many amateur and professional cyclocross racers and offers riders a series of races through the Wisconsin Cycling Association. Last weekend's race kicked off the 2008 Cup Series, which concludes with the Wisconsin State Cyclocross Championships on Nov. 23 in Hales Corners.

"Everyone (in Madison) has been very excited because you hear about all the big-name riders and it is really fun to see them in action," Callaway said. "They are just so amazingly good and usually you'd have to travel pretty far to see them -- and here they are, right here, where we all race."

Callaway, who has managed other lower-profile races in Madison, petitioned the cyclocross governing body, Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), last December to get this two-day event sanctioned as a means to attract professional riders and further raise the profile of Wisconsin as a cyclocross hub.

Page, a multiple national champion and the silver medalist at the 2007 World Cyclocross Championships, has ties to Wisconsin via his in-laws and is sponsored by Planet Bike, a Madison-based bicycle accessory company that sponsored last weekend's event.

"It definitely means more for me to get two victories for Planet Bike. It's always good to win in front of the home crowd," said Page, who prevailed on Sunday despite falling behind twice to make two pit stops to trade bikes due to under-inflated tires. "It's great that they have a UCI race here and I'm happy to be part of it."

Page dramatically grabbed the lead from fellow American Todd Wells after the run-up with three laps to go and then held on for a narrow victory.

In Sunday's Elite Women's race, Canadian Natasha Elliott led from wire to wire. About 30 seconds behind her, Young -- the Madison West senior -- was battling with Sarah Kerlin, a seasoned cyclocross competitor, for second place. Young outsprinted Kerlin in the run-up on the final lap but was then passed by Kerlin on a hairpin turn and was unable to make up ground, finishing third.

Cyclocross is more than a hobby for Young. It's determining her way of life. She is scheduled to graduate from West a semester early, in January, and will head to Boulder, Colo. to train and race -- and hopefully to attend college there next fall.

"There's nothing better than riding your bike," Young said. "I'm really excited to be placing in a UCI race."

Scott Shafer
Correspondent for The Capital Times  —  10/02/2008 5:55 am