The eighth race of the Eastern Ontario Cyclocross Series takes place in Kingston, Ontario at Lake Ontario Park. From what I hear, the crazy course that sweeps up and down a massive terraced hill on the north shore of Lake Ontario is the best race in the series.
Cross is hard, fast, and painful... and unlike anything I've ever experienced before.
My racing experience has mostly involved long days full of epic singletrack where the fist hour is about finding your rhythm and the next five hours are about riding with a handful of other folks in the woods. Cross, by comparison, feels like a rat race.
The field is visible, the crowd is cheering (and I did have a great cheer squad), and there is an expectation to preform. As I thought about the race on my ride home, I realized how much of a learning experience the morning had been: Endurance races and cross races have very little in common. Epic cross performance requires preparation. Proper training probably will not make the races any less painful. And trail running does not constitute cyclocross training.
My legs and (oddly enough) my back feel like lead, but the race was lots of fun. I will do it again - but probably not this season. Thanks to my wonderful cheer squad for making the trip down to the lake to root me on.
I will post pictures when I get them.
