A whole lot of stereotypes were smashed into tiny little pieces at CXLA. For those cyclocross fans around the country who thought CX in Southern California was about as genuine as a “mature” Hollywood star’s facial structure — well, in your face!
Anyone in attendance will agree that it’s not a cliché to say CXLA was epic — from start to finish, from Friday afternoon till the dark hours of Sunday evening. Centered around Los Angeles State Historic Park — located in the shadows of downtown L.A. and Chinatown — SoCal and its passionate fans were fully, raucously immersed in the sport.
It was a true gathering of the community, even for non-competitors, with fun rides, walks, yoga, a kids’ ride, live music, displays, food and beverage — mass quantities of beverage — and even a bike holiday lights and costume contest. The parties were non-stop, both at the park and at local establishments. Big-name pros had meet-and-greets with local riders and fans. Activities like these and more were going non-stop. There was something for everyone.
And then there was the racing. SoCalCross regulars did their thing with a full schedule of classes on Saturday, comprising Round 12 of the 2012-13 Prestige Series. A grueling SteepleCross Run took place early Sunday morning. The Single Speed Cyclocross World Championship was a hugely entertaining aspect of the weekend. Finally, two days of full-throttle UCI racing drew the strongest Elite Men’s and Women’s fields ever seen in Southern California. It included the first ever UCI Junior Men’s CX races. Saturday night’s UCI race was even the grand finale of this season’s four-event, inter-state Cross After Dark Series.
But what had to finally give this region its most respectability among CX snobs were the weather conditions. If it’s not nasty, it’s not ‘cross — so they say. CXLA was very nasty at times. The course here is flat, fast course is generally not considered to be technically challenging, but with persistent rain showers during the previous two days and throughout the weekend, the resulting slippery, rutty, equipment-clogging clay and sod proved to be a genuine test of bike handling skills and determination. That’s right: sh*t got real in SoCal.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. With so much happening at CXLA, we’re presenting a photo/caption gallery for this report instead of a blow-by-blow account. You’re looking at 45,000 words, Tolstoy. Hope you like what you see.
CXLA would not have been possible without considerable, tireless, generous support from so many, including: Cardo Systems, Rock N Road Cyclery, SPY Optic, Jenson USA, Shimano, Cadence Collection, Voler, Jamis, Planet Bike, Bailey Bikes, Clif Bar, Kool ‘n Fit Sport, Universal Sports Network, Avid, Golden Road Brewing, Castex Rentals, Quixote, Bike for Bender, Knogs, Kool ‘n Fit Sport, Young Riders, Downtown LA Bicycles, Cynergy Cycles, Golden Saddle Cyclery, Surf City Cyclery, Velo Pasadena, Squareone, The TEAM SoCalCross, California State Parks, UCI and USA Cycling.
A sincere “THANK YOU” to all.
The SoCalCross Prestige Series heads north for Rounds 13 and 14 this coming weekend. Saturday, December 8, will be the Dirt Club CX in Los Olivos, followed the next day, December 9, with the SLO Cross in San Luis Obispo. Then the subsequent weekend will be another doubleheader: Santa Cross Weekend in Griffith Park in Los Angeles. See you there!
Story and photos by Phil Beckman/PB Creative
Additional event coverage can be found at http://www.cxmagazine.com/ and http://socalcycling.com/
