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This is what I call cross training

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Road Cycling
Published
23 January 2003
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23 January 2003
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Greg Hall
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  1. txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp

    Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day racing?

    Greg Hall

  2. "Sharon Peters" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Subject: This is what I call cross training From: [email hidden] (Greg Hall)

    Quoted message said:

    txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp

    Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day racing?

    I'd venture to say that he'd do better than Marty.... But while it is nice to see him racing cross
    on a cross bike, what the


    [censored] is

    Quoted message said:

    up with that number placement? That's the most retarded thing I've seen


    all

    Quoted message said:

    day. Except for that picture of Eunich that keeps popping up


    everywhere.....

    Quoted message said:


    Better than Marty!!?? are you out of your mind. You have never seen a Six day have you.

    Tom A.

  3. Tom Kunich said:

    "Ronald" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    "Tom Kunich" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    It looks like one of those wide open 3 meter wide course where technique doesn't mean a whole lot
    and outright power allowed Lance to win probably his first ever cyclocross race. All it needs is
    bleachers and pom pom

    girls.

    Quoted message said:

    Right, cyclocross for the masses. Get your program here

    Yeah, looks like cx for sissies to me. For comparison look at yesterdays race in Kalmthout
    (Belgium) for the real stuff: cyclocrossonline.beindex.htm
    Great race by Richard Groenendaal.

    What I'm finding objectionable about Albright and his gang of two is that I don't want to see
    cyclocross, the last refuge of unprofessional FUN racing, reduced to a formulaic
    play-station-esque bit of professional money making show gamesmanship.

    Already they've decided that they have to design cyclocross courses in such a manner that it
    decidedly disadvantages MTB riders.

    What's the problem with that? It's cyclocross. If MTB riders don't want to be disadvantaged they
    should race NORBA or buy a 'cross bike. The point is to have fun, or in reality to suffer, on a bike
    similar to one's road bike. If you promote an event that caters to mountain bikes then there's going
    to be zero differentiation from NORBA short course cross-country races. IOW, lame ass races catering
    to professionals and their sponors without an ounce of FUN left for the rest of us fat asses.

    Greg

    --
    "Destroy your safe and happy lives before it is too late, the battles we fought were long and hard,
    just not to be consumed by rock n' roll..." - The Mekons

  4. Tom Kunich said:

    "Wade Summers" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    That World Cup race in Belgium would automatically fall into Kunich's category of "cross for the
    masses" - more like a BMX course than a cross course (I still don't get that comparison). Remember
    that silly UCI rule of being 3 meters wide. Funny, I wonder if the riders who finished 10 minutes
    down, but still on the first lap didn't think the wide course was very technical?

    In Europe where you have 25 riders all capable of finishing at or near the front you have to have
    a wide course. Here where there are three riders you don't have that problem.

    Whenever you have a national or international event you are pretty much stuck with designing a
    course in which the difficulties are caused by such things as a steep long run-up instead of
    clever course design. In the USA, even at national level events, there simply aren't enough
    serious contenders to follow UCI course design and you can AND SHOULD make better courses where
    the determining factor for the winner is more dependant on skill and less on sheer strength.

    It should say an awful lot that the cyclocross specialists were beaten by Lance.

    I wouldn't say that those in the picture were "cyclocross specialists". They were a mix of local
    road and mtn bike pros and semi-pros.

    Greg

    --
    "Destroy your safe and happy lives before it is too late, the battles we fought were long and hard,
    just not to be consumed by rock n' roll..." - The Mekons

  5. "Canuck" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    "Tom Kunich" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    Already they've decided that they have to design cyclocross courses in such a manner that it
    decidedly disadvantages MTB riders.

    In 'cross races, MTB technique should be disadvantaged, 'cross technique advantaged.

    duh!

    If you have to take great pains to design a race course that doesn't give a decided advantage to a
    bicycle design that was made specifically for off road racing that's telling you that it is a
    superior design. DUH.

    Remends me of the time they held that race from the California desert to the coast. There was one
    section of course that was 30 miles of paved road. Tinker Juarez got there first, changed to road
    wheels on his MTB and hit the other end in 1 hour flat. It would have been pretty hard to beat that
    time if he had just changed to a road bike.

    What does it say about cyclocross if the specialized bikes designed for it are only faster when you
    have to pick them up and carry them?

  6. Tom Kunich said:

    I suppose that if you fancy yourself a professional you prefer it that way since you'll never get
    any surprises.

    Someone at Cross Nationals suggested they let wild dogs run on the course. Just a few, to keep it
    interesting. And muzzled. We wouldn't want anyone getting too badly hurt.

    Dan

  7. "Greg Hall" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp

    Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day racing?

    It looks like one of those wide open 3 meter wide course where technique doesn't mean a whole lot
    and outright power allowed Lance to win probably his first ever cyclocross race. All it needs is
    bleachers and pom pom girls. Right, cyclocross for the masses. Get your program here.

  8. Quoted message said:

    Subject: This is what I call cross training From: [email hidden] (Greg Hall)

    Quoted message said:

    txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp

    Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day racing?

    I'd venture to say that he'd do better than Marty.... But while it is nice to see him racing cross
    on a cross bike, what the [censored] is up with that number placement? That's the most retarded thing I've
    seen all day. Except for that picture of Eunich that keeps popping up everywhere.....

    -----Sharon Peters Personal Trainer to the Stars-------- Remove "No Junk" to reply please!!!

  9. "Greg Hall" <[email hidden]> wrote ...

    Quoted message said:

    txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp

    Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day racing?

    Greg Hall

    And some say LANCE only races the TOUR!

  10. Sharon Peters said:
    Quoted message said:

    txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day
    racing?

    Quoted message said:

    I'd venture to say that he'd do better than Marty.... But while it is nice to see him racing cross
    on a cross bike, what the [censored] is up with that number placement? That's the most retarded thing
    I've seen all day. Except for that picture of Eunich that keeps popping up everywhere.....

    That's easy. The number plates are because LANCE is practicing to take over the BMX world next. He
    figures it will be good training to improve his sprint, too.

  11. Tom Kunich <[email hidden]> wrote:
    : "Greg Hall" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    : "]news:[email hidden]...
    :> txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp
    :>
    :> Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day racing?

    : It looks like one of those wide open 3 meter wide course where technique doesn't mean a whole lot
    : and outright power allowed Lance to win probably

    Uuh, right. Thought cyclocross means mud, snow, stones and hills? If it would be here, probably
    trees too.

    --
    Risto Varanka | helsinki.fi~rvaranka varis at no spam please iki fi

  12. Quoted message said:

    It looks like one of those wide open 3 meter wide course where technique doesn't mean a whole lot
    and outright power allowed Lance to win probably his first ever cyclocross race. All it needs is
    bleachers and pom pom


    girls.

    Quoted message said:

    Right, cyclocross for the masses. Get your program here

    Yeah, looks like cx for sissies to me. For comparison look at yesterdays race in Kalmthout (Belgium)
    for the real stuff: cyclocrossonline.beindex.htm Great race
    by Richard Groenendaal.

    "Tom Kunich" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    "Greg Hall" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp

    Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day racing?

    It looks like one of those wide open 3 meter wide course where technique doesn't mean a whole lot
    and outright power allowed Lance to win probably his first ever cyclocross race. All it needs is
    bleachers and pom pom


    girls.

    Quoted message said:

    Right, cyclocross for the masses. Get your program here.

  13. Tom Kunich wrote in message ...

    Quoted message said:

    "Greg Hall" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    txbra.orgfeaturedPhoto.asp

    Wonder if he'll ever try his hand at 6-day racing?

    It looks like one of those wide open 3 meter wide course where technique doesn't mean a whole lot
    and outright power allowed Lance to win probably his first ever cyclocross race. All it needs is
    bleachers and pom pom


    girls.

    Quoted message said:

    Right, cyclocross for the masses. Get your program here.

    Or could it be he won because he is a world class rider and I've never heard of the other guys...
    Maybe his first cross race, but I'm sure he didn't go in unprepared.

  14. "Sharon Peters" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Subject: Re: This is what I call cross training From: "armstrong"

    Quoted message said:

    Better than Marty!!?? are you out of your mind. You have never seen a


    Six

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    day have you.

    Tom A.

    Nope, and I still kick myself for not going to Copenhagen when I had the chance. While I'm usually
    full of [censored], I don't think it's unreasonable


    to

    Quoted message said:

    think that LANCE would do better than Martha after some transition time.


    He is

    Quoted message said:

    after all a more endurance based rider, who has some background in


    sprinting

    Quoted message said:

    (pre cancer). And he does put out a [censored] of watts.....


    you have absolutely no idea what your talking about. Lance never had a back ground in sprinting and
    even after some transition Lance could never do as well as Marty is doing. Being a endurance based
    rider has nothing to do with it. Lance has no track experience and would look silly out there with
    Risi, Betschart, Kappes, Marty and others. I have no doubt that Lances endurance would not be his
    problem. His biggest problem would be the speed the tracks and the SPEED. If you ever have the
    chance to see a Six don't pass it up. I guarantee that you then will agree that Lance would stand
    no chance.

    Tom A.

  15. "Wade Summers" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    That World Cup race in Belgium would automatically fall into Kunich's category of "cross for the
    masses" - more like a BMX course than a cross course (I still don't get that comparison). Remember
    that silly UCI rule of being 3 meters wide. Funny, I wonder if the riders who finished 10 minutes
    down, but still on the first lap didn't think the wide course was very technical?

    In Europe where you have 25 riders all capable of finishing at or near the front you have to have a
    wide course. Here where there are three riders you don't have that problem.

    Whenever you have a national or international event you are pretty much stuck with designing a
    course in which the difficulties are caused by such things as a steep long run-up instead of clever
    course design. In the USA, even at national level events, there simply aren't enough serious
    contenders to follow UCI course design and you can AND SHOULD make better courses where the
    determining factor for the winner is more dependant on skill and less on sheer strength.

    It should say an awful lot that the cyclocross specialists were beaten by Lance.

  16. "Tom Kunich" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    Already they've decided that they have to design cyclocross courses in such a manner that it
    decidedly disadvantages MTB riders.

    In 'cross races, MTB technique should be disadvantaged, 'cross technique advantaged.

    duh!

  17. Tom Kunich wrote in message
    <[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    "Wade Summers" <[email hidden]> wrote in message


    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    That World Cup race in Belgium would automatically fall into Kunich's category of "cross for the
    masses" - more like a BMX course than a cross course (I still don't get that comparison).
    Remember that silly UCI


    rule

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    of being 3 meters wide. Funny, I wonder if the riders who finished 10 minutes down, but still on
    the first lap didn't think the wide course was very technical?

    In Europe where you have 25 riders all capable of finishing at or near the front you have to have a
    wide course. Here where there are three riders you don't have that problem.

    There are not 25 guys in Euro races that can finish "at or near the front". Take a look at some
    results. The same 6-10 names keep popping up. You can't go into the process of designing a course
    with only 3 riders in mind. You have to look at what the race will be like in the first two laps.
    And most A fields at the big races in the US have at least 40 riders and the B and master's fields
    have 60-80.

    Quoted message said:

    Whenever you have a national or international event you are pretty much stuck with designing a
    course in which the difficulties are caused by such things as a steep long run-up instead of clever
    course design. In the USA, even at national level events, there simply aren't enough serious
    contenders to follow UCI course design and you can AND SHOULD make better courses where the
    determining factor for the winner is more dependant on skill and less on sheer strength.

    I don't understand why you think a course, that at it's narrowest is just under 10 feet (3 meters),
    can't be a clever course. There are plenty of things that can be done with course design to make a
    course a good cross skills course while still maintaining the 10 ft width. What would your idea of
    better be? Please tell us what the great cyclocross course designer Tom Kunich would do.

    Quoted message said:

    It should say an awful lot that the cyclocross specialists were beaten by Lance.

    I follow cross fairly closely. I don't know who those riders were. They are not cross specialists.
    Nothing against them, they could be very good regional riders for all I know. But that is all they
    are. Lance is a world class professional. Perhaps you remember those 4 Tour de France victories...

    Wade

  18. "G.T." <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:
    Tom Kunich said:


    Already they've decided that they have to design cyclocross courses in such a manner that it
    decidedly disadvantages MTB riders.

    What's the problem with that? It's cyclocross. If MTB riders don't want to be disadvantaged they
    should race NORBA or buy a 'cross bike. The point is to have fun, or in reality to suffer, on a
    bike similar to one's road bike. If you promote an event that caters to mountain bikes then
    there's going to be zero differentiation from NORBA short course cross-country races. IOW, lame
    ass races catering to professionals and their sponors without an ounce of FUN left for the rest of
    us fat asses.

    That's the problem Greg. I remember reading those people who wanted to get rid of mountain bikes on
    the course so they started designing courses without any extended climbs where the MTB's would have
    an advantage. They they wanted to get rid of steep, rough drops that would give the MTB's an
    advantage. And then any rough terrain at all that would give MTB's an advantage.

    So the courses are all going to become vanilla, BMX courses with a run-up, three barriers 2 meters
    apart, 3 meters wide over the entire course, a mud pit and a section of pavement. And where ever you
    go you'll be able to ride the same course with different scenary around the course boundaries.

    I suppose that if you fancy yourself a professional you prefer it that way since you'll never get
    any surprises.

  19. in article [email hidden], Wade Summers at [email hidden] wrote on
    12/23/02 5:18 PM:

    Quoted message said:

    I follow cross fairly closely. I don't know who those riders were. They are not cross specialists.
    Nothing against them, they could be very good regional riders for all I know. But that is all they
    are. Lance is a world class professional. Perhaps you remember those 4 Tour de France victories...

    I consider Will Black a 'cross specialist, and a good rider. Consistent top-30/20 SuperCup-type guy.
    Probably the best Texas 'cross rider.

    Adam

  20. Tom Kunich wrote in message
    <[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    "G.T." <[email hidden]> wrote in message


    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:
    Tom Kunich said:


    Already they've decided that they have to design cyclocross courses in such a manner that it
    decidedly disadvantages MTB riders.

    That's the problem Greg. I remember reading those people who wanted to get rid of mountain bikes on
    the course so they started designing courses without any extended climbs where the MTB's would have
    an advantage. They they wanted to get rid of steep, rough drops that would give the MTB's an
    advantage. And then any rough terrain at all that would give MTB's an advantage.

    And promoters should design courses with cyclocross bikes in mind because it is a cyclocross race
    not a mountain bike race. The difference is quite dramatic - riding a mountain bike over rough
    terrain and riding a cyclocross bike over the same terrain. Stuff that wouldn't even phase you on a
    mtb with wide tires and suspension can be down right dangerous on a cross bike. If you want to do a
    mountain bike race go do a mountain bike race. It is a different sport. Remember cyclocross has it
    roots in road racing and came along long before mountain bikes were even thought of.

    I think many courses having mountain bike terrain have that terrain because the clubs putting on the
    races only have ( or had ) experience putting on mountain bike races or road races. They may have
    never seen a true cyclocross course. The terrain was not put there because it makes for a unique
    cross race, it was put there because the people didn't know any better. Cyclocross? Must be a
    combination of road racing and mountain biking. Right? Wrong.

    Quoted message said:

    So the courses are all going to become vanilla, BMX courses with a run-up, three barriers 2 meters
    apart, 3 meters wide over the entire course, a mud pit and a section of pavement. And where ever
    you go you'll be able to ride the same course with different scenary around the course boundaries.

    Again with the BMX. What, did some kid on a BMX bike pick on you or something...

    I think the leap you make from courses being designed to be good cyclocross courses to all courses
    being "vanilla" and all the same is far fetched. Come east next fall. Race all the New England races
    on a cross bike and see if you find them technically easy. See if they are all the same. See if the
    racing isn't fun.

    Quoted message said:


    I suppose that if you fancy yourself a professional you prefer it that way since you'll never get
    any surprises.

    (from an earlier Kunich post)

    Quoted message said:

    What I'm finding objectionable about Albright and his gang of two is that I don't want to see
    cyclocross, the last refuge of unprofessional FUN racing, reduced to a formulaic play-station-esque
    bit of professional money making show gamesmanship.

    And what is this? The last refuge of unprofessional racing? Where have you been racing? I did
    upwards of 50 races this year between road and cross and 99% were all put on for non-professionals.
    Even at Crit Nats, where the big show is the Pro race, the majority of the races were for amateurs.
    Cross nats too. Lots and lots of racers who are there because it is fun. How many Pro only races are
    there in this country? Very few. Most races; road, cross, mountain or otherwise are put on by clubs
    for club riders. If a couple of local pros show up for the P1/2 race, great. If some clubs get some
    sponsorship and can afford, announcing stands, banners, barriers, making there event look "pro" -
    all the better.

    And what do you really care about cyclocross? How many cyclocross races did you do this year? How
    many have you ever done? How many did you go watch? What is your experience? And I don't want to
    hear about the good ol' days of motorcycle racing, BMX or mountain biking. They have nothing to do
    with cyclocross.

    Wade

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