Trendsetters, greetings from Derby, Vermont. I’m visiting this beautiful area of the country, because this weekend, I’m racing the next round of the North American Ultracross Series; The Dirty 40 (or the Dirty 70 as I prefer to call it).
Today, I rode the entire course. How can I do that considering the organizers are keeping the course secret? Answer: I begged the organizers to provide me with the course file. Considering I’ve made the trip from Florida for this race (and a vacation), they were extremely nice and took pity upon me. Earlier today, the organizers released the course, so the secret is out.
Equipment Selection (my opinion only):
- Bike – Regular CX bike complete with cantilever brakes. Nothing special here.
- Tyre (tires) – Hutchinson Secteur 28mm, setup up tubeless, with spooge inside. I’m about 153lbs, I’m running 80psi front, and 85psi rear. Figure out what is right for you.
- Gearing – 50 / 34 chainrings, 12 – 29 cassette. My cassette is not stock, rather a mishmash of Miche, Cycle Dynamics and Shimano to build the perfect cassette with two teeth jumps on the lower end.
One more about tyres. I was agonizing over using my wheelset with Michelin Jet tyres installed tubeless. These would work perfectly too, although pressure should be around 40 – 45psi. If you haven’t used the Jet tyre, it is uber fast and perfect for the road surfaces at the Dirty 40 race. If it rains late in the day before, or day of, I’ll be aboard the Jet tyres.
The Course
This course is hard, don’t kid yourself. It’s a tad over 70 miles, with over 5,000 feet of climbing. The hills are many and relentless. Most are short and steep. The major climb on the course is tough, but if you’ve raced Ultra CX before, it won’t phase you too much. There is a steep section at around 12% – 13%, but this is normal stuff for this genre of CX 🙂 There is a very tough paved climb at around mile four, that is going to blow the bunch to pieces… or at least me.
OK, enough psycho babble, time for the photos from today!
Click a photo to commence the enhanced Gallery View.
Lots of nice clouds. Kind of makes me want to take a nap instesd of racing.
Any sign of the Amish Mafia?
Amish Mafia, aka fantasy land. You would love napping here, clouds and luscious scenery abound!
What is this spooge that you’ve put inside your tyres?
Lisa, “spooge” refers to any tubeless sealant inside the tyres. In my case, I’m using Stan’s sealant.