Reflecting on my first cyclocross season

I was fortunate enough to try out Cyclocross (”CX”) racing this year.

I’m not particularly good nor fast but I had so much fun trying out this new (to me) racing format. Especially if you participate in Zwift Racing League, the CX season is a great complement to any indoor training program.

I participated in four CX races in 2025. I finished three of them and one of them I had to bow out from with a gnarly mechanical.

Next season, I hope to race the same amount or more with a focus on improving my skills and finishing positions.

Here are my learnings from my first season and resources others in NYC exploring CX might find helpful.

Getting started in CX in NYC

I had no idea what I was doing to start with. After some deep internet research I stumbled into the “To Be Determined” Journal which was a wealth of resources about CX racing and their experiences racing around New England.

From the “To Be Determined” Journal I also learned my favorite local bike shop in Brooklyn, King Kog, sponsors practices starting in late summer / early fall where you can drop in and learn basic CX skills plus practice more advanced skills with some serious riders.

I attended my first practice towards the end of this October, and it was quite the experience. The practice started off with daylight but by the end we were practicing in the dark around a makeshift course on Roosevelt Island.

I found this practice to be super helpful as the instructor, Keith, had us practice various skills (such as picking the ideal lines in turns, and attacking rough terrain hills) over and over until we gained some experience and comfort with these scenarios.

Additionally, right smack in the heart of Queens is Cunningham Park. This park is an absolute gem and was perfect for getting used to riding in different conditions. The park has a variety of different single track trails and multiple loops you can practice on to refine your skills.

I had one of my best (worst?) falls of the year while practicing at Cunningham Park when I fell over the side of this wood log bridge because I was going too slow and my wheels slipped out on some mud.

Race report:

Take the following with a grain of salt. I am brand new to CX racing overall, so my impressions are naive and based on very little experience thus far.

Hidden Valley CX

I rode in the novice 5 and open 4/5 races in this event. We had dry conditions and great weather as it was late September. The course was super fun and fast. These were my first two cyclocross races so I was focused on finishing.

In the first race, I took it quite slow on the first lap to get my bearings then improved my per lap times for each successive lap so I was pumped.

In the second race, I somehow wrapped a bush of some sort around my rear cassette to the point it became unusable ~30 minutes into the 40 minute race. In theory I could have “run” my bike to the finish but I was so gassed I decided to call it a day.

Strava files:

• Hidden Valley CX - Cat 5
• Hidden Valley CX - Cat 4/5

Orchard Scorcher

I also rode in the novice 5 and open 4/5 races in this event.

The course features a corn maze that quickly turned into a mud pit over the course of the morning. I started strong in the novice 5 race but fell six or so times during this race which put a damper on my finishing time.

There was a hill in particular coming out of a corner that I took a terrible line on for the first few attempts and ended up off the bike for each attempt.

It was a cold morning (35 degrees Fahrenheit) and it started to rain over the course of the morning.

In my second race of the day, the open 4/5, I was absolutely exhausted and focused on practicing my bike handling skills when I realized I didn’t have the legs or the fitness to compete.

I’d like to come back and attempt this course again next year as it’s a very unique and fun riding experience.

Strava files:

• Orchard Scorcher - Cat 5
• Orchard Scorcher - Open 4/5

What I learned racing this year:

• If you are interested in racing or trying cyclocross, just find an event and get started. The community is super inclusive and welcoming. I did my first race without having gotten any practice in prior.

• Cyclocross races are similar to Zwift races. They start very intense and your heart rate is often pinned for the majority of the race. It’s critical to find spots on the course to catch your breath and bring your heart rate back down.

• You do not need fancy gear to get started. I used a 2020 Specialized Diverge I also use for Zwift. Started with clinchers for first race and practices. I experimented with tubeless tires for my last two races but I’m not skilled or fit enough to notice the impact.

• Experiment with different tire pressures. I would pump my tires to 50+ PSI for riding to and from CX practice and then lower it down to the ~30 PSI range for practicing and racing. I found I was most comfortable handling my bike right around 30 PSI.

• Be prepared to take a tumble or two. I took a lot of minor spills while practicing and while racing. I imagine most of them were due to my own mistakes (picking the wrong line, going too fast into a corner, etc), alas I went down a lot this first season.

• Get as much practice as you can on the course. There was a hill coming out of a corner I fell on 3x in Orchard Scorcher. If I could do it over, I would’ve tried a few more times in practice to figure out the right line vs. taking the falls learning during the race.

• If racing on a muddy course, mud gets everywhere. Truly everywhere. That said, baby wipes are exceptional for cleaning mud out of all the hard to reach spots on the bike.