– And we’re back… The CCC took a short little break this past week to sleep in, watch some really, really fast guys and gals race, and to catch up on all the really important non-CX things we’ve missed since the middle of September… Did you know they found Fraggle Rock in Chile and more importantly Snookie is writing a book?

– We’ll have at least semi-regular updates but with a little less detail than during the season here on the CCC site until the middle of January, at which point we’ll crawl into our caves and hibernate until next August.

– First up, now that all the IL State Champion jerseys have been won, and even the National Champions have been crowned, its time to have a nice low key event. So who else but Half Acre and the Chicago Cuttin’ Crew could bring us the Afterglow – a Cyclocross Race. Online pre-reg closes tomorrow night at 5pm CDT and the ‘races’ are on Saturday (NOT Sunday) in Humboldt Park. Its not an actual CCC race, but its CX in Chicago… so of course we’ll still be there to cheer, heckle, and recruit for next year (we even made a special race specific playlist). Look for the usual course preview at the normal time right here on Thursday morning.

– Plenty of parties on Saturday as well. One up the street to benefit West Town Bikes and another at the Elbow Room w/ Los Borrachos to benefit old punk rockers singing rock songs in Spanish. The CCC will have its final ‘official’ party of the season on Sunday January 9th at EJ’s Place in Skokie to award the overall series winners… and give out plenty of door prizes. We hope to see you all there! As of this writing a time and place to gather and watch the St Wendel CX World Championships on January 30th has not been set.

– Its not technically CX, but online pre-reg for the Barry Roubaix is now open. We’ll hand this one off to our friends at The Bonebell for all the details.

– And finally… we’re terribly sorry this got caught in the CCC site’s spam filter (thanks Eastern Europe)… but a local vidoegrapher with mad editing skills (soon to be more famous than Antoine Dodson) documented an epic battle waged on the shores of Lake Michigan 2 weeks ago that few of us even knew about. So without further adieu, we present Andre Odendaal vs. The Chicken…

– A final thanks to Chuck Judy, Chris Mailing, and everyone at Turin Bicycle for hosting the 12th and final race of the CCC and yet another great Illinois State Cyclocross Championship at Montrose Harbor. Temps were freezing for most of the day, and the snow, ice, and sand made for a challenging course, but we still had the largest CCC race ever with 565 starters. We had several riders make it to the podium for the first time and it was great to see such sportsmanship and camaraderie before, during, and after each race. Even the down-staters had a good time. Thanks also to Todd Busteed for sharing the mic and calling out all the action.

– Congratulations to the 11 Illinois State Cyclocross Champions that were crowned jerseyed on Sunday. The competition was fierce and we had many races that were completely undecided until riders came around the last turn on the final lap… which always makes for exciting racing. Thanks for keeping all of us on our toes until the very end!

– Congratulations also to the 13 Chicago Cross Cup Overall Winners. Eight of those categories were undecided going into the final race and made for even more dramatic racing. Awards, prizes, and general showering of admiration will be presented at the CCC Awards Dinner on Sunday January 9th at EJ’s Place in Skokie. Great food, better friends, and even door prizes will greet everyone who attends.

– Weekend Update: The weekend update is taking a bit of a break this week as there are more than enough comments here to describe what happened this past Sunday. However, for those that weren’t there and are too lazy to read all the comments this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, and who can forget this, this, and this (?) pretty much sums up the what went on at Montrose… oh yeah, and there was a bike race in there somewhere too.

– Speaking of all things CCC, if you want a 2010 CCC series t-shirt you’ve got less than 48 hours. REKLAIM apparel will be shutting down the printing presses at midnight tomorrow night (Wednesday) and won’t be making any more. Thanks to everyone who has already bought a shirt… all proceeds go directly to our year end World Bicycle Relief donation. We’ve already hit our goal of $5,000 but we’re still tallying up the t-shirt sales. Thank you again to everyone who has donated and/or purchase a t-shirt!

– Good luck to anyone and everyone heading out to Bend, OR for CX Nationals this week/end. If you still haven’t had your fill of CX after that, come hang out with Half Acre and the Chicago Cuttin’ Crew at the Afterglow on Saturday December 18th in Humboldt Park. And if that isn’t enough for you… there is a Benefit After Party for West Town Bikes (details here, please RSVP). And if metal/rock songs sung in Spanish is more your thing, Newt Cole and Los Borrachos are playing later that evening at the Elbo Room (no RSVP necessary!).

– The CCC has the 4B’s, the Cross Crusade has the Clydesdale Cyclocross Champions of the Universe. If you happen to be in Bend this week(end) for CX Nationals… check it out and takes some photos.

– Ever wonder why the CCC isn’t a UCI series? USA CX godfather Adam Myerson gives us a clue.

– And finally… a special shout out and congratulations to Mike Young for being awarded this year’s 3rd Annual Official Illinois State Cyclocross Awesomeness Champion presented by Half Acre Cycling and HRS/Rock Lobster. Mike won the award for not only supporting riders within the CCC, but more importantly for his work with West Town Bikes. Mike joins a veritable pantheon of CX awesomeness including the first winners, the Chicago Cuttin’ Crew, and last year’s winner Super Girl. Congratulations Mike, and thanks for being awesome! If you’d like to help Mike in his work at WTB please donate here.

Photo: Luke Seemann

– This is it! The big one, the big enchilada, the big bopper… Turin Bicycle once again hosts the last stop in the Chicago Cyclocross Cup… which just happens to also be the Illinois State Cyclocross Championships at Montrose Harbor. You all have been racing all season long with plenty of ups, downs, highs, lows, podiums, crashes, heckles, and whatever the heck this was… and we’ve finally made it to the finalé. We at the CCC and Turin again ask everyone to bundle up, bring your cowbells and cameras, and make a day out of Montrose… which means the Cat 4’s should show up early and heckle the 40+ field, and the Masters should stick around and cheer on the Cat 4’s. Lots to review below, so buckle up…

– Registration: We’ll be running reg the same way as every other CCC race. Please allow all 40+ and 30+ racers to reg first since they have to get ready first. If you’re coming out to race for the first time (great!) just follow the lead of one of the local yocals. Both Cat 4 fields of 100 are full but we’ll run wait lists starting Sunday morning. As of this morning there are 436 of you pre-reg’d (thank you!) and online pre-reg closes tonight at midnight… so if you’re not yet reg’d, do everyone (yourself included) a favor and reg now! Ballpoint pens don’t work so well in 26 degrees.

– Call Ups: Since we know down and mid-state IL riders can’t make it up to Chicago every weekend but may still be racing outside of Chicago, this year we are instituting a new call up procedure that is slightly different than the usual top 10 call ups we do at all other CCC races. We will call up the top 15 riders in every category. However we will also factor in standings from CrossResults.com. If any pre-reg’d IL resident has a better CrossResults.com points standing than riders with top 15 CCC overall series points, than that rider will receive a call up in that position. For example, someone from downstate has a CrossResults score better than the 9th place CCC overall rider. That downstate rider will receive the #9 call up, the #9 CCC overall rider will receive the #10 call up (and so on to CCC #14), but the #15 CCC overall rider will NOT receive a call up. In this way every top 10 rider in the CCC should still get a call up while also awarding riders from down and mid-state for racing closer to home (but still driving a long way to participate in the state championship). Note however that riders in the CCC overall who have more points on CrossResults.com than other riders in the CCC overall will NOT move up in position… you keep your overall CCC position. We will post tentative call up lists here on the CCC site no later than Saturday.

– Cash prizes totaling $2,165 will be awarded with the support of E.J.’s Place and the Kenda Pro Cycling Team. The winners of the Masters 30+, 40+, 50+, Women 1/2/3, and Men 1/2/3 will also receive a $200 dining card from E.J.’s Place (in addition to their cash prizes) to celebrate their victory in style. Merchandise prizes for the Juniors and the Category 4B Men are donated by Lake Cycling and Craft. Lake will have a tent at the race so stop by to preview the new line of 2011 shoes.

– State Champion Requirements: In case you didn’t read the paragraph above, the Montrose Harbor race not only acts as the final stop in the CCC but also the Illinois State Cyclocross championships. The CCC along with Turin and the ICA will be presenting CX State Champion Jerseys (on the podiums) to the first IL rider to cross the finish line in every category (except the 4B’s). This means Juniors 15-18 AND Juniors 10-14… boys AND girls. Remember that in order to win the state championship you must be a permanent Illinois resident (we’ll be checking ID’s), a US citizen, and hold a valid 2010 USAC license before the start of the race (yes, we’re looking at you Cat 4’s). UPDATE: There must also be a full podium of IL riders (that means 3) to win the state jersey. This should not be a problem, except possibly in the junior ranks. In addition we’ll present podiums for the race (top 3 in the race) and for the IL state championship (top 3 IL riders in the race). So pay attention after your race, we may be calling your name!

– While a few riders have already locked up their CCC overall titles, there are quite a few very, very, very close categories still to be decided on Sunday. We’ll do our best to announce the overall titles when we can crunch the numbers fast enough, but all official overall series awards and recognitions will be presented at the CCC Awards Dinner on Sunday January 9th at EJ’s Place.

– Like last year, “holiday” (is it still not PC to write Christmas?) themed costumes will receive call ups after the top 15 (see above). Santa, the Grinch, Chanukah bushes, big colored balls… just keep it tasteful and while we appreciate a nice Santa hat, no… that alone won’t get you a call up. We may also have a few special call ups.

– Neutral race support will be provided by Turin Bicycle, adjacent to the registration tent.  Turin Bicycle will also be selling the latest Jay Ryan poster commemorating the 2010 race and a limited selection of other merchandise. Turin will also be grilling up Hot Dogs from about 11-3 and will have hot chocolate, coffee, and soup to take the chill off.

– More than any other factor, the weather usually makes this race. Right now the forecast is clear but cold… so bundle up, dress appropriately, and come prepared with extra warm (& dry) gear. We’ll bring the podium warmers.

– CCC Founders: Join the CCC founders for their reunion party at The Globe tomorrow night (Friday) from 7 to 10pm.  See details here. Many of the founders will also be at Montrose racing as well as displaying a slide show. They even made a video! What’s funny is if you change the jerseys, just a few faces, and add more people… what we have today basically looks the same… people having fun riding bikes and enjoying each other’s company. So swing by at Montrose, make a new CX friend, and don’t forget to say thank you to the Founders for getting this ball rolling. Check out photos from 2004 here and here.

– West Town Bikes and Ciclo Urbano will also be out in full force supporting Chicago youth and adults on bicycles.

– Parking: Unlike last year, the parking lot at the east end of the park is closed. Parking will be on the street only along Simonds Dr. Several parking spaces near the restrooms and registration will be roped off (for officials, etc) so please do NOT move the cones and park there. We need this area clear for pedestrian and bike traffic.

– The Course: The final course route is still TBD but will be based on last year’s layout. The starting grid, finish line, wheel/bike pit, and registration will still be in the same general area. Feel free to set up your tents near by. The course itself will be longer (~3.5K) than last year to accommodate the CCC’s ever expanding field sizes. The course will have longer than usual grass and path routes and will feature some new lengthy sand runs. Tradition standing, the weather always plays a key role at Montrose and will affect the course design right up until Sunday.

Photo: Luke Seemann

– Thanks again to Chris Henning, Jason Meshberg, Flatlandia, and the Northbrook Garner Bicycle Club for another successful and fun CCC race at the Decoma Day Camp in Northbrook. Chris/Jason and crew have some changes in the works for next year, but we’ll get to that next November. Thanks also to everyone who came out to race and video/photo the event. There are usually quite a few cameras with budding photographers attached to them running around, but we’ve never seen so many as this past weekend, which was great to catch all the action… which leads us to…

– Weekend Update: The usual cast of characters showed up early and pedaled their bicycles fast… then Sam Schneider won the W1/2/3 race, jumped into a car, drove to WI, and had enough left in the tank to win her state championship (congrats Sam). The Cat 3’s are shaping up to again be the closest overall competition of the series, and if Northbrook was any indication there will be fireworks at Montrose. The Women Cat 4’s had a very close race, mixed with some breakdancing, and the Juniors again battled it out to the finish line. Mike “Cupcake” Sherer gave the Cat 1/2/3’s a tutorial on bunny hopping (now, if he could just learn to pin his number on right side up), while The Hemme showed off his newest Blue Steel, and Brian Conant ascended into CX heaven to seal up the CCC overall title. Then the Cat 4’s started… oh man… some people can make it look pretty, but let’s just say we’ve never heard the term carnage used so many times in such a short span. While the rest of us were watching the sand pit, there was some action at the bunny hoppers. Dave Knauff again won the best Thanksgiving themed costume. From the WTF files… we’re still trying to figure out this, this, this, this, and this… and we’re not sure if this junior stopped to do a few push-ups… but we definitely know that Nick Guy_F_Ski knows how to catch some serious air… Jon Fairman too… as does Chris Jensen… but in all fairness his wheels do have anti-gravity devices in them (but what can you do?). That’s right, Ken Mitchell was in attendance… Audrey won a trainer, and Super Mario collected a few more golden coins. Sister Sprocket was up to her mischievous ways again, Super Girl took on Bryan Lee for best game face, and Greg T & Flannel Mike were back in action. Katie Isermann decided to shut down her hedge fund since she makes more money grabbing hand-ups in the 4B’s and junior Joe Sullivan won this week’s Flying Pig Award. And lastly… this makes us and Ted Berger happy.

– Psimet  Custom Wheels made it on to the SRAM Road Diaries.

– Lots of new USAC rules for next year, many regarding CX.

– Up next weekend… the CCC takes a breather (can you believe its been since the weekend before Elvis Cross since the CCC has had a weekend off?) and lets our friends to the West (i.e. Iowa) host their annual mudfest… Jingle Cross. We heard JC has a flyover this year, so all you CCC’ers should be well practiced. For those not racing… have a great holiday weekend.

– Two weekends from now the CCC returns for its final race of the year which also serves as our Illinois State CX Championship as Turin Bicycles hosts stop 12 of the CCC at Montrose Harbor. Yes, we will open the Cat 4’s fields up to 100 riders, but we have to take care of the paperwork first… stay tuned.

– Turin needs volunteers to help out at Montrose. Please contact George Vargas at [email protected]  if you would like to help out.  George will tailor your volunteer assignment to fit with your other plans for the weekend.  Who knows at this point what the weather will be like,  but the laughter, excitement, and fun will surely warm you. Bring your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, … make a party out of it.  Opportunities to help out include:
· Set up, either Saturday afternoon/evening, 12/4
· Course marshals during the day on Sunday (shifts are either 8:30 to 12:45 or 12:30 to 4:15)
· Floaters (do rounds and substitute while course marshals take short breaks)   (shifts at 8:30 to 12:45 or 12:30 to 4:15)
· Registration during the day on Sunday (shifts are either 8:00 to 12:00 or 11:45 to 3:45)
· Tear down/clean up after the last race on Sunday afternoon (4:00)

– And if you’re still looking for a party… the evening after the Afterglow… Orange Shoe Fitness‘ Newt Cole and Los Borrachos will be rocking a Christmas Spectacular again at The Elbo Room some time in the evening. We’ll go ahead and call this the 2010 CCC end of year Christmas Holiday Party. Red Sweater Vests get half price at the Door. Give aways too… not sure of the specifics but maybe a Piñata filled with Enzo’s and gel shots?

– Tickets will be on sale later this week for the CCC Awards Dinner. We’ll again be at EJ’s Place in Skokie from noon until 3 or 4pm on Sunday January 9th. Please reg/buy your tickets ahead of time to help us and EJ plan for the event. We hope to see everyone there for a great wrap up of the season.

– The CCC made it to VeloNews… sort of.

– And finally… we here at the CCC know we’re very fortunate to have such a great CX community of racers, spectators, friends, family, hecklers, promoters, sponsors, and everyone in between. We’re very, very, very thankful that all of you come out every weekend to spend a few hours with us at our little party, and at the end of the day we may be tired but are already looking forward to the next weekend when we get to do it all over again. Because of all of that, we at the CCC wish everyone and their families a very safe, healthy, and happy Thanksgiving… one of the truly great and unique American holidays… no coincidence at all its during CX season!

Photo: Chip Williams

– Double thanks again to the South Chicago Wheelman for a great duo weekend at the Indian Lakes Resort. What a difference 24 hours can make. From upper 50’s and rain on Saturday to lower 40’s and wind and sun (and more wind) on Sunday… a true cyclocross weekend.

– Up next the penultimate race of the CCC series, the Northbrook Swansong hosted by the Northbrook Garner Bicycle Club and Flatlandia. Lots of details to come, so check back at 9am on Thursday for the course preview.

Weekend Update: Congratulations to Chris Lombardo from Verdigris who has earned enough points to lock up the overall in the Masters 40+ category. Chris must have been so happy he gifted the win on Sunday to his teammate Erik Enyedy (who had a great ride regardless). The Hemme is back (!) and hit the podium on Saturday while Brian Conant won on Saturday and was 2nd on Sunday, adding to his lead in the Cat 1/2/3 overall. We wonder what the juniors think about the 1/2/3 race? In the ladies races, Sam Schneider from Team Tibco swept both days in the W1/2/3, while Eleanor Blick from Johnny Sprockets and Christina Peck from the Cuttin’ Crew battled out wins in the Women Cat 4 races.  Danny Warner from Verdigris swept both Masters 50+ races (and brought his kids along for the ride on Sunday) as did John Kurtz from Flatlandia in the Cat 3’s. Meanwhile Lou Kuhn from The Pony Shop and John Gatto from Twin Six battled it out in the 30+. The Juniors were exciting all weekend long as the mob squad Team Expo swept the podium on Sunday. But as we all know, the real action (see above) is always in the Cat 4’s. The Bike Crusher did his job, Tati won some MAE, while Magnum PI was wondering why he left Hawaii. Still not sure what to make of this, this, this, this, or this…  but we’re pretty sure Quarter Acre could tell us. Yes, there is a person in there. Sister Sprocket got sneaky (so did Thom the elder), and original CCC series director Joe Doyle helped out a little. Megaphone wars, Musettes were handed out, beverages were wasted, and Bacon Alley reared its ugly head again. Brian Lee had his game face on (again), Supergirl and Rob Curtis… well… nevermind, 1/4 Acre and Noah duked it out in the 4B’s, and Natalie got a treat! And lastly, a special shout-out to Mike Young, West Town Bikes, and Ciclo Urbano for coming out, racing, cheering, and finding out how great cyclocross can be.

– Thought You Knew will be at Northbrook to cheer on everyone, especially their pin-up girls. But if you want to get a head start, on Nov 19, 6–10pm the Pin Up Calendar Gala Launch Party takes place at the COOP, 845 West Fulton Market. Free admission. Calendars on sale for $20, 100% sales go to The Chicago Women’s Health Center. Then on Nov 20 at noon TyK hosts their Sadie Hawkins Style Ride starting at the Blue Frog, 676 N LaSalle. $20 per Couple. The Sadie is a treasure-hunt bicycle ride benefiting the Chicago Women’s Health Center. Information and pre-registration at chicagosadiehawkins.info.

– Update on 2010 CX Nationals, concerning tire widths, registration discounts, and more.

– Registration for Half Acre & the Cuttin’ Crew’s Afterglow race is now open on BikeReg.com.

– REKLAIM has the 2010 CCC series t-shirts. Make sure to pick up yours at Northbrook or Montrose. As a reminder, all proceeds go directly to WBR.

– Our friendly USAC officials have asked us once again to remind you how to correctly pin and place your number. Doing so will help them immensely when scoring your race.

– And finally… We’ve asked and asked but some of you still don’t seem to understand that when pre-riding the course you may NOT ride in front of others still racing. This seems to be happening the most as the Women 4 and Juniors are finishing up. When we open the course up for pre-riding after the first racer has finished that means the last racers are still on course. Just because they aren’t winning doesn’t mean they are not working just as hard for their placing. So please, when checking out the course, please enter the course from the designated area (usually just past the finish line) and if you catch someone still racing… DO NOT ride in front of them. Thanks!