Yee-Ha!

[Starfish]

LOL, I have never watched 'cross before! Yes, let's grease a huge hill with slick clay mud, let the rain hit it like a cow peeing on a flat rock, and send a bunch of cyclists down to the bottom for a hairpin turn! LOL...I think these are the kinds of conditions I try to avoid...

[DirtDiva]

Yes, let's grease a huge hill with slick clay mud, let the rain hit it like a cow peeing on a flat rock, and send a bunch of cyclists down to the bottom for a hairpin turn!

Yeah, that's pretty much 'cross in a nutshell - uniquely Euro-flavoured madness.

[Kalidurga]

Yes, Slo-Mo-Jo, I got a 'cross bike. I bought it cause it's designed for the multiple surfaces of a 'cross course (allowing me to take it from the C&O towpath to the road to mild singletrack, etc), but I've never had any intention of racing on it. What can I say, I value my shins too much to subject them to banging into barriers (i.e. I'm a weenie) But I do love to watch other people do it!

Wahine, if you go to the link I posted and click on Events, there's a link on that page to Charm City Cross on YouTube (or you can just click it here). It does make 'cross look tame in comparison to Zen's video, though a couple of people do mention trying not to hurl. The Charm City race is the kick-off to the season in the mid-Atlantic region, but the time of year and course design tend to make it less chaotic. So, between the Charm City video and Zen's link, you can see the two extremes of 'cross. I'd guess that the experiences of our TE 'cross racers fall everywhere in between.