Aotearoa Crossfest/New Zealand National CX Championships: Course Preview
This weekend Wellington Family Speedway will host the year’s biggest weekend of racing in the Land of the Long White Cloud - Aotearoa Crossfest and New Zealand National Cyclocross Championships. Entries are coming in thick and fast, and the organising team from Hüttcross - New Zealand’s biggest cyclocross club - are pumped to welcome racers from all over the country to Upper Hutt, just north of Wellington.
This weekend will mark the second running of the Aotearoa Crossfest (or ACXF, as it’s often abbreviated) - the first took place in Christchurch in 2019, and was run by the Southern Cross CX club. Hüttcross was due to host the 2020 ACXF, though when it had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic they were quick to jump at the opportunity to host the 2021 edition.
Although the UCI-sanctioned National Cyclocross Championships will be the main draw of the weekend, there’s a reason for referring to the whole weekend as Aotearoa Crossfest, as Hüttcross president Kim Hurst explains.
“[ACXF was] a little thing that I dreamt up in 2017 while I was racing in the [United] States. To call it just CX Nationals was probably going to be a mistake...having a festival weekend of cyclocross including some full-noise Elite racing was a way better way to go. That way the racing snakes can race fast, and everyone else can race hard - just at different paces.”
The Course
While most Hüttcross club rounds are held in local parks, they’ve cooked up something special to host the 2021 ACXF - a 2.8km circuit around Wellington Speedway, with the race course set to incorporate numerous grassy features as well as the 385m hard-packed dirt surface of the Speedway itself.
According to Hurst, the course is ‘fast and flat’, with one noticeable exception - a huge flyover that was first debuted at the North Island Schools Cyclocross Championships a couple of weeks ago.
’She’s a big beast - you’re a good few metres up in the air…it’ll also be tackled fairly early on in the race - we’ll have the race village, the flyover, the barriers, the team tents, the start and finish all in the main paddock.’
With gradients of 15-20% on either side and plenty of colourful decorations promised, it’s sure to be a high point of the course in more ways than one.
‘Even for the top guys that [stair section] will definitely be a run rather than a ride…we want to ensure that the champions that are carved out of the course are true cyclocross champions - not just those with good engines.’
After those obstacles have been negotiated, there will also be space for those engines to crank up the watts and reach some high speeds, including the 385m of hard-packed dirt that makes up the Wellington Family Speedway itself.
‘At the moment [the Speedway is] running pretty bloody nice to be honest…our timing team OneTime have come up with a wicked idea where you’ll cross one timing mat as you enter the circuit and another as you leave, meaning that we’ll have a live Speedway Circuit segment.’
With the stairs completed, riders will pass the grassy paddock containing the team tents and barriers before heading over the flyover one last time to complete their lap.
‘The surrounding paddocks…have really varied pasture ranging from pretty fast-rolling to super heavy - really great for cyclocross.’
There’s one more feature that will be exclusive to Saturday’s racing - a ball pit! It’ll feature 1000 small plastic balls as well as 12 physiotherapy balls kindly loaned by local physio firm Inform Physio Upper Hutt, and will be sure to add some colourful chaos to proceedings!
It’s at that point we ask the Hüttcross president the crucial question: who does this course suit, and what tyres should riders be using?
‘An all rounder’ comes the quick response. ‘With the technical cyclocross abilities to not lose time on the sections that require a run and some smart decisions. There are some sections that will require you to think - to reflect how it’s going to be quickest for you to get from A to B, and that’ll probably evolve during the race.
‘It will take a strong rider because even though there’s only one climb, there’s not really much chance to rest out there.’
‘As for tyres, I think an intermediate or light mud tread will be best depending on the weather - I’d definitely be leaving the file treads at home!’
Although the forecast for Upper Hutt this weekend looks as though there’ll be minimal rain, there will still be resources available for those who get their bikes good and dirty while racing.
‘There’s an asphalt area which the Speedway uses for their pits that we’ll use for our pits - that has power and hose points for the power washers, and we’ll have 4 local mechanics there as a neutral pit crew and Angry Bear providing lube, chain cleaner, bike cleaner - everything!’
The Racing Schedule
A quick look at the schedule for the ACXF weekend shows no shortage of racing options on offer. Saturday’s action will start out with a cyclocross skills clinic in the morning, followed by a 30 minute Run What Ya Brung (RWYB) race - where any bike is welcome!
The focus on all of Saturday’s races will be on having fun, so costumes and weird/unusual bikes are strongly encouraged - the inside word is that there are already tandems, unicycles, retro rides, mountain bikes, cross bikes and a fat bike on the startlist for the RWYB race. There’ll be no shortage of variety in the bikes that folks are riding, or even in the participants themselves.
‘I’ve even convinced four of the commissaires to ride the RWYB race!’ says a smiling Hurst. ‘I thought it might help people’s perception of commissaires - they’re generally people that love bikes too, and it’ll also be fun to have a commissaire’s podium.’
After a couple of kids races (the always popular Mighty CX), the main event of Saturday’s race will be the New Zealand Single Speed Cyclocross & Tracklocross National Championships.
Those who dare to rock the one cog - with a freewheel for Singlespeeders, or without for Tracklocross riders - will be racing for pride, glory, and specially made champion’s belt buckles.
Sunday’s riding will be for National Championships, meaning medals for age group riders and - for the Junior, U23 and Elite Men and Women - national championship jerseys. We’ll cover the Silver Fern jersey contenders in a separate article later this week, but at the time of writing there are around 140 riders signed up to race for jerseys on Sunday.
‘The best part of Sunday is that nobody is getting it their own way - we’ve got 139 riders entered [as of the Sunday before the racing, when our chat was recorded] and in every single grade someone is racing someone else for a jersey - even the M5 category, which is for riders aged 70 plus!’ said Hurst.
If all this sounds great and you can’t wait to be a part of it, there’s good news! Entries for all races except the UCI-sanctioned national championships (Junior, U23 and Elite grades for Men and Women) are still open - you can enter races on both days by going here, and you can see the weekend’s technical guide here.
There’s a wide range of spot prizes available for those who sign up, including some real sweet cyclocross swag from Cyclocross Minded Australia, and a custom-painted Hüttcross skate deck courtesy of Velo Creations.
If you’re still on the fence, the organisers have provided the helpful graphic below to help with your decision.
