AusCycling Cyclocross National Series Preview: Rds 3 & 4
The third and fourth round of the 2022 AusCycling Cyclocross National Series is heading to the Sunshine State of Queensland this weekend, with racing due to take place at Baden Powell Park in the outer Brisbane suburb of Samford.
Here’s the map of the course that D’Aguilar Range MTB Club have in store on Saturday.
In case the image above doesn’t make it clear, the race start on day 1 will be on the lower half of the pits (the lower yellow line), with riders travelling around the course anti-clockwise, with the course direction to be reversed for Round 2 on Sunday.
For the Saturday course, this will mean a sprint on the grass before a gradual climb up along the bottom-right corner of the course map, before descending down through some more grassy corners as the course heads north. The course turns back south and climbs up and over a set of stairs before tackling the course’s sandpit.
After the sandpit, the course weaves its way to the top left hand corner of the map on some flat and grassy corners that are fantastic fun to ride fast. Riders might well put an extra few PSI in their tyres so that they can really rail the corners through this section before heading into the final straight.
The course will run in the opposite direction on Sunday, with one key addition - a killer uphill running section (seen in the top right hand corner) and descent back down to the rest of the course.
This run up is no joke - a solid 20-30 seconds from the valley at the bottom to a grassy plateau at the top at a gradient well above 10%, as well as there’s a step up of around 50cm at the bottom to prevent anyone trying to ride it.
It’s well and truly long enough that a strong runner can make a gap on their rivals just with their legs - though those who are left behind on the run will have a chance to close the gap across the top of the plateau, before a sinuous descent back to the rest of the course.
Want to know what this will look like for the riders? Check out this video from the venue from 2018, which outlines the course’s grassy terrain and gentle contours.
As with the course in the video, the weather for this weekend is set to be sunny and mild - a far cry from the cold and rainy conditions racers endured in Adelaide!
With temperatures predicted to hit the early 20s, it’ll be a great chance for racers from the southern states to ditch the winter kit and ride in short sleeves for a change.
CX Down Under won’t be there due to family commitments, but you can follow all the action here on CX Down Under, as well as on our Facebook and Instagram pages. Be sure to tag @cxdownunder so we can share everything that’s going on!
What are your thoughts on the prospective course for the Queensland rounds of the 2022 AusCycling Cyclocross National Series? Any features that you’re excited for?