October 6, 2009; Conshohocken, PA, USA: Cincinnati’s UCI3 Cyclocross Festival is closing in on 1,000 entries as the pre-registration deadline of midnight tonight approaches. As of 4:00 pm EDT (eight hours before the close of on-line registration), 947 entries had been received. It’s a far cry from the first Harbin Park International just five years ago. In 2004, Harbin Park became the first race in the tri-state Ohio River Valley region (Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky) to surpass 100 entries in one day. This year, the Zipp OVCX (of which the UCI3 Festival is a part) has put over 100 Category 4 racers onto the course at one time.”
There are two wins for me,” says Doug Dobrozsi of day two’s UCI3 Java Johnny’s-Lionhearts Cyclocross, referring to the record 1,000 entries. “The Elites are coming to our races in the Midwest and, even better, we are seeing organic growth in Cats 3, and especially Juniors. These are what has really exploded. And that is what is really good for our regional scene.”
Zipp OVCX Tour Director and promoter of Sunday’s race at Harbin Park concurs, “We’re super-stoked to have so many beginners and juniors. We’re really excited to have the Elites, but we’ve been working so hard to get more beginners and more juniors to come out.”
Although pre-registration through BikeReg.com closes at midnight tonight, on-site registration is still available for the Cincinnati UCI3 Cyclocross Festival. For more information, even after the close of pre-registration, click here.
