’Cross Finally Finds Its Way to Victoria, British Columbia

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The first of the Cross on the Rock races to be held in Victoria. © Geoff Robson (www.flickr.com/photos/geoff_robson)

by Dave Shishkoff

Victoria, BC — Riders from all over Vancouver Island, the mainland and Washington State converged at Topaz Park in Victoria for the 3rd race in the Cross on the Rock series and the first ever Cross on the Rock event actually in the city of Victoria! At 11°c with cloudy skies, we were promised real cyclocross conditions — a change from the dry spell we’ve had so far.

To a by-stander it seemed as though there were a lot of people, and turns out all records for the series are now out the door, with 190 racers making it out — perhaps a Provincial record turn-out for a ’cross event! The Master’s field was most impressive, with 57 riders aged 40 and over. We also saw our second best Women’s turn-out with 36 demonstrating how it’s done in the Beginner, Intermediate and Open/Expert fields.  

Ride of the day goes to Peter Wellsman, a 53 year old in the 40+ masters category.  He raced the 2 days of the USGP in Colorado and then flew home for a 3rd day in a row to take his first ever Cross on the Rock victory.

The course was one of the longest in the series at nearly 3km. With mostly smooth grass and many straightaways, it seemed on paper that this course might favor the roadies, although the short downpour of rain for the final Expert Men’s race enhanced the technical challenges in the frequent hairpin and off-camber corners.

A big thank you goes out to all the organizers and volunteers, and to our event sponsors Oak Bay Bikes Westshore, Trek Pro City Racing, Straight Up Cycles and The Condo Group.

Condo Cross was the first race in our ‘Golden Race Week’, our next event is the double-header in Nanaimo on October 15th & 16th. That makes three cyclocross races in one week, including the Island Championships on Saturday! Our website will be updated with the details shortly.

Elite Men Results:

Elite Women Results: