Seeing what how the pros do it has never been easier. Here, Zach McDonald slid through the mud, snow and sand of Tokyo to keep the title within the team. © Satoshi Oda
Learning more about cyclocross is easy to do. If you’re interested, but not quite ready to hit the start line, maybe there’s a nearby race where you can spectate. Tagging along with friends or teammates will get you a pretty good perspective of what to expect. You can pester them with as many question as you want the entire way to the race. And for training, we’ve got a huge newbie section called Cyclocross Academy, and plenty of training tips for even the highest level racers in our Training section.
The popularity of handlebar cameras mean that finding a first person POV of a race is super easy, and chances are there’s even video of a few laps of your local race. Or, you can see what it’s like to chase World Champion Sven Nys in a race! For how-tos, sites like YouTube have a multitude of ’cross related videos with instructions. But, be careful because not all of them offer solid advice. A ’cross specific clinic is a great way to sharpen your skills under the supervision of legitimate coaches and/or professional racers.
A handful of pros like Adam Myerson and Jeremy Powers have even created instructional videos which give great insight into how they prepare for races in addition with great tips, and we’ve also reviewed a handful of cyclocross videos and books. Watching races in Europe is a breeze thanks to some slightly-less-than-legal feeds that we won’t mention here, so if you’re looking to expand your knowledge, spending a pre-race morning drinking coffee and watching some Belgian racing action is a great way to get psyched.
Last but not least, our own Cyclocross Magazine is a wealth of pure cyclocross information, and subscribing to the magazine will provide you with timeless content from the past, present, and for the future!
Get schooled in cyclocross with our Cyclocross Academy class list here, and make sure you’re subscribed to Cyclocross Magazine, your guide for getting into the sport, and upping your ’cross knowledge. Not subscribed yet? For the newbies, our Issue 21 has a great feature on buying your first cyclocross bike, and Issue 22 has a story on how to get into racing and what to expect at your first race.
