I'm not talking about custom bikes-although nobody caring about them would leave me with a shop full of useless tools and metal. I'm talking about the sport that really put me on the map as a frame building operation in the sustainable sense. Through luck and hard work I established a style and brand that has stayed popular for over 20 years. Since 2003 I have never been short on work , and most of the time pretty much oversold. In the sport of cyclocross I found a community that was very receptive to how I build bikes and my willingness to learn from the people that race- they gave me the suggestions that shaped the bikes over all these years. Some comments were glowing, some were harsh but I learned a bit from all of them, especially the criticism. For the last two decades and more I have ridden the wave of cyclocross and it has been-to use a phrase I really hate- a great ride.
Now it is 2025 and for the last half-dozen years the sport of gravel racing has been getting very popular. In some regions like where I live, it is crushing cyclocross and taking away much of the people that loved cyclocross the same way I did. People now seem fine getting a huge sprinter van , paying $ 200 + entry fees and going to events where the riding will take up most of the day. It is not an intense sport like cyclocross, even if it is very competitive for the few folks that will be at the front of the race. Most people at the event don't seem to race at all- they are there for the riding, the camping and being with all the other folks in their sprinter vans with outdoor showers, micro-brews and folding chairs. It's a hang way more than a race and I am seeing that it is a real thing now. Usually everyone converges at some big campground and there's a big feed and maybe a live band at night. I have been to a few of these and they are well put together for the most part- but it still ain't 'cross.
While cyclocross might be withering and dying here, there are places where it is thriving but they are pretty far away. I used to be able to get to any number of races within 1-1/2 hours of where I live. Now most of them are at least a 3 hour drive or in another state altogether. I don't like burning up that much gasoline to go racing. And the grave events ? They are usually far away , too- but people will drive all day to get to them. Maybe I'm just old and not moving along with the times.....every sport in cycling has it's heyday and it's decline years. Right now we are in the decline years for cyclocross and I am having a very hard time accepting it-where have all the good times gone ? They have gone away and changed into something else. Peoples tastes have changed and land access for races has gotten difficult around here in the Bay area. It's a collision of factors that nobody seems to control and what I know as cyclocross in Nor-Cal might be on its last legs.
So what am I doing about it ? Starting in 2015 my team has been putting on an annual race . Starting about 6 years ago, the team took charge of Surf City cyclocross, the longest running CX race series in the country -it was going to die if we didn't take it over and merge it with our race. The only CX races in the county are ones that we put on. The sad thing is that we as a team are starting , after 21 years to lose people to retirement and other sports. We are getting some great juniors but they have hardly any races around here and it takes a lot of time and money to do a full season now. People are getting priced out of participating like they used to about a decade ago. It's a shame, really- such a great community grew up around CX and it is now getting scattered to the winds. There's only so much a handful of people can do to try to keep a sport going if the public at large is apathetic about its survival. For me, the specter of losing CX is sad but since I am nearly 70, it isn't critical for me. If I were 15 and wanting to get into the sport I would have a hard road unless my parents were super fans and willing to drive me all over the state in search of races. Most parents can't do that. I tip my hat to the ones that do- they are raising the next generation of talent that could wind up on the world stage- it has happened, even out of our little team.
So, I have to say that this decline in the sport of CX is depressing for me and regardless of how it effects my business , I don't want it to die. I do get orders for all sorts of non-CX frames so I think I'll do just fine but I would and will sacrifice a lot to try to keep the local sport alive. Wish me luck.......
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