North of Madison and Milwaukee, you don’t see many cyclocross races— those road bike events on grass with obstacles. But a local group is going to change that, and will host the Cross of the North race at Sunnyvale Park Sept. 11, the first of its kind in the area. Co-organizer Kris Tiles says a group of cyclocross enthusiasts has been meeting weekly to practice. The event will make use of the park all day, starting at 9 am and running until after 3 pm.
Cyclocross is something of a cross between road cycling and mountain biking. Cyclocross racers ride bikes with bigger tires on grass, and dismount to traverse a series of obstacles. The format makes the race more spectator friendly than most, Tiles says. The Wausau race will be one of the first on the Trek WCA series of races and is expected to bring as many as 200 racers to the area.
