Race report: StatenCX 2.0

By Ian Landau

TO MANY NEW YORKERS, STATEN ISLAND—this alleged part of the Big Apple—holds few charms. Yes, it is the home of the Wu Tang Clan (not that they’re “charming,” exactly), and it’s home to Mandolin Brothers, one of the nation’s finest guitar shops. You can take a ferry to the island too—free—and sort of imagine you’re in Seattle, sailing to the picturesque suburban idylls of Bainbridge and Vashon islands, as opposed to a quasi-suburban wasteland littered with mobster-chic McMansions amid more scaled down, if no less gaudy, homes of the less “connected.”

Let’s face it: Staten Island is the worst goddamn part of New York. Not only is it a bastion of conservative nonthinking, but the people also have an island mentality, best exemplified by their constant desire to secede from New York City. But there may be one reason—and one reason alone—to love Staten Island, and that of course is that it’s the one borough enlightened enough to let indefatigable race promoters Jed Kornbluh and Christophe Jammet hold their annual cyclocross race: SICX.

Last year, Messrs. Kornbluh and Jammet somehow charmed the New York City Parks Department into allowing people to ride their bikes on the grass of a city park, something that hadn’t been done in about 10 years within the city’s borders. SICX 1.0 was held the Sunday after Thanksgiving 2008 in conditions that would’ve warmed the heart of your average Belgian: low 40s, raining, fog, and mud, mud, and more mud. Nobody likes to use the word “epic” anymore, but if any race deserved the moniker that was it.

I rode pretty well in last year’s race, finishing what for me was a respectable 14th place in the Bs, proving yet again that I am suited to adverse conditions. But as this year’s race approached, I was more than happy to see the weather forecast for the Sunday after Thanksgiving was sunny and in the low 50s. And when pulling into Wolfe’s Pond Park at 9 a.m. for SICX 2.0 I was greeted with 45-degree temps and a blazing sun. You could actually see the water. The fog last year really obscured what a beautiful patch of land the park is on.

Getting to a race a mere hour before the start time is not my ideal scenario. But on this day I had my wife and two kids along for the ride, and it just wasn’t happening to arrive two hours early. I told them my race was off at 10 a.m. and sent them to explore and play on the beach. By the time I was kitted up, embrocated, and had my number pinned on, I had about 20 minutes to warm up. I started to take a lap on the course, then my teammate David said they were calling us to the line. I hadn’t even made it all the way around the course. So much for being prepared.

I snagged a front-row spot for the start, feeling confident that a top five was a totally reasonable goal, with the podium a distinct possibility if I had a really good day. Ah, the power of positive thinking. Determined to prove that I’d learned my lesson at Southampton, I swore that I would not go out too hard at the start.

We got the whistle, and I slotted into third or fourth, behind FGX’s Adam Duncan and a couple of others who’d gotten off the line quickly. We rolled into the first trickyish turn and one guy ahead of me bought it when the course crossed a walkway, going down hard onto the pavement. I got around him and third going into the barriers. But pretty soon someone else blew past me and then a lead trio formed, with me toiling away solo some meters behind. We rolled for another lap or so like that, the three guys ahead steadily pulling away as I looked behind me and saw nobody close. Okay, fourth isn’t bad, I thought. I can live with fourth.

I had high hopes going in that I would not be struck by my debilitating gagging problem that has haunted me all season, but alas, somewhere in the middle of the race, I was forced to slow down when the gags hit me. On the bright side I didn’t have to come to a full stop and get off my bike, as I had to do so many times this year. I just coasted along, tried to clear my throat and get back to pedaling as quick as I could. It worked.

But the hiccup cost me as Ed Burgess came flying by me and I couldn’t hold his wheel. Luckily, he was in the 45-plus field, so I wasn’t losing any ground in the 35-plus race. I did have another gag attack later, but it was minor and I was able to ride through it.

With three to go, I was thinking I was going to be able to mail it in for fourth place. But then I turned around and saw Scott Demel of BVF coming up, and another rider just behind him. Scott had beaten me by one place the weekend before, in Southampton, making a strong late-race push and coming out of what seemed like nowhere. There I had also been hobbled by a gagging attack, which certainly slowed me down, but Scott is clearly someone who rides his way into a race, getting stronger as the laps wind down. Goddammit! Now I have to push for the last three laps.

I was keeping a good gap until, I think, two to go, when I dropped my chain in the rooty section on the backside of the course. I hopped off and got the chain back on as quick as I could. Scott and the other rider near him passed me. I hopped back on the bike and proceeded to chase. I caught the other guy almost immediately, then he took a turn too wide, hit some sort of electrical box near the bathrooms, and fell over. I sprinted away.

Now to catch Scott. I had a lap and half to do it, and for the first time this whole year, I felt awesome. I was so sure I would catch him, and I was starting to make up ground. I felt like I had power in my legs; I wasn’t tired at all—just burning with motivation.

In the end Scott held me off by a few seconds, so a good ride by him. I was disappointed to have in all likelihood lost fourth place because of a mechanical but satisfied that I had ridden well. It still was annoying that I hadn’t put together a race without a gag attack, but my form was definitely good.

The best part of the day was having my family on the beach run yelling for me. I found them after the race, and we had a waffle chatted with some folks and took off. A perfect Staten Island morning.

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View 80 photos from StatenCX 2009 on the CyclingReporter.com Flickr page.

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