What Kind of Bike is Used Cyclocross Racing?

Series Summary

Cyclocross is a form of bicycle racing that consists of several laps through a variety of terrain and obstacles. Typically taking place in the fall and winter, this extreme sport requires cyclists to ride, quickly dismount, carry their bikes through an obstruction and then remount the bike all in one graceful motion. Cyclocross bikes are similar to street bikes but with some characteristics of a standard mountain bike. For example, the cyclocross bike is light weight with narrow tires and drop handlebars like the street bike, but it also has a knobby tire tread, and cantilever brakes which are usually found on mountain bikes. The unique nature and harsh physical conditions of cyclocross racing makes it more extreme than typical bicycle racing, but it has nonetheless gained popularity in recent years, particularly in countries where road cycling was already a popular sport.

In this free video series, our expert will demonstrate how to set up and adjust a cyclocross bike. You will learn expert tips on cyclocross racing while also getting easy to follow instructions how to best adjust your cyclocross bicycle. Our expert will demonstrate how to set up and adjust your cyclocross bike handlebars, seat height and brakes. You will also learn how to distribute weight on a cyclocross bike, what to wear for cyclocross races, and how to select the proper tire tread for cyclocross bikes. If you are interested in learning more about this extreme sport, let our expert give you all the tips and advice you will need to get started in cyclocross biking.

Video Transcript

"MICKEY DENONCOURT: Cyclocross is a fall/winter cycling sport that's, you know, all about transitions. You know, there's running involved. There's, you know, dirt. There's pavement. There's stuff like that. So the bike that you use and the machine that you use for this has some really interesting little tweaks and stuff like that. You know, it uses fatter tires. There's some, you know, fancy technology and stuff like that with, you know, more aggressive tread on them so you can ride on dirt. It uses a different style of break than what you see on other bikes these days, so there's some tricks and tips you need to know about that. The way you set it up, they look very similar to road bikes, but, you know, the overall geometry of the bikes and how you ride them is a little bit different. So we're gonna, you know, break it down, talk about, you know, how you change up your gear and how you change the way the bike fits, selecting a bike, stuff like that to try to, you know, make your cross experience as fun as possible."