The 2019-2020 North American season kicks off on Saturday, August 31st with Virginia’s Blue Ridge GO Cross Race presented by Deschutes Brewery. Yes, North American cyclocross starts in August! The season ends on Sunday, December 15th with the US National Championships. In between, the calendar features 44 UCI races. This includes two World Cup rounds, both the Canadian and US National Championships, and the Pan-American Championships.
The North American calendar only has three C1 races this year. This is a significant decrease from last year, due, in part, to the UCI enforcing some rules that were hadn’t been enforced in the past. The remaining 36 races are all C2s. As usual, it is an action packed calendar with UCI races on virtually every single weekend from September to mid-December.
We broke down the calendar and highlight a few races each month that cannot be missed.
September
GO Cross (August 31 – 1) – The North American cyclocross season kicks off with a pair of UCI C2 races in Roanoke, VA. Last year, Kerry Werner dominated the weekend and returns as one of the favorites along with Curtis White and Wieste Bosmans. Bosmans has raced in the United States before and is a very strong rider. Meanwhile, White and Werner are both on our North American riders to watch.
Rochester Cyclocross (6th – 7th) – The first North American C1 takes place in Rochester, NY. A combination of the UCI enforcing rules about the number of international competitors along with the fact that it’s the weekend before the World Cup starts mean it will feature all the heavy hitters from North America and a large international contingent. Rochester also offers a C2 on Sunday.
Jingle Cross (13th – 15th) – The World Cup kicks off on Saturday, the 14th. The world’s best riders (minus two notable names) will descend on Iowa City to kick off the cross season in earnest. Per UCI rules, the World Cup will allow a double the normal amount of North American riders to participate. It promises to be a race to watch. The World Cup round is bookended by a C2 race on Friday and a C1 race on Sunday.
Trek CX Cup (20th – 22nd) – Round two of the World Cup takes place on Sunday, the 22nd. Virtually everyone from Jingle Cross will make their way to Madison for the three day event. The Trek CX Cup has a pair of C2 races leading into the World Cup.
StarCrossed (28th) – StarCrossed takes place in Redmond, WA and is the only West Coast UCI race (excluding nationals). All of the Europeans will be headed home after the World Cups and most of the other riders will head back to the East Coast. This leaves StarCrossed as a prime opportunity for West Coast riders to get some UCI points.
October
FayetteCross (5th – 6th) – Fayetteville, Arkansas plays host to a pair of UCI C2 races. This is the site of the 2022 World Championships, so it will be the first chance to see an iteration of that course. It will be interesting to see how many riders head south to this race. There’s a ton of racing on the East Coast in October, so that may mean some of the bigger names stay closer to home.
Cincy CX Festival (26th – 27th) – As the final North American C1 race, it should attract all the top riders and produce some large fields. The Cincy CX Festival offers a C2 on Sunday. This makes it a can’t miss weekend.
November
Canadian National Championships (2nd) – Peterborough, Ontario plays host to the 2019 Canadian National Championships. As with any other national championship, this is a Canadian only field and will feature all of Canada’s top riders.
PTBOCX (3rd) – Held in the same location as the previous days National Championships, PTBOCX is one of only four UCI races held in Canada. Coming off the back of the National Championships, it should feature all of Canada’s top racers as they get to race in their own backyard.
Pan-American Championships (9th) – The 2019 Pan-American Championships return to Midland, Ontario. It should be a similar course as last year and will feature all the top riders in North America. Since it’s in Canada, it should attract a larger Canadian contingent than other races in the US.
Silver Goose Cyclocross Festival (10th) – The day after the Pan-American Championships features a C2 race at the same venue. It should feature the same top riders as the previous days race.
December
Resolution ‘Cross Cup (7th – 8th) – Garland, Texas plays host to the final UCI races in North America (excluding nationals) and is that last UCI races before nationals. Resolution ‘Cross Cup also has the distinction of being the southernmost race in North America. The top riders will do one of two things: race this event, or do a training camp leading into nationals. Either way, it should attract some of the top US riders.
US National Championships (15th) – Tacoma, Washington plays host the 2019 USA National Championships. All of the top riders will be in attendance. The real question is can anyone beat Stephen Hyde? Curtis white pushed him last December, but Hyde still came out on top. It will be a very interesting and exciting race this year.
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