Kris Schamp
Greetings, fellow OBRA racers!
With cyclocross season just around the corner, I like to pass along a couple updates about the upcoming Kruger's Kermesse CX Farm Crit & Bike Relay (http://www.portlandracing.com/kermesse), which takes place next Sunday!
With the generous support of our presenting sponsor West End Bikes and a host of other great sponsors, we are getting everything in place for the 9th edition of this popular bike race, loved by many for its unique race format and its equally unique farm setting.
The course is ton of fun - for novice racers, seasoned pros, and everyone in between - making it the perfect segway into cyclocross season!
1) Register online by end-of-day today and win a $150 Showers Pass gift certificate!
Save time and money on race day by pre-registering for your race. All pre-registered riders will get a start line call-up in the order they have registered. As usual we will have an "express lane" at registration for pre-registered riders, so all you have to do on race day is check in, pick up your custom bib number and you're all set to race. To sweeten the deal, we will raffle off a $150 Showers Pass gift certificate among all racers who have pre-registered by end-of-day today (Monday 8/24)!
[online registration through Athletepath: https://www.athletepath.com/krugers-kermesse-cx-farm-crit-bike-relay/2015-08-30]
2) Race course
The course will be very similar - if not identical - to last year's course. The clockwise loop is about 2 mile long, features about 80 ft of elevation gain per lap, and has some great flow. The course runs mostly on farm roads with a couple grass sections. There are no paved sections. All along the course, there will be plenty of room to pass riders.
[course map and course preview video: http://www.portlandracing.com/kermesse/course.html]
3) Race either solo or as a 2-person team... or double up on the fun and race both!
If you race a solo race in the morning, it's only $5 extra to race the relay, so hopefully this will make it a no-brainer to sign up for both and double up on the fun!
Please note that all races - including the Cat A race and the relay race - will be 45' long.
[more details about the relay race: http://www.portlandracing.com/kermesse/relay.html]
4) Bike/tire choice and mechanical support.
While racers will be allowed to race any type of bike, we recommend to ride a bike that can accommodate knobby tires. Sturdy road tires might work (and we had a couple folks racing on road bikes/tires last year without any problems), but cross tires will give you a little more comfort, grip, and flat protection.If you can't decide, feel free to come pre-ride the course the day before the race. We plan to have the course set up by 2pm on Saturday. And on race day, our title sponsor West End Bikes will be present to provide free mechanical support throughout the races (look for their pop-up tent near the finish area).
5) Free kiddie races and yummy food.
Throughout the day, racers and spectators will be able to kick back on the concert lawn, located behind the farm store, right next to the finish area. Kruger's Farm Market and their food stands will have organic ale on tap and serve fire-roasted corn on the cob and a variety of other gourmet food items. And as usual, we'll organize a FREE, fun kids races - for the little ones and juniors under the age of 12 - which will start at 11:45pm (the older kids will get to race one full lap on the regular course).
6) Belgian primes, custom awards, and a free raffle!
In good tradition, we will be giving away a bunch of goodies and prizes. Throughout the solo races, we will be awarding a bunch of random "Belgian Primes": whenever the Belgian tricolore flag gets raised along the course (along the team tent corridor), it's time to get your intermediate sprinter legs on and lay it all on the line for a ton of cool prizes, courtesy of our sponsors Hopworks Urban Brewery, Bob's Red Mill, and Dave's Killer Bread. Finally, after the team relay, we'll wrap up things with awards for the top-3 finishers in all solo categories and a free raffle (for all racers in attendance) of some great prizes, courtesy of our sponsors West End Bikes, Showers Pass, Nossa Familia Coffee, Chris King, and Rip Van Wafels.
7) Volunteer and race for free!
We are still looking for two volunteers to help with scoring during the first race (10-11am) and tear-down (from 2 to 4pm). If you are interested in helping out in exchange for a free race entry, just shoot me an email.
Looking forward to seeing you all next Sunday at Kruger's Farm to kick off the 2015 Portland Cross Season!
~Kris
Portland Racing