Singlespeed ’Cross World Championships—Lots of fun, with a little bit of racing
Strippers on the course? Racers pelted with marshmallows? It can only be the Singlespeed Cyclocross World Championships.
Hosted for the third year in Portland (where else is a ’cross race going to be routed through a bus with strippers as well as a 40-foot-high “Thunderdome”—the event is more of a ride—the word carnival also comes to mind—than a traditional race, but still included some damn fine competition.
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But the fiercest action wasn’t for the podium’s top spot, however; it was a battle between cities for the right to host next year’s competition. Organizers in Portland decided they should pass the torch after this year’s event, and the SSCXWC would rotate between cities, a la the SSWC.
The fight to host began with the Great Debate—the first of three contests organizers would use to decide the next host city. Riders from San Francisco and Seattle battled against one another in the debate. They would also use their race times and the results of a sumo match inside the Thunderdome to decide the winner.
Round one went to Seattle, with Brian Forness of Raleigh Bicycles beating out the legendary Sheila Moon of San Francisco in the debate. The cage match was a brutal affair, with Seattle’s chosen gladiator body-slamming the San Francisco delegate in the opening seconds of the match, only to later be disqualified for carrying her out of the ring.
Ultimately, Seattle won the battle and took the honors of hosting the event next year. The city’s chosen racer, Kari Studley, not only beat the San Francisco delegate, but also won the women’s overall title—and the tattoo. Drew Mackenzie, who won last year, took first in the men’s field.
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