An Open Letter to the City of Santa Rosa

Dear City of Santa Rosa,

This past weekend’s Monkey Cross race was amazing. I can imagine a lot of people weren’t interested in heading outside this weekend, but for us cyclocross racers, wet and muddy conditions define the tradition of true cyclocross. I made the trip up from San Francisco without hesitation (never mind the 5am wake up call to meet up with my ride in time).

This year, myself and friends have sought out Bike Monkey’s cyclocross series because of the wonderful atmosphere and community we came to love last year. Having access to Santa Rosa’s parks has been fantastic, not only for the great courses but also the grilling, socializing, and spectating that inevitably follows our races.

In conditions like this past weekend, it is hard to miss the impact of a cyclocross race. For that reason, whatever impacts these races have on the parks, I hope they do not overshadow all the positives that we appreciate and enjoy. On that note, I would like to encourage the city to continue its support for Bike Monkey’s cyclocross series, and I look forward to many Santa Rosa based races in the future.

Sincerely,
Dan Bernards
Mission Cycling Club
San Francisco, CA

If it’s comfortable, you’re doing it wrong

This was advise I gave to fellow Mission Cyclists who were contemplating their first cyclocross race. And by that criteria, I had an amazing race. The Lion of Fairfax, a one-off race the same day as Biketoberfest, was supposed to be a small field and low-key warm up (especially with a Pilarcitos Super Prestige race the next day). After a top-half finish at Folsom, a 54 of 76 finish was less than encouraging.

post race – just because you’re race number is low, doesn’t make your placing low…