The final round of the NYCROSS.com Cyclocross Series, the Bethlehem Cup, is in the books. And, for me at least, the 2009 cyclocross season in finished.

After rain all day Saturday and through the night, the Bethlehem Cup course at Elm Avenue Town Park in Delmar, NY, could have easily been a tougher course than it was. While the water soaked grassy areas slowed you down, the gravel sections drained off nicely and ended up being pretty fast. As the course was winding through the park, the Cat 4 did bypass the long steep run-up into the woods. I was pleased to see that we didn’t have to run that one. The other run-up in the course was a short steep grassy…errr muddy…hill. Toe cleats on my shoes would have been nice. The Cat 4 races in this series are only 30 minutes long, but it’s 30 minutes of all out with no real recovery time. So, finishing on the same lap is always a goal for me. This is a race that I again finished on the lead lap and with a 15th place finish.

I wasn’t sure at the beginning of the season how I would like CX racing. I can say now, actually after my first CX race, that it is a blast. I ‘ll be back at the NYCROSS.com series again in 2010.