Charlie's Crazyass New 'Cross Loop

I put a scouting report up on the Rutgers Cycling page. You should read it, because it took a lot of work.

It's not finalized yet, though, because Charlie and I disagree about the finale of the route. Charlie's finish would climb a long, not-too-steep hill, with a big-ring sprint at the top (and it would take us through a stop sign). Mine climbs the same hill parallel to Charlie's route, about a half a mile east, and it finishes on a rolling stretch of road with no stop signs.

I like the idea of having to push hard on flat/rolling roads after climbing... there aren't enough roads like that around here. Chaz and I will figure that out later.

The moral of this story is that Charlie came up with this great loop. Perhaps you don't realize how much creativity goes into something like this. I know that I usually take it for granted. But my friend Charlie has been coming up with hill loops like this for years. And I'm a faster rider because of it.

How can I describe Chaz? I suppose you could think of him as the mutant offspring of a mountain bike and a GPS system. Or of a Sherpa and a pickup truck. It is as easy to picture Charlie living as Magellan in a past life as it is to picture him as the Marquis de Sade.

Riding with Charlie makes you dig deep.

This is going to be a good cyclocross season.