The title above should be no surprise considering I have kind of disappeared from everything and everywhere. I can start with a positive thing...my stress level is way way down now. But that little revelation meant that I almost immediately welcomed in a flu virus and have been crap ever since. I am almost through it now but tomorrow in Copenhagen is not going to work and I don't know about Sunday in Skatås. It so happens that another stupid thing happened because my boots fell apart and I kept wearing them so I have a massive blister on my foot. This has stayed sore because I have new boots which are not worked in yet. Not sure how my cycling shoes will feel but that I can find out soon.

But I have changed my mind about Vårgårda and it is a shame that so few have signed up yet. So, mostly to help out Vårgårda CK, I think a double weekend is in my future. And since all this sickness stuff has meant that I have managed to finish all those little things I had to do, the etapplopp I mentioned before in Denmark is a possibility. It is great that they contacted CX Sweden too. 4 races...2 days in 2 of the best possible locations in Copenhagen...how could it go wrong?

Pretty much everyone has a stressful job now and the only way to keep floating is to have a nice recovery period. For most that means the weekend. I am happy with my job and that I have just been extended. But I have learned that I also have limits in terms of just how much I can do. So taking on two extra things at work was certainly a recipe for disaster. You have already heard me complain about the course I am taking and the point of this was to increase my teaching competence. Instead it has just left me even more stressed and has taken all of my weekend time.

With 4 weekends left before Christmas there is even more reason to stress. But CX itself is also a source of stress, even if the race is here. We lose a day for every race no matter if it is a cup thing or training. So we stress our way through the week and then stress our way off to yet another weekend of CX races. It should be no surprise to anyone that I reached a limit sometime last weekend when even my 'CX-free weekend' became a 'catching up from the other weekends' stress.

I have given the impression that the grass is greener on the other side of Öresundsbron and in many ways that is true. Even though they have a ton of races, only 4 of them are in the national cup. Yes, 4. Not 11. People have other things to do so why attempt to have so many races? To take an example, Långloppscupen is not that many races and they are usually a couple of weeks apart. This is what I like about it and why so many motionär also join in. It is fun in a stress-free and licence-free way without overdoing it. And most people today that use sport as a way to recover from stress would never need more than that. Keep it simple and don't get out of hand with race numbers. That will bring in the people. There are tons of other sports with stress-free 'prova på' sessions so why would anyone choose complicated and expensive cycling over something simple?

I want to give priority to the second race in the Danish CX-Cup next weekend and in order to do that I have to cancel this weekend in Copenhagen. What happens after that I have no idea. But what I really need is a weekend without stress or expectation. I just need a nice long walk in the forest to calm down a lot.

Yes, now I will continue spreading info on Denmark to those of you in CX Sweden. But after reading Björn's latest inlägg it is clear that I am not the only one slightly losing it. Or maybe that was some Göteborg's humour which will be quickly followed up by a nice report from Belgium? We will see.

So here are some races to keep you busy down south.

24/11 Hjertestarter-cross
How can you not be interested with a name like this? The route is just south of Helsingör.

25/11 Copenhagen Cyclocross Grand Prix
Yes, another race with a big-sounding name that has been around for a few years now.

1/12 CX-Cup Afd 2 - Kongelunden på Amager 
This is the second of the series I started doing last weekend. Amager is just south of the airport in case you were wondering.

Of course I started reading the rules on SCF and realized that most are copied directly from UCI which makes sense because that would require the least amount of effort. But their rule about svarttävlingar seems to apply to those in other countries too so CX-Cup in Denmark is also a no no. Lovely. And what is this crap about 'utlandstillstånd'? I can't find any info on that. Obviously I haven't bothered with that neither now nor a couple years back when I started doing långlopp races in Norway. I have always had my own insurance so it doesn't matter to me.

And finally, I do cyclocross because I like it, not because I am training for next season. And I like the fact that the Danish races are technically simple and not trying to kill us.

Yes, since this is the internet I can use things like OMFG to describe how I feel right now. I have not felt this much träningsvärk since my two super races in Dalsland at the start of the season. I mean seriously this is some serious shite. We all know that cross is great training but after yesterday's technically quite simple lap I was not expecting this. So obviously I am satisfied.

One explanation could be in the results list...the chip registered 16 laps and a race time of 63 minutes. That means 15 times running up those stairs. 16 löphinder. 16 times gradually uphill through the forest and against the wind. And 31 dismounts plus 31 remounts. Plus I also did 4 practice laps. OMFG indeed.

So that gave me 17th position out of 21 in H Prestige. The one that passed during my semi-collapse moment only finished 20 seconds ahead and then there was another 5 s to the next guy. In fact there was only 2 minutes separating the 6 of us on that lap. So there is room for improvement.

Another thing I noticed is that this course allowed me to have more strategy and to do several 'mean' things to keep people behind. Like once at the top of the stairs there was a guy on my left so I remounted and headed straight towards the left side which of course meant he couldn't get through without hitting the track tape. And in the forest I was Chris Crossing back and forth to miss the tree roots...this must have been very annoying.

Next race is 1 dec. You can also sign up for 1 race at a time for 100DKK and then the chip (which you keep and can use again) is another 100DKK. It is pretty close to Kastrup and would be a good way to keep up some form for Tångacrossen. Yes, try that one with a non-Swedish keyboard.

Again I will start this entry in an unusual way with a picture. This is from the very top of the stairs from today's race. It just screams mjölksyra eller hur? So today I made my debut at racing in Denmark and that makes this the 3rd country I have raced in this season. And this also was my debut in H Prestige because they only had a choice between H and H40 but it didn't matter because everyone would race 60 min + finish the lap they were on. No worries for lapped riders. You just do as many laps as you can.

The start was not very dramatic and the whole thing was kind of like Introcross except with chip timing. The course was marked with arrows but there was plenty of chances for corner cutting. I took it easy and just watched where everyone was going so I could follow the same line in later laps. My speed was fine and the Tufos at 2.5 bar were perfect today. My race plan was simple...just keep a steady pace until I meet Mr. Wall. And again the first two laps I was just trying to see where I could rest and where I could gain ground. There was no time for rest anywhere.

This was the lap...the long straight was slightly downhill and everyone was flying so I had to shift down and fly too. At the end of that down near the water it turned left onto a trail but most stayed high and went along the grass. This was a good place to gain time because most coasted here and I did the coasting in the next part, the left turn followed by a sharp right into the forest. This was a tricky part with stones and loose mud and was a place where a couple of guys had bike problems. So here I took it easy and that was a perfect strategy because I did the whole thing without flaw. In the forest it was kind of fun except for the fact that it was slowly uphill the whole time. But I kept at it and this also became a good spot for opening gaps. The next part was a rough grass field over to a right turn, after which was a gradual climb with the wind against you. Fan this hurt. Or, well, it hurt because this is precisely where I made my attack in every lap. That would pay later on. After that was a little 2m drop with a pile of mud at the bottom which became more slippery each lap. But I managed just fine. Then it was time for a double löphinder, again just after an uphill so I was basically stopped. After this we crossed the chip line and then head for the stairs. If you check the picture above you will see a very large brick circle and because I feared pedal vurpor and massive carnage I was already off the bike in the grass and was lifting it up over my shoulder while running up to the hill. This was pretty good. And then taking the stairs 2 at a time meant that this was another spot where I could open up gaps. At the top after I usually messed up my remount it was a slow downhill back to the start which was yet another good spot to attack.

So back to the race. Around Lap 3 my consistency strategy started to pay off because I could see someone 50m ahead and could close the gap and pass. I did this 3 times over the next few laps and felt like things were going great. Of course I was already lapped but I didn't care so much about that. Around 30 min in I could see a few cyclists that had given up so I would not be last even if Mr. Wall came for a visit. Those in front of me were getting more difficult and at least one was på rulle (like 10 m back) for at least a lap. Not so much was happening at this point because the next guy in front was very consistent.

I had no clue how much time has passed so stupidly I asked how much time was left (10 minutes) and this gave away my weakness so the guy I had passed beautifully with an attack in the wind part could sneak by on the stairs. That was my worst stairs of the day. So I figured 2 laps and tried to keep going but my body was weak. I think that was a slow lap because the guy in front of me was getting farther ahead. So then I heard last lap and pulled out all the energy I could find and it was perfect. Where did that energy come from??? So I made up some time and crossed the line and found the nearest muddy grass patch to collapse in. Fy fan. 60 minutes is da shit. And now I am a stiff MF indeed.

It was not exactly a folkfest but there were enough there to make it pretty good. And hearing Danes yell loudly when their bike falls apart is also fun. I think there will be a few pics of me too because one seemed to always be there with her camera on every part of the lap. The results are supposed to appear on Facebook and then on their website. I was not expecting much so we will see what happens. I did pass a few people and I even lapped a couple so that has to be good.

It seems like SCF is getting slightly annoyed and is laying on the penalties. Good thing my 'skita i Sthlm' attitude has taken me here to Roskilde in Denmark. Most of you will associate this lovely old city with a very muddy music festival so it seems right that the Danish CX-Cup should start here. Naturally the first place I had to visit was Roskilde Folkepark, the site of tomorrow's race. You can see the route here. And now for a change, here are some pictures.

The park starts here with some lovely autumn leaves and nice little hard packed dirt paths. These are the kinds of trails that leave the bike and the cyclists with a nice sandy coating after awhile. Lovely.
 

And then we get to what should be somewhere around the start area according to the map. The trained CX eye will see many signs of smygträning and what will probably be a couple of lovely curves.


And then the pièce de resistance, the amphitheatre! The track comes in from the right and goes straight up the stairs in the middle. And let me tell you...those are some serious stairs!


To the right of the theatre there is this grass hill and the track somehow comes passed here and around. The grass felt kind of wet but pretty stable.


And this is what you see from the top of the stairs. The track goes down this gradual hill off to the right in what looked like a path that was made especially for cross. And off in the distance is the water which makes this one of the finest settings for cross I have ever seen. You will also note that there are no crazy drops. Just grass, mud and stairs.

Of course when I went into one cycling shop I was surprised to hear that they did not know about the race. Now they know. And there is a bigger store that was closed when I got there so tomorrow I will drop by and let them know too. A folkfest in Folkepark tomorrow would be a dream! Almost as good as this Tuborg I am drinking.

I noticed from CX Sweden that others are not very amused with the current CX situation either. And obviously I think it is important to be critical or I wouldn't have bothered with my boycott. But we have to take these complaints and make them into something good. It was also mentioned that my boycott seems to be over. I have never been against cyclocross in general, I am just fed up with SCF. And that boycott is on until we can get some progress here.

Like I said yesterday I think it is time to see how things are going in Denmark. And what I found was CX-Cup, a little series of 5 races around Copenhagen. Unlike SCF, the Danish equivalent DCU does not force beginners to have a licence to try out the sport. And the CX-Cup I found is a set of 5 independent races which in this country would be called svarttävlingar. And I think it is positive for the sport to have some competition from smaller cups because then it means DCU can't get lazy and arrange a half-assed race. We could use the same thing here.

They have enough sponsors to keep the thing floating and will even use the Lapio electronic chip timers so there will be less argument over results lists. In fact, the whole website is automated so you can register, pay by credit card and then get your results direct to your iPhone or Facebook. And just for this alone I think it is worth the trip just to see how this all works.

The first race is this Saturday, November 10 in Roskilde, also known for a muddy music event. The setting is in Folkepark which is right in the middle of the city so this will certainly create some local interest. And a start time of 14.00 means no conflict with things like shopping.

Everyone starts at once and there are no rules about getting lapped. You just do as many laps as you can in an hour. Can it get any better than this? So far 34 people have signed up and they have a max limit set at 100. So all of you CX-tokig down in Skåne or southern Sweden still have a chance to join in the fun.

I personally have always chosen CPH over Sthlm...

Yesterday I had what I call the CM or Chris mästerskap in cyclocross because lately it has been a miracle that I have any time to get near a bike. So when I finally do it should be rewarded. And, unlike other M races, at the CM I get a nice medal-shaped object (pizza) for my efforts. The problem is my assignment for that course I wrote about before. This report is a neverending battle and is eating up all of my free time and even some work time. But after working on this the last 3 days it is kind of starting to take shape. So happily I could get out on my bike yesterday.

For those of you away from Göteborg, it has been raining all weekend. Yes, surprise surprise. But yesterday wasn't so one could get the idea that it would be nice and dry out. Nej nej. I have never seen the grass this wet over at my Sävecrossen spot. But with my taped Tufos and a pressure of between 2.4 and 2.5 bar things were actually pretty good. So it was time for the CM to start.

Over at Skatås there was something resembling a track on one of the fields so no one should complain about what we do to the grass. Still, Hästhagen was calling and there I could see evidence of tjuvträning for future GöteborgsSuperprestige races, several dogs and even a horse. My speed was good and the mud was clearing from my tires nicely. But I still slid massively in one corner and other grass/mud bits were pretty slippery in general so I now have to admit that I will slide no matter what tire I have. But yesterday I found a great balance between speed and grip and could feel the crossglädje coming back.

So after a bike wash I thought I would add a nice loop in around Delsjön and 8:an which led to Mr.Wall towards the end, a dirty bike yet again and a whole pile of muddy clothes. A good CM indeed!

This week will bring some late nights to get rid of this stupid assignment because next weekend it is time for Chris Cross to invade Denmark. More on that later...

I realize I said I would shut up until after SM in Sunne but my feeling is that this is not the forum to bring up these issues. There is no discussion and based on Google Analytics I can see that I am only really talking to the people that usually read this page. So I will now make my final point and then let my boycott speak for itself.

We can see that out in the big big world the aftermath of Circus Lance is having the expected effect. Most attention is around Hein Verbruggen and whether he was covering up for doping. But here in Sweden everything seems to have blown over and nothing has happened at all. Why? I have the answer.

After some searching on SCFs website one can find this document on Antidoping information. And many parts of this are in fact good but my problem is the contradiction that spoils the whole thing.

Under 'Vem är ansvarig?' you can read this:
Enligt dopinglagen är alltid idrottsutövaren själv ansvarig för vad han/hon stoppar i sig. Det åligger således honom/henne att förvissa sig om huruvida ett preparat han/hon intar är dopingklassat eller inte.
Även den som hjälper en idrottsutövare att dopa sig, kan bestraffas. Att hantera förbjudna
preparat är dessutom enligt svensk lag förbjudet och kan leda till fängelsestraff.

This we already know. But by placing all responsibility on the cyclist it means that SCF has nothing to lose if someone is doping. That is why they can sit there passively and why Ulf Näslund can call us all cheaters in DN. And that leads to the contradiction. The document starts with Dopingens 3 punkter, of which #3 is:

FÖRSTÖR
Doping skadar idrottsrörelsens trovärdighet och utgör därigenom ett allvarligt hot mot
idrotten som ungdomsorganisation och folkrörelse.

This we also already know. Cycling has a horrible reputation out there in the general public and any cyclist that has encountered an angry motorist or pedestrian knows that this is not getting any better. But this also means that we can't get any sponsors for our local clubs and that it becomes harder and harder to arrange races. Göteborgsgirot is going to have quite the battle on its hands, for example.

There has to be some responsibility or penalty for the club or team too because as things are now everyone can just look the other way and ignore the problem. This is precisely the same thing that happens for alcoholics. Many still say that it is their fault that they became an addict. And the fact that only 7% of those with alcohol problems in this country ever receive any care or ward for their problem is again a problem of responsibility. Although in the case of alcoholism I know that things are slowly changing for the better.

Maybe no one cares but for those of you that do I suggest starting locally. If a club or group can come up with a better way to deal with the doping issue or is willing to take responsibility for the actions of their cyclists then the idea might just spread.

My view on the issue will be represented by my DNS on Saturday.

And with this now said I can now return to the joys of cyclocross...