Cyclocross racing returns to the world stage this weekend from the U.S. FloBikes will broadcast two days of racing at the US Open of Cyclocross in Castle Rock, Colorado.

The women's open starts at 10:40 AM with 15-time US Cyclocross National Champion Katie Compton (KFC Racing p/b Trek/Knight) leading the field. The Men's Open begins at 12:20 p.m. and will feature 2019 Under 23 Men's Cyclocross National Champion Eric Brunner (Blue Stages Racing).

Normally Compton would be in Europe at this time of the season with a full World Cup and Superprestige to set his ranking for the World Championships in February. Brunner is traveling around the US to compete in C1 and C2 events.

The tumultuous year of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has seen 33 of the events that were part of USA Cycling's ProCX calendar, including two Telenet UCI cyclocross World Cup events in Iowa and Wisconsin All professional cyclocross events were suspended. The US Cyclocross Nationals, originally scheduled to be held in DuPage County, Illinois, and then in Iowa City, Iowa, was also cancelled in late summer due to the ongoing effects of the pandemic.

However, local cyclocross events for a smaller field of spectators and competitors still take place in the U.S. The US Open of Cyclocross was on the ProCX circuit, but organizers have shifted their focus to a local event and now the run by the Bicycle Racing Association of Colorado.

"Since the races have been cancelled and moved, I have found myself not racing as much. It's hard to train properly without a number, so I need some kind of race to prepare for cross," Compton told Cycling News from his home in Colorado Spring. 'So I've been looking for other ways to train and race cross.'

"I was very surprised when I found out that 'there is actually a race. There was a local race, so I decided to have fun at a local race, work on my race fitness, hone my skills, and dial in my bike.

"So if (and when) I go to Europe, at least I can race on my own legs. It's not a World Cup race, but it's about racing hard, riding hard, and being technically smooth."

Compton competed in three events in Colorado in October, winning them all. The first was the Death Bowl Cyclocross Series in Louisville, Colorado. She was very impressed with the coronavirus safety measures implemented in several areas of the event.

"It seemed like a safe event. It always attracts good riders, so I think it's going to be a competitive event regardless," she said.

"The red and blue courses were set up separately but raced at the same time so more riders could keep their distance and stay on the course.

"I think it was a well-run and safe event. The field was small, the course was broken up, and there was a temperature check before you got your bib. There was a temperature test before you got your bib, and everyone was wearing masks at a social distance, so I felt really safe."

Two weeks later, Ellen Noble, Maddie Munroe, and Katie Keough competed at the National Championships in Broomfield, Colorado. Several of these athletes will soon be traveling to Europe and will not be attending the US Open, but Compton is excited to be racing so close to home and to have the races streamed.

"It should be a good race. We have good competition, we raced on October 24th in freezing cold snow," Compton said of the Castle Rock venue. [25] "I think the course was similar to this weekend. They had cameras set up for this weekend. It was great to see the cameras and to learn that FloBikes is planning to live stream the race. I don't get to see a lot of CX racing right now, so I'm looking forward to every little bit of it."

Live coverage of the US Open of Cyclocross will begin at 9 a.m. ET on November 7 and will include 27 categorized races. The coverage will be available to FloBikes subscribers worldwide.

Live stream: https://bit.ly/3k9zUro

Schedule: https://bit.ly/32kI8XG