Photo by Scorpius-Cycles.com

Now that you’ve clearing the hurdle or hill you’ve got to get back on and keep your momentum up. Since cross is about speed and flow you can’t stop to step onto your bike, clip in then kick off. The remount has to be a fluid motion from the run onto the saddle and immediate peddling. So a couple things to keep in mind.

Basic Cyclocross Techniques – Remount

Photo by Scorpius-Cycles.com

First check your pedal position. You’ll want to glance at your pedals for two things, first that the cranks are in a position to let you get a pedal stroke right away so you can keep that forward momentum. Second depending on your pedal type you’ll want to make sure you’ll get a good engagement from your cleats on the first attempt. Since these may have shifted during your dismount and carry some pros even adjust their cranks and pedal as they are unshouldering their bikes and getting ready to remount. This helps to make sure they find the pedal and clip back in on the first attempt.

So now it’s time to launch yourself back into the saddle. Holding the bars at the hoods again and running forward, jump over your rear tire and land your backside on the saddle. This sounds tricky but actually if your hands are in position on the bars you’ll find you’ll land in the saddle automatically since your body is resuming its natural riding position. This is a timing thing that can be difficult depending on the terrain. Make sure your bike fit is right, it’s a lot harder trying to jump on a saddle that’s too high for you, but with some practice you’ll find this isn’t really that complicated. The biggest worry people seem to have is landing on sensitive parts and hurting themselves. Some are even taught to find the seat with your thigh and slide into position. But if you think about trying to do this mid-air, you’re more likely to throw off your balance or hit a tender spot using that method than just practicing landing lightly and squarely on your saddle with the biggest naturally cushioned body part you have. Once seated, clip in, typically left foot first and go. The other key here is make sure you find the pedal as soon as possible (this is where having it pre-positioned helps) and start turning those cranks. Even if you don’t engage your second cleat on the first attempt, get some momentum going as you search for it rather than lose your speed.