Weekend Forecast: A Rainey Park Thanksgiving
Words: Lucia D
Photographs: Daghan Perker
Rookie (though likely most accurate) weekend forecaster here to tell you that this Saturday’s Rainey Park Cyclocross, irrespective of weather, is going to be a party you’re not going to want to miss.
Rainey Park Cyclocross Quick Details
Location: Rainey Park, Queens, New York
Registration: https://www.bikereg.com/raineyparkcross (W field races only $15!)
Registration Deadline: Thursday at 6PM
Weather Forecast
Speaking of weather, it will be pretty good for the last weekend of November — a cloudy but chilly feeling 44º for the high and just a few degrees cooler at 39º for the first race of the day at 9:30AM. YOU HEARD THAT RIGHT: 9:30AM. In NYC, we live in a society! One in which folks are peer pressured into staying out way too late on a Friday night playing Jenga in some dive bar in Park Slope. Anyway, bring lots of layers, a dry change of clothes, and a thermos for hot beverages, because you will feel coldAF after your race is done.
Best NYC Race Hangs
Rainey Park Cyclocross is an end of season party of sorts for the NYC Cyclocross fam. The entire NYC Cx community comes out to volunteer, race and spectate, and they bring their friends, lovers, parents, babies and pups. And given it will take place (close enough to) Thanksgiving Weekend this year, I present you a list of thanksgivings for RPCx
Things about Rainey Park Cyclocross that I am thankful for:
Keith Garrison, the godfather of NYC Cyclocross & race organizer, who magically turns this tiny little city park into a feature rich race course that favors no type of rider in particular.
The park’s excellent topography that allows for many varietals of turns, including a couple of sketchy off-camber U-turns, and not one but TWO sets of stairs: the regular dreadful run kind and the not Belgian kind you can ungracefully ride.
Keith’s prioritization of Women’s racing, from reg fee discounts, to field structure/race schedule choices, to equal payout.
The centralized location for all NYC residents who can easily ride or public transit to the venue in Astoria.
Bread the size of your head for race winners from SheWolf Bakery with the freakin’ race logo baked onto it.
An excellent low-key singlespeed race which folks are encouraged to use as a warm-up before their afternoon race — zip-ties provided free of charge.
Pals who flamed out from racing too brilliantly all season (hi Kevin), pals who say they’re going to race cx but never do (hi Corey), and pals who’ve abandoned NYC altogether (hi Josh), cannot resist one last battle on home turf.
Our favorite creator of the cyclocross predictor algorithm, Colin Reuter, will be present, and I’m sure will he be pleased to know your crossresults.com feature upgrade suggestions & bug reports during his afternoon race. (JK, be nice and cheer for our NECX pals).
The kind of world class post-race cheap eats & culture you can only find in Queens, NYC. (A couple of nearby recco’s are the Noguchi Museum & Tamashii Ramen).
The gorgeous view of the NYC Skyline in race photos.
Lots of good dogs
Looking forward to having you all in our backyard to celebrate this wonderfully silly sport!