Nittany was for many years the CX season opener in the Northeast. It had mostly good weather. It was wide open, flat and not particularly technical, with just enough off camber and roots to make it interesting. It was the ultimate power course that tended to reward those coming from a summer road season. In this way, it was the perfect entry into cross for the roadies, and the way that many on TBD (and their dogs) found their entry into the weird, wonderful world of cyclocross.

While 2021 may have been the last Nittany, many of the things that we loved about the race are back for 2023! Sturdy Cross at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center Velodrome is Sunday, September 24, and will use the same venue and roughly the same course as the Nittany race. (It has a new promoter, but we’ve affectionately been calling it Nottany.)

According to the new promoter, there are also some new developments for Sturdy Cross:

Beer garden at the velodrome will be open (yes)
Patio will be open with good views of the course (also yes)
A food truck will be onsite (double yes)
The velodrome locker rooms will be open for people to use indoor bathrooms and take showers (they had this before, but the ability to shower before driving home is what makes a race truly elite in my mind so I wanted to mention it)
There will be a kids’ race inside the velodrome (yes, also, cute)

We love this venue so much that we’ve written almost a dozen posts about Nittany in the past. Clay did an excellent preview/breakdown of each specific section of the course back in 2021. Ben wrote about having a great time even though he was running file treads at 60psi because he didn’t know what he was doing back then (he does now). Matt wrote about (and photographed) Nittany in ankle-deep mud. Our 2016 post doesn’t have much writing at all, but is full of nostalgia and/or people that you won’t recognize.

2023 Registration: Sturdy Cross at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center Velodrome PACX Race # 3

The Weekend Weather Forecast

It’s looking like we could be in for a relatively wet race this year, with a tropical storm hugging the East Coast over the weekend. Different forecasts are calling for different times and amounts of rain, presumably because the direction of the tropical storm is still somewhat unknown, but the average forecast calls for some rain in the morning at least.

It is also forecast to be 69 degrees (nice).

While the venue can handle a fair amount of moisture before it gets really muddy, the mud at the venue tends to be very sticky. If the precipitation forecast increases considerably or there’s a ton of rain on Saturday, this could be a race to bring not only mud tires but a second bike if that’s something that you have. If you don’t own two of the same extremely niche type of bicycle, don’t worry, you’re in the majority. Send it anyway.

the Course At Sturdy Cross

We’ve written extensively about the course before, so for the in-depth view we will direct you to Clay’s well-diagrammed preview from 2021. The gist, though, is there are a lot of long, straight, flat grass sections that double back on each other using 180 degree turns, as well as a fair amount of short but steep off-camber. There’s a short woods section, but it has a speed limit largely imposed by roots and rocks with major flat potential if you hit them too hard. The people who have the most success on this course have big power with the ability to turn without hitting the brakes.

The Hangs at Sturdy Cross

The hangs at this venue have historically been some of the best of the season, even in the rain. There’s an area between the off camber and the start-finish area that allows spectators to see most of the most interesting parts of the course, and that’s probably where you will find most of the TBD gang. Hangs are improved by the existence of a beer garden this year, a food truck on site, and indoor showers available so you can be nice and comfortable for spectating after your race. Come early and plan to spend the day.

Gear For Sturdy Cross

Bring your tent! Your umbrella! Your mud boots! It’s going to depend on how the forecast changes between now and then, but I’ll either be running grifos or limus tires (I’d actually choose a baby limus probably, but I don’t have those). Bring a towel to take advantage of the showers that I’m aware I won’t shut up about in this preview. Also: your camera, your dog, and for us TBD racers, not your white kit.

TBD’s Favorite Memories of CX at the Velodrome

“Nittany was the first time I stepped onto a cross podium. One of my socks was totally covered in mud because I had faceplanted into what I later discovered was sewage runoff. Thankfully, I lived to race another day.” - Leah Goldberg

“Nittany was the first cyclocross race where I realized just how big and welcoming the NYC CX scene is. Before Nittany I did a few small, random races in NJ. After Nittany, I was all in for traveling the Eastern seaboard for big weekend festivities like Providence, Gloucester, NBX, (RIP to all three), and Noho.” - Matt Vandivort

“Nittany was the second competitive cycling event I took part in (after gmsr). I did it on file tread 38s pumped up to 60 and slid out of every corner.” - Ben Brown

“Nittany is one of the only cyclocross races I’ve ever won, and that’s probably because no matter how hard I try for however many years, I am always destined to be the roadie I started as. Boy that course is fun though.” - Shane Ferro