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Dear all,
New to CX and raced my 4th race of this season recently. Gutted to have almost ripped off my rear mech on the first lap in relatively 'innocent' conditions. I use a 1x set up. Still not entirely sure why it happened; gears had been running perfectly up until that point, hanger was aligned, rear mech only 2-3 months old with low mileage, chain well lubed etc. I've raced XC in the past and have ridden and raced a range of different bikes for years and years. I also consider myself a fairly decent home bike mechanic.
While I understand as the weather turns progressively worse and CX become an uber mud fest being hard on CX bike components, it got me wondering more about the relative cost of 'cross and whether frequent mechanicals are a reality and to be expected as part of the sport or if I'd just been unlucky. For me this is the worst mechanical issue I've ever had in cycling.
I'd be interested to hear your experiences.
Try single speed
I dodged any mud related mechanicals in the 6 or so races I did, but used an XC hardtail with 33mm tyres for all of them, so acres of mud clearance!
I think there are variousntricks of the trade for avoiding mud issues, simplest if which is running the really muddy bits to avoid picking up mud in the first place!
I'm also highly dubious of modern long cage 1x mechs and big cassettes, it just seems to put your mech right in the firing line. I might switch to a short cage 105 snd smaller cassette,but that will probably also require a chain keeper at the front... Will require some commitment also to give up my bigger sprockets, but am learning higher geared is best for traction in mud anyway...
When I raced CX I always used the adjuster screw to prevent me moving into 1st gear. I used to see quite a few rear mech into back wheel incidents caused by a variety of events (long grass getting clogged up, clipping on obstacles, crashes.....). Limiting to second gear gave me a bit more clearance.
3 years of CX for me, damage cost currently £0 despite some horrendous conditions. Mechanicals in CX just tend to be luck ime, when things like mechs go its usually because they've usually got clogged up in mud to the point of jamming.
Otherwise I find it's bearings that get attacked, and I blame myself for choosing to use CB pedals
chain well lubed etc.
With what? I think the serious racers prefer dry or wax lubes to avoid anything sticking to the chain. Last winter I 'trained' in some serious mud using a Putolined chain which was fantastic, but I can't be bothered with the Putoline system this winter so am trying a much lighter lube (Viking Juice) which apparently is very low stickiness also.
28 years of CX and I wrecked three rear mechs in that time so it's not a given that you break kit.
Mind you I did also break half a dozen frames, three of which snapped during races, one steerer tube that split in a last-lap sprint and I wore out multiple rims (inc several carbon ones) so maybe I was just lucky on the mech front 😀
We've watched quite a few mech failures at races. In the majority of cases, the main rip-mech-off failure mode is jamming of the chain on the slack side by either:
Chainsuck on the underside of the chainring due to mud and grass buildup around the bb. This rips the mech off forwards once slack is used up.
Or jamming of the jockey wheels / cage with mud and grass. Pedaling force rips mech off backwards as the clogged mech isn't feeding chain through and your legs and chain tension are stronger than the mech.
I made a purpose designed frame with huge mud clearance and must admit I haven't trashed a mech or failed to finish in 5 years of very muddy racing. I have more problems with seized up HT2 bottom brackets and jockey wheels, usually discovered on the day before races (mud-wash-stand for a week-repeat is awful for bearings).
Currently one race into a Sturmey Archer 3 speed experiment with good results.....
Freak accident to do a mech like that lap one, maybe someone gave you a nudge at the start and it bent?
It's certainly a familiar sight, a bolloxed mech at a cross race, but I've only suffered one failure myself - user error running a too short chain on a tired 105.
Cross is ok on components in race terms IME - it annihilates bearings for definite and it can be hard on wheels - running low pressures dings rims. I've cracked a carbon tub rim from riding over a rock (spray-painted luminous green like but I still managed to locate it). You'll mark your bike up a lot with crashes, but the mud holds a gentle embrace. It's not like crit racing, say, where you can smash your bike to bits in a bunch crash.
Luck. I've never used pit bike, I've never had a component preservation strategy and I have never lost mech or a hanger. But who knows what might happen next weekend.
Currently one race into a Sturmey Archer 3 speed experiment with good results
Prepare for some broken pawls - that's the SA hub's weak spot.
Thanks for the replies - all interesting to read. I was so annoyed (I was going to say cross but that's just even more annoying) and to be honest it's put me off racing cx a bit. I've been enjoying having races to train for and not having to spend all day at events like some other different bike discipline races I use to do (works well with having a young family). I think I'm going to have an almost constant paranoia of it happening again!
Anyway, I now have the fun evening of bending things back into some semblance of straightness...
For some reason CX does seem hard on rear mechs. I ripped one off about 300metres in to a very muddy course a few years back, and a friend ripped his off a couple of weeks back with no clear cause. Not sure why....
Tyres and wheels on the other hand - pinch punctures, tubeless woes, dinged rims, broken spokes. Disaster area for me! (hit a brick in a puddle at yesterdays race - approx 2 minutes in to a 45 minute race. Game over.....)
Although it's not an answer, I suppose you can opt for a lower cost option by running 7/8/9 speed and (hopefully) lower cost mechs and drivetrain parts.
Other things I've had suggested to me in the past (but not tried myself):
-Silicone spray all over the mech/cassette/chain/chain-ring(s) and drive side stay, basically anywhere mud might accumulate and get drawn through the drivetrain into the mech, the intention being to minimise the quantity of crap sticking and causing issues.
-Cut down cassette (5 or 6 speed) with spacers behind and mech set on limit screws, again the goal is to improve mud clearance/shedding and if the chain does ride over the top it just lands on a spacer and doesn't go into the spokes....
-Fit a "dork disc" behind the cassette, again to try and prevent the mech/chain meeting the spokes.
-Deliberately bouncing the bike hard any time you have to dismount to try and shed some of the mud.
That's all assuming SS or IGH aren't viable options.
Marshalling at a CX race a few years ago, one rider (Masters race) ripped his mech off at the bottom of a steep climb as he changed down (it was rideable, was quicker to ride than run assuming you got the entry point correct).
Picked up bike, ran off. He obviously got his spare bike from the pits because next lap he came round again...and did exactly the same.
Two trashed Ultegra mechs, at least one broken rear wheel all in the space of 10 mins.
Still not entirely sure why it happened; gears had been running perfectly up until that point, hanger was aligned, rear mech only 2-3 months old with low mileage, chain well lubed etc.
A mate raced fixed gear on the Three Peaks CX quite a few years ago, he was going for the fixie record. Trained extensively in the Peak District up and down all manner of trails including many that were far more suited to full on MTB. All weathers, all terrain, he properly put the miles in testing tyre pressures, gearing etc. All worked perfectly.
Day of the race, within a few minutes of starting he'd pulled the wheel over in the dropouts and then within a minute or two of going off-road, he'd punctured (spraying sealant everywhere and necessitating a tube) and then the chain snapped. It just wasn't meant to be but there was no reason for it all to go so wrong.
28 years of CX and I wrecked three rear mechs in that time so it’s not a given that you break kit.
Roughly the same for me, but two of them were in the same race. That was an expensive day!
For some reason CX does seem hard on rear mechs.
During a lot of races the whole BB to rear hub area will get clogged up with mud and grass, while the rider is jumping on and off trying to put as much power through the drive train in a not very smooth fashion. Add in the knocks that you don't even notice while you're shouldering your bike and running, or the small crashes and slides on the muddy grass. For an hour long race, cross is very hard on kit of all sorts, but it's no surprise to see rear mechs hanging off.
Bentudder - is that old Sturmey eating pawls or current design? Will see how it goes but at 63kg I'm probably not stressing it too much 🙂
The best cx mechanical we saw was a chain snap just where it left the underside of the chainring. The rider didn't realise so it was fairly comical watching them pedal on for quite a few metres laying out the chain on the floor behind them. Until they ran out of chain and stopped dead with frantically whirling legs....
Any weakness in your drive chain will be amplified in CX. Pedalling hard, mud, grass - its a recipe for disaster.
Have a spare mech hanger in your tool box. I used to have a spare mech but these days they are hard to come by.
In terms of preventing issues I try the following:
-Lube everything well. If I know it will be muddy I practically drown my chain in chainsaw oil. No worries about build up in CX!
-Use oil, silicone spray, polish on other areas. Make sure your mech and jockey wheels are as non stick as possible. Again in really bad conditions I took to wiping baby oil on bits of my bike to prevent mud sticking. If you have disk brakes then silicone on the rims is useful. Make sure your tyres are clean at the start of the race, Dried on mud is a good surface for wet mud to stick to.
-Never back pedal, ever, in fact always pedal forwards gently.
-Run through mud. It sucks but if you are on one bike then you are better off running if it means your bike works longer.
-Run when your bike stops working. You can try and clean and run. In a low point of 2019 on one bike I actually used the pits and had my bike jet washed while I waited as I figured it was quicker than continuing.
-Know your mud. Like the Inuits, CXers have many different words for mud. The main problems are normally in claggy clay mud. Peaty mud is normally fine. Puddles on hard pack is ok, really deep sloppy mud is also not much of a problem as it doesn't stick. Avoid races with the "bad mud".
I managed to mangle a rear mech on my first ride of my new race bike - mud and leaves jammed in the jockey wheels, they stopped and the mech kept going. Fortunately I got a replacement hanger, plus bought a spare that then spent 10 years in my toolbox! I think the principle of CX is only race what you can afford to crash. Mind you I stopped road racing after breaking 3 carbon rims in consecutive races - all down to potholes - thanks Surrey CC!
Polish/silicon spray, plus
Fit a “dork disc” behind the cassette, again to try and prevent the mech/chain meeting the spokes.
And maybe get a mech with a clutch? (didn't stop me dropping the chain last race out, mind)