Top 10

(left, Carol holds up the number 4 indicating the 4 minutes she needed to catch me. I'm in trouble next year. Photo by John Blaszczak.)

Why do Iron Cross, the country's longest cross race?

10. Teammates don't need to block for one another but can compete. <<<<<<<

9. No pasta found on the restaurant menu. Enjoy steak and Jagermeister the night before a race.

8. Lots of cross-bikeable doubletrack.

7. The “potty mouth” crawl up competition. Previous winner: Liz. Current record holder: Art

6. The Hostel hostile sign award. Last year’s winner: "Do not under any circumstances open this door—EVER." This year’s winner: "Do not close the kitchen door—EVER." (Awesome place to stay.)

5. Racing is optional. If you would rather just ride, no one cares.

4. Lots of cross-bikeable singletrack.

3. Spotty cell reception limits outside contact and opens conversation with “misunderstood” people like Gene.

2. Team alliances blur inside the PA border. Here, VBV, AABikes, TP and HCC actually work together to snuff out Crazy’s complications and get hold of the Brenna Bars.

1. Free entry to Ironmaster’s Hostel Bad Film Festival presented by Anti-Art Director Dog. Last year’s feature: Boogey Man Current Bad Movie: V for Vendetta.


--Check out Alicia's Blog and Danielle's Blog and John's Blog for detailed race reports.