MGA To Host Cyclocross Races On Georgia Premier Course

Author: Sheron Smith
Posted: Tuesday, October 12, 2021 12:00 AM
Categories: Events- Public | Pressroom | Faculty/Staff

Macon, GA

L-R Trey Crisp of MGA and Tony Blansit of the Georgia Neurosurgical Cycling Team at the Georgia Premier cross country course, the site of the upcoming Middle Georgia State University Cyclocross.

Trey Crisp calls cyclocross the “punk rock” of bike racing.

“It’s such a fun style of racing,” said Crisp, who is Middle Georgia State University’s (MGA’s) facilities director for the Macon and Warner Robins campuses. “There are all kinds of natural and manmade obstacles you either have to ride over or get off the bike and jump over them.”

Although he no longer competes himself, Crisp is a longtime bike racing enthusiast who knows a good opportunity when he sees one. When he learned that his friend Tony Blansit, a member of the Georgia Neurosurgical Institute Cycling Team, was looking for a local site to host a day of cyclocross racing, Crisp immediately thought of the Georgia Premier, the University’s cross country course located off Fulton Mill Road. 

After many months of planning, the Georgia Neurosurgical Cycling Team will present Middle Georgia State University Cyclocross on Sunday, Nov. 7. Racers of all ages will compete in separate events, the first one beginning at 9 a.m. The last one will end around 4 p.m. Age and/or gender categories for the various races range from 9-14 year old girls and boys to “elite” men and women to “masters” who are 35 or older.

“This is going to be one of the premier courses in our race series,” said Blansit, who works as an engineer at Blue Bird Corp and will participate in the event in the master 50+ category. “It has all kinds of unique features.”

He expects anywhere from 80 to 120 racers. Race proceeds will benefit U Create Macon, a community organization for youth that offers several cycling programs.

According to USA Cycling, which is sanctioning the MGA event, cyclocross (CX) can best be described as a mix of road cycling, mountain biking, and steeplechase. Races generally take place on closed circuits in a park or other open land with competitors racing multiple laps.

“Riders begin in mass-start fashion and must navigate through both paved and off-road terrain,” writes Angelina Palermo on usacycling.org, “often times dismounting their bikes to hurdle barriers, climb steep hills or stairs, or traverse other obstacles.”

Cyclocross is very spectator friendly, which is why many racers bring family and friends with them. MGA is allowing racers and spectators to arrive the night before the event to camp just inside the course entrance. There are tentative plans to have a food truck and beer garden on site.

For Crisp, hosting cyclocross at Georgia Premier increases the visibility of one of the best cross country courses in the Southeast. (MGA athletics will always have priority in using the course, he said.) He hopes the race becomes an annual event.

For Blansit, hosting a day of racing at such an optimal location raises awareness of a niche sport he loves.

“The race is open to the community and we encourage people to come as spectators,” he said. “I think it will help get more people interested when they see how much fun it is.”

For more info and to register: https://www.bikereg.com/middle-georgia-state-university-cyclocross-presented-by-georgia-neurosurgical-team