The New England Cyclocross Series is Postponed for 2022, and Indefinitely
With Really Rad joining the USCX, the NECXS on hiatus in 2022
Before there was the USCX, the US Cup-CX, and the USGP, there was the New England Cyclocross Series. Started in the 1980s and hosting only UCI racing since 2003, the NECXS has been a staple of American cyclocross for literal decades.
As the scene in cyclocross has changed in recent years, the series has not been immune to the challenges races everywhere face. After the UCI mandated its series consist of no more than eight races, the NECXS established a four-weekend series of GP of Gloucester, Northampton, Baystate Cyclocross in Sterling, MA, and the NBX Grand Prix in Warwick, Rhode Island. Supercross in New York then replaced Baystate in the 2016 season.
The first domino to fall for the series occurred in 2019 when organizers had to cancel the iconic GP of Gloucester. For American cyclocross, it was probably akin to the Koppenbergcross or Koksijde just going away. Then following the pandemic, Supercross and NBX folded, leaving just Northampton and the new Really Rad Festival of Cyclocross on the NECXS calendar.
With the Really Rad Festival of Cyclocross joining the USCX series this year on November 5 and 6, only Northampton was left among the series races. Last week, series organizer Adam Myerson made the decision to postpone the NECXS for 2022 and for the indefinite future. He published the following statement on the series website.
The New England Cyclocross Series is postponed for 2022, and indefinitely.
While the Series originally included every race in New England starting in the 1980s, it evolved to only include the top events starting in 2000. By 2003, all events in the Series were sanctioned by the UCI, and it eventually grew to 14 rounds and seven race weekends. When the UCI mandated a UCI series could only consist of eight events, the prime era of the Series began, with all the classics: Gloucester, Northampton, Sterling, and Warwick.
Today, there are only four UCI races in New England, and two race weekends. With Falmouth joining the USCX Series, that leaves only Northampton. While I considered running a series based around just two races, I decided it was best to put the Series on hold instead.
When more New England events are ready to step back up to UCI status, and match the format and categories we’ve focused on, the Series will return. Until then, I hope we’ll see you at Northampton.
- Adam Myerson
September, 2022
Featured image: Angelica Dixon