We are already looking ahead to the US UCI ProCX calendar later this year and trying to make sure our coverage meets what subscribers (and potential subscribers) most want. Leaving livestreams out of the conversation, what types of coverage would you like to see from the CXHAIRS Bulletin and how can we improve the coverage we already provide?
From the video side, plans are to provide:
track walks before every race previewing the course with commentary
cyclocross television episodes from every event showing key race footage with commentary, these could be anywhere from 10 minutes recaps to 45 minutes full race commentary.
I will always, of course, advocate for a women’s POV. You three do such a fantastic job but bringing a woman into the mix from time to time would only increase the value of the coverage!
Hey Guys, I am a big fan of your content. Keep it going. One thing that has been instrumental for growing the sport of cyclocross in my former home country (Belgium) has been to focus on building new talent (juniors). Maybe also highlight some new and upcoming US cyclo youngsters will help grow the base and also build some future US and world champions.
As long as you bring back the heat check videos on a regular basis I'll be happy. Those were the #1 thing that got me to subscribe here so I've been a little bummed that they went from videos to text first, then disappeared altogether after Worlds.
Thinking of possible additions to your coverage, some sort of 'meet the racer' segment would be cool every once in a while. I definitely follow the racers who put a time into regular posts and vlogs more closely than those who don't, and it makes it that much easier to want to root for those riders. By you guys being the medium for racers who don't invest much time into media I think it would be a win-win-win situation for CXHairs, the racers, and us fans.
Would like to see just a little bit of tech coverage on occasion. Not full bike checks, those are a dime a dozen and mostly boring since most CX bikes have become pretty similar in recent years. More interested in the Mark Legg type info about specific changes for certain courses or rider needs; that or things that fail. So often we see a rider with a tech issue and we never find out what happened; sponsors probably want to keep failures as secret as possible so I know this is tough to find out. Also want to know what unconventional things might be in the pit for just in case scenarios. Also want your version of the start line slo mo tire shot so we can see what everyone is running.
It would be great if a female voice could join the three of you - would also like some How I got where I am format interviews so we can get to know the riders and their journey into cx.
I really enjoyed the CXTV coverage you guys were able to put together last year, so I'm glad to see that on the list again. I think that this year with the calendar being a bit more coherent, dense, ad with no overlapping weekend the heat check is going to be absolutely out of control. I'm so excited.
Some great ideas here but might I suggest a little content beyond the pro/elite segment? Every ProCX race weekend will also have age group / masters fields etc which includes most of us subscribers. Do some random interviews with amateurs (and their bikes), state champs, folks high in USAC rankings heading to Nats, report on total field size, results, anything that catches the eye. Maybe also cover the various regional series (guest bloggers/bloggers/diarists), obviously there is a big scene in NE / New England but also the west coast ( since they got no UCI event love, and others like NCCX (I’m a little biased there). Gonna be a great year for CX Hairs and WAP!
Course previews are great, but one thing a person standing there can pick out is the tiny feature that doesn't look significant on a screen but is going to affect the race. A mis-placed pole, a tricky dip (as at Dendermonde where entire legs were disappearing). At domestic races, the key points are also key party zones, the equivalent of Dutch corner on l'Alpe d'Huez (road reference -sorry!!)
I'm very glad to see CX TV episodes on the list. I know they were hard to bootstrap and I'm hoping that the subscription model will make them sustainable. The heat checks are cute and do their part to build the narrative, but I've missed the domestic race footage for the past few seasons. For me, there is no substitute for getting to see how a rider looks when they're racing, how they react to problems, and how they handle different course conditions.
Building on the featuring juniors theme, i'd like to suggest some coverage of U23 and Juniors (assuming that those categories will be happening). It would be great to have awareness of those who could be on the front row in the next few years.
More on technique, skills, and course-specific challenges. (I actually do want to know what tires are being ridden). Race recaps are fine, but would also like to see more on how and why one rider was better than another on a given day. I don't mind the racer-focused backstories and some of the drama, but ultimately read and watch with an eye toward being a better racer and coach.
I loved some of the tech coverage this year and would like to see a “ in the pits “ type of coverage. I realize it’s chaotic in the pits but maybe get some mark legg type info into the set up. What happen this year to the camera starting line pan down to see what tires they are running... that tells half the story... need me a tire check.
One thing beyond tech in course preview would be a weather check 2days before the race so we don’t have to look it up (and fer all da mericans please talk in faranhite)
Your analysis and storytelling is fantastic and really brings the nuances of the sport to life. It would be great to build on this and bring some of the key characters in the sport to the forefront. We have a wealth of media savvy athletes already who put out excellent content, and I am sure there are plenty more. Red Bull TV has their "Rob Meets" series for MTB and that sort of more in depth interview series outside of the race environment, to enable the audience to really get to know the racers etc, would be great.
I will always, of course, advocate for a women’s POV. You three do such a fantastic job but bringing a woman into the mix from time to time would only increase the value of the coverage!
Hey Guys, I am a big fan of your content. Keep it going. One thing that has been instrumental for growing the sport of cyclocross in my former home country (Belgium) has been to focus on building new talent (juniors). Maybe also highlight some new and upcoming US cyclo youngsters will help grow the base and also build some future US and world champions.
As long as you bring back the heat check videos on a regular basis I'll be happy. Those were the #1 thing that got me to subscribe here so I've been a little bummed that they went from videos to text first, then disappeared altogether after Worlds.
Thinking of possible additions to your coverage, some sort of 'meet the racer' segment would be cool every once in a while. I definitely follow the racers who put a time into regular posts and vlogs more closely than those who don't, and it makes it that much easier to want to root for those riders. By you guys being the medium for racers who don't invest much time into media I think it would be a win-win-win situation for CXHairs, the racers, and us fans.
Would like to see just a little bit of tech coverage on occasion. Not full bike checks, those are a dime a dozen and mostly boring since most CX bikes have become pretty similar in recent years. More interested in the Mark Legg type info about specific changes for certain courses or rider needs; that or things that fail. So often we see a rider with a tech issue and we never find out what happened; sponsors probably want to keep failures as secret as possible so I know this is tough to find out. Also want to know what unconventional things might be in the pit for just in case scenarios. Also want your version of the start line slo mo tire shot so we can see what everyone is running.
I would like to see more riders intro, especially the newer ones that are still establishing themselves in the sport.
It would be great if a female voice could join the three of you - would also like some How I got where I am format interviews so we can get to know the riders and their journey into cx.
I really enjoyed the CXTV coverage you guys were able to put together last year, so I'm glad to see that on the list again. I think that this year with the calendar being a bit more coherent, dense, ad with no overlapping weekend the heat check is going to be absolutely out of control. I'm so excited.
Some great ideas here but might I suggest a little content beyond the pro/elite segment? Every ProCX race weekend will also have age group / masters fields etc which includes most of us subscribers. Do some random interviews with amateurs (and their bikes), state champs, folks high in USAC rankings heading to Nats, report on total field size, results, anything that catches the eye. Maybe also cover the various regional series (guest bloggers/bloggers/diarists), obviously there is a big scene in NE / New England but also the west coast ( since they got no UCI event love, and others like NCCX (I’m a little biased there). Gonna be a great year for CX Hairs and WAP!
Course previews are great, but one thing a person standing there can pick out is the tiny feature that doesn't look significant on a screen but is going to affect the race. A mis-placed pole, a tricky dip (as at Dendermonde where entire legs were disappearing). At domestic races, the key points are also key party zones, the equivalent of Dutch corner on l'Alpe d'Huez (road reference -sorry!!)
More Lil'Belgian content. I'm partial to the domestic and local scenes, but I'd settle for the international as well. Keep up the great work!
I second Katerina's statement about rider introductions. It would be awesome to shine a spotlight on riders to help develop storylines here in the US.
I'm very glad to see CX TV episodes on the list. I know they were hard to bootstrap and I'm hoping that the subscription model will make them sustainable. The heat checks are cute and do their part to build the narrative, but I've missed the domestic race footage for the past few seasons. For me, there is no substitute for getting to see how a rider looks when they're racing, how they react to problems, and how they handle different course conditions.
Pipe dream: Find and bring back Cole
Building on the featuring juniors theme, i'd like to suggest some coverage of U23 and Juniors (assuming that those categories will be happening). It would be great to have awareness of those who could be on the front row in the next few years.
More on technique, skills, and course-specific challenges. (I actually do want to know what tires are being ridden). Race recaps are fine, but would also like to see more on how and why one rider was better than another on a given day. I don't mind the racer-focused backstories and some of the drama, but ultimately read and watch with an eye toward being a better racer and coach.
I loved some of the tech coverage this year and would like to see a “ in the pits “ type of coverage. I realize it’s chaotic in the pits but maybe get some mark legg type info into the set up. What happen this year to the camera starting line pan down to see what tires they are running... that tells half the story... need me a tire check.
One thing beyond tech in course preview would be a weather check 2days before the race so we don’t have to look it up (and fer all da mericans please talk in faranhite)
Your analysis and storytelling is fantastic and really brings the nuances of the sport to life. It would be great to build on this and bring some of the key characters in the sport to the forefront. We have a wealth of media savvy athletes already who put out excellent content, and I am sure there are plenty more. Red Bull TV has their "Rob Meets" series for MTB and that sort of more in depth interview series outside of the race environment, to enable the audience to really get to know the racers etc, would be great.