September is the kick-off month for the cyclocross season (CX) which runs through November and thrives off of foul, tough, weather conditions. For those not familar with CX, it's basically the steeple-chase of cycling with people competing mostly off-road on modified road bikes.  The courses are generally less than 1-mile in length and include numerous obstacles that require the rider to dismount and run with the bike over hurdles, through mud-pits, stream crossings and whatever else the event promoter can dream up.  Although the cross races are short in duration (< 1 hr), the intensity is through the roof....an all-out effort from the start.

In addition to the cyclocross scene, there is still plenty of great singletrack racing action in the fall, including the Pando XC Challenge, the Cry Baby Classic, Peak 2 Peak, and then the season finale, the Iceman Cometh on November 6. The Iceman is the largest point to point mountain bike race in the country and last year's attendance exceeded 3,500 participants.   Based on previous Iceman results, look for Fusion to be on the podium when the dust (or snow) settles on the trails of Northern Michigan.