Weather doesn’t keep away Jingle Cross participants

IOWA CITY - It was not a weekend for fair- weather cyclists at the 2014 UCI Carousel Volkswagen Jingle Cross.

The three-day competition, now in its 11th year, encountered cold temperatures, snow and wind.

But for dedicated cyclocross riders, the weather was nothing more than just another day of competition.

'Yeah, this is normal (weather),” said Rose Kuster of Minnesota as she stood along the course watching her husband, Bill Kuster, compete Sunday afternoon.

Rose Kuster, 51, said it's the third time she has attended Iowa City's Jingle Cross, which is held at the Johnson County Fairgrounds. It is one of her favorite courses, she said.

Cyclocross is a mixture of mountain biking, cross-country cycling and criterium racing. Throughout the race, cyclists encounter steep hills and hop on and off their bikes to leap over barriers.

'It's steeplechase but with a bike,” said John Meehan, executive director of Jingle Cross.

Cyclocross season lasts from fall through winter.

Meehan said this year's event has the highest turnout, with more than 2,200 participants. The droves of participants make it the largest non-champion cyclocross event.

Meehan lives in Washington state but started the event while he was a pediatric surgeon at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Meehan said the competition started as a grass-roots event and has exploded into widely popular race. Eighty-five percent of participants are from outside Iowa and from other countries. Competitions range from children's races all the way to elite cyclists.

'We've just kept marketing it to some of the pro riders and the masses,” Meehan said. 'We put on a quality show that people enjoy. So I think it's been very exciting.”

Todd Gillihan, course director, said participants aren't shy about why they keep coming back every year.

'I just had some guys from Utah tell me this today: not only is the course different from any other place in the country, it's how nice everyone is in Iowa,” Gillihan said.

Gillihan said the steep Mount Krumpit along the course makes the Iowa City course one of the most unusual in the country.

'Going down it was pretty terrifying,” said Jenny Carmichael, a Michigan State student and first-time participant.

Proceeds from the event are donated to the UIHC Children's Hospital. Gillihan, a facilities coordinator in the UIHC pathology department, said the donation makes a significant impact and also gets the word out about the Children's Hospital.

Meehan said the event's growth in popularity is what he had in mind all along. And there's a bigger goal in mind: having a World Cup event in Iowa City.

'There's never been a World Cup on U.S. soil, and we're working toward it,” he said.