History

Cross on the Rock got underway with four events, 264 total racer starts and an average of 65 racers per race. Troy Woodburn, Lisa Ludwig, Robin Dutton and Bill McMillan won the overall series categories.

Diver Lake hosted the first race of the year, where Rob Britton made his cyclocross debut. It was also the era of 9-speed Shimano, SRAM double-taps just arriving on the scene and Floyd Landis “winning” the Tour de France. Season #1 was officially underway.

Season #2 featured five races, including the first Cross on the Rock double-header: Coal Cross and Jungle Cross. Beban Park also made its first series appearance after previously hosting BC Cups and the 2006 National Championships.

Dawn Anderson recorded the first of what would become 22 Cross on the Rock victories. The season averaged 72 racers per event and saw 160 different riders on the start line. Meanwhile, cantilever brakes were still doing their best to slow everyone down.

2008 was a huge year for Cross on the Rock racers. Founder Wendy Simms reached #1 in the UCI cyclocross rankings, becoming the first Canadian ever to do so.

The series expanded from five races to six. A total of 183 racers took part and average attendance climbed to 76 racers per event. Dawn and Russell Anderson also made history by becoming the only husband-and-wife pair to win the overall series titles.

At the Cyclocross World Championships in Treviso, Wendy Simms led the race on the opening lap and finished seventh overall, which at the time was the highest-ever finish by a Canadian.

Cross on the Rock was still completely hand-timed and hand-scored in 2009, but the series kept growing. Seven races were held, including the first Island Championships at Shawnigan Lake School and the Nutcase Intercontinental Single Speed Championships of the Universe at Fletchers Farm.

The year also featured the one and only Children of the Corn at Slugget Farms, a race that went on to become something of a COTR legend.

Dylan Tremblay raced his first cyclocross event, while Mical Dyck defeated Alison Sydor. Participation jumped from 183 racers to 239, and average attendance increased from 76 to 85 racers per event.

Series winners included Roland Rabien in Intermediate, Dave Holden in Masters, Kristen Magnusson in Women and Craig Ritchey in Expert, with four wins ahead of Normon Thibault.

Season #5 was another big step forward. CrossOnTheRock.com launched, while photo sharing was starting to become a much bigger part of everyday life.

Adam DeVos made his first Cross on the Rock appearance at Bowen Park, which at the time became the hardest COTR race ever. The series also headed over the hump to Port Alberni for the first time and raced at the historic McLean Mill.

Six events were held after the final scheduled race at Shawnigan Lake School was cancelled because of a severe windstorm and no power at the school.

Average attendance jumped from 85 racers to 120, while total race entries grew from 605 to 728. Registration was still paper-only on race day, results were calculated manually and then transferred to electronic form, and disc brakes were still a ways from becoming the norm.

In 2011, results were posted on the Cross on the Rock website for the first time. Condo Cross drew 190 racers, with Tyler Trace and Dawn Anderson taking the wins.

Ricky Bobby Cross at Western Speedway became the hardest race in series history at the time based on DNFs, and remains one of the toughest COTR races ever. Three races from the 2011 season still sit among the hardest events in series history.

Participation continued to surge, with the number of racers increasing from 258 to 331 and average attendance climbing from 147 to 188 racers per event.

The overall series titles went to Dawn Anderson, Tyler Trace, Chris Sundby, Christyna Jones and Dave Damery.

2012 brought online registration for the first time. The first six seasons had been completely paper-based, although race-day registration and results still involved plenty of paper.

Seven races were held, and Cross on the Rock broke the 200-rider mark at a race for the first time. The number of individual racers jumped by more than 100, from 331 to 438.

Disc brakes were beginning to appear alongside mechanical Shimano CX75s and TRP Parabox systems. The season also featured plenty of familiar names, including Pelle Gustavs, Seana Wright, Sean Cruickshank, Dawn Anderson and Drew MacKenzie.

2012 also helped build toward the 2013 UCI Cyclocross World Championships and Masters World Championships in Louisville.

2013 began with the first Cyclocross World Championships ever held in North America, in Louisville, Kentucky. The event became an unforgettable one when incoming flooding forced the elite championships into a single day.

Back on Vancouver Island, Cross on the Rock hosted seven races, including the first My Little Pony Cross at Arbutus Meadows and the Binab Property Group GP at Western Speedway. The series also hosted the Provincial Championships at Bowen Park for the first time.

Future stars were already appearing on COTR start lines. Sarah Van Dam raced her first cyclocross event and won Provincials at age 12. An 11-year-old Emily Johnston also made an early appearance and finished fifth in Beginners.

Participation continued to climb, with total racers growing from 438 to 495 and average attendance increasing from 188 to 205 racers per event.

By 2014, disc brakes had become increasingly common and Cross on the Rock continued to attract an incredible mix of riders.

Seven races were held, including another Provincial Championships at Bowen Park. That race produced a 14.5% DNF rate and remains one of the hardest events in the history of the series.

Riders appearing at COTR that year included three-time Ironman World Champion Peter Reid, Catharine Pendrel, Riley Pickrell, Maggie Coles-Lyster, Erin Atwell, Sarah Van Dam, Emily Johnston and Evan Russell.

Bear Mountain hosted a race for the first time. Average attendance jumped from 205 to 235 racers per event, while the total number of individual racers climbed from 495 to 547.

Cross on the Rock entered its 10th season with seven series races and nine cyclocross events taking place on Vancouver Island.

HLC Bike partnered with WD-40 as title sponsor for the year. One of the season’s most unique events saw racers travel through the Waverly Pub at Comox Lake Campground before returning to the course. A Harbour Air flight packed with cyclocross racers even landed in Comox for the race.

Mazda joined the series and the Zoom Zoom Half Lap races for kids were born. The season featured a Nanaimo double-header and ended with SSCXWC in Victoria, one of the wildest and most memorable events of the era.

Participation continued to boom, with racers increasing from 547 to 660 and average attendance rising from 306 to 325.

Season #11 brought one of the biggest operational changes in series history: electronic timing. After years of fully manual timing, Cross on the Rock finally made the jump, while keeping a manual backup just in case.

Team standings were introduced, with Coal City Cycles taking the first title. The season also brought new youth categories and the series returned to Diver Lake for a Mid Summer race. Mount Washington hosted Top of the World Cross, followed by a Nanaimo triple-header.

Another important addition was the “cross sitters” program, which provided childcare during races and made it easier for parents with young children to compete.

The year ended with a memorable Provincial Championships at the Logger Sports grounds in Squamish. A total of 710 racers took part during the season.

Season #12 featured nine events, including a return to Diver Lake for Mid Summer CX and a Western Speedway double-header featuring two Days of Thunder.

Pacific Mazda served as title sponsor, while Muc-Off helped keep bikes cleaned up and ready for the next race. Turnout continued to grow, with two events setting major attendance records.

Pro City GP drew 430 racers, still one of the biggest single events in Cross on the Rock history. The Kona Kup was not far behind with 314 racers.

A total of 794 racers competed during the season, with an average attendance of 348 riders per event. Naked Bikes won the team title, while Andy Paulin, Seana Wright, Brynn Johnston, Sarah Roberts, Nik Kay, Sean Lunny and Mical Dyck were among the season’s overall winners.