How To Set Up Your Cyclo-Cross Bike

'Cross bike setup is a bit different from setting up your road bike. Here are a few tips to get you started.

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With its technical nature, it pays to have a well set up cyclocross bike. By this, we're mainly talking about tyres and your position.

You'll need to change your position a little bit from your road bike.

Tyre pressures are much lower than a road bike - Simon explains all in the video.

Gearing is different too - shoot for a 46 outer ring and a cassette that's around 11-28.

We'd recommend playing around with the release tension on your pedals. There aren't any hard and fast rules, so again, get out on your bike with an allen key and play around to find out what works for you.

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[tassielondoner]

"If you are in unseasonably warm conditions ...or if you actually live somewhere nice" Classic comment. UK weather certainly is unique.

[PabloXC]

Thanks to you guys I'm leaning more and more towards CX. Time to sell one of my road bikes and get a cyclocross I guess. Perfect bridge between road and MTB, great for commuting as well, no need to avoid shortcuts and heavy traffic

[yoachimfoenix]

I would love to see any tips on how to build a ghetto cross bike. Perhaps from an old hybrid frame and stuff. Maybe an idea for an awsome GCN video ;)

[skywalkies]

Just got my acid pink Specialized Crux 2019. Absolutely beautiful 👌

[TeamSteamRacing]

Thanks for listening to my request GCN!

[Pierrrrrrrrrrrrrrre]

Great video. I wish I had watched it 4 years ago!

[CrazyCyclingVlogger]

Man. You guys are experts on set-up. Can you help me set-up my new computer desk? So many pieces and screws... Will make it hard to watch GCN videos until it is set-up....

[andylane]

Really good team, and really infomative. Just had my caad x stolen going through a new cyclecross model

[billygray]

Dear GCN,
i normally ride a road bike but have dicided to get a cross bike instead. I would have both but i can't due to limeted budget. The idea is that i can go fast but still have fun on the offroad tracks at betteshangar bike park.

Learned something new today... Thanks.
Do you guys have experience with studded tyres on CX's? Winter is coming to Norway and I just fitted my CX with 700x40C tyres that has 240 steel studs in them, each. Now I'm wondering about tyre pressure for a 210lbs rider like myself. The tyres says inflate to 65psi but to me that sounds a bit high, and I'm guessing the traction on snow and ice would be better with something lower?

[DoomandDispair]

Simon I Love you, Dan and Matt don't even come close.

[morfuk]

Good old Challenger Clinchers you can run at 18psi easy! Extremely useful

[madmonkeycycling]

DAT spacertower at the stem, be aware of the towerpolice

[ScottTheede]

Depending on the technique you use to shoulder your bike, and frame dimensions, I've moved my bottle cage to my down-tube and it works better than on the seat-tube.  It's totally rider preference but if shouldering the bike by lifting it from the top tube it works better for me and I can race without having to frequently fiddle with removing my cages from training mode.  From watching races, the pro's are pretty spilt on shoulder from lifting top-tube or lifting the down-tube.  

I raced my first National Championships 2 weekends (Canadians do it way before everybody else) ago and that was the first race where my tires were actually measured.  If it's not a UCI sanctioned race at the elite level, I doubt they will make a fuss if's 34-35.  

[edoardopalmieri]

Thanks for the great video!
I just bought my first cyclocross bike (Pinnacle Arkose Two). Being 183cm tall with an 87cm leg inseam I was suggested by the shop to go with a size Large. To my surprise this comes with a top tube length of 54cm! Much shorter than the 58-60cm I am used to riding.
I can set the bike up to roughly the right saddle and handlebar position, but the seatpost is almost all the way out and the farm feels a tad small overall...I am wondering if I should move up to an XL size which has a 58cm top tube length...

What would you suggest?
Thanks!

[simonguard]

Are you going to do a post about Three Peaks? Hoping to get a place next year.

[tomb]

Is there any chance you could make a video on tire tread choice please?

[blanken]

Have you tried running the Clement tires as a tubeless setup? I've been toying with the idea just haven't tired it yet.

[martinbarton]

Hi guys! Another great video "THUMBS UP". I also liked the "presenters bikes" videos. Can you make another of these, but with the CX bikes? And can you tell us your (presenters) opinion about aluminium vs. carbon frames in CX bikes? (for normal persons of course, not the PRO riders....) . Thanks!

[rondagscedric]

nice video is next season everything of Mountainbiking?