It’s been eight years since I went to a local cyclocross race in the United States — though I must have done about 100 of my own tiny local races in Belgium in that time — so the opportunity to go to an American race just a town away in Colorado was really appealing. Especially with lovely, mild weather forecast. We packed up the family and drove up to Longmont, where my friend Brook Watts, best known for his work as CrossVegas race director, was putting on a race.

What struck me — aside from the spectacular, 4000-meter-high Longs Peak looming in the background — was how positive everybody was. I could hear racers talking to each other and offering encouragement to each other through the whole race. I saw so many smiles, so many people enjoying themselves. Nobody smiles in Belgian cyclocross.

The kids had a great time, I reconnected with so many old friends, and watched a couple of really fun races.

And I took some pictures.

Most of the elite women’s race was a three-way battle, and a good one at that.

I can’t claim this is my favorite photo of the day, but it might be my favorite kit/bike combo of the day. Americans go all out when it comes to kit design.

With Longs Peak behind you, every photo looks pretty good.

Brook puts on CrossVegas, which is an amazing race, now a World Cup. He also runs the race on Saturday not far from his house in Longmont. He does a great job with both races, even though the scale of each is pretty different from the other. He also happens to be one of my favorite people in the sport.

The men’s race featured a lot of talented young guys up front, with Maxx Chance leading Gage Hecht up the first real climb on the course.

I can’t get over the backdrops in Colorado.

The Boulder Junior’s program had a fine showing on Saturday.

The sand pit seemed minimally important to the outcome of the race, but I was glad they had it anyway.

It’s pretty different shooting a race in the States versus a race in Belgium. So few people along the course means you have to think much more about the distant landscape than I normally do.

I love what a tangle of tape the course is when you step back and have a look at the big picture.

There were lots of opportunities for young riders on Saturday too.

Gage Hecht earned a good gap by mid-race, which meant plenty of time to enjoy the impending victory.

The Boulder Cycle Sport guys pretty much owned the masters 40+ category.

We reconnected with lots of old friends at the race, including a bunch of people from my favorite bike company in the world, Moots.

Willem got into the action too, and snapped a few photos with his “camera”.

Nice win by Gage Hecht, making it look easy, as always.

And did I mention the views?