Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develope your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength.
Each year, new racers join in the competition series, and old racers come back. UPCross is cyclocross yooper style, meaning more obsticles and tougher courses to really test the skill sets of the local yoopers in the Marquette Area. As a mainly fall sport, racers typically don't begin training until mid-summer.
Cyclocross as a whole is a very mentally and physically straining sport that requires you to be able to carry your bike and run in addition to being able to bike. There are obsticles, such as barricades, logs, steep up and down hills, people handing out cake and beer to racers, and sometimes snow (if late into the season).
Even while it may be extremely hard, many racers return each year. As one racer explains, I have been racing for nine or so years, and yet I somehow convince myself to keep coming back. It seems to get harder and harder every time I race, but I enjoy it so much. The community of racers really makes it fun.
Each year, this tough sport gains more and more support. In fact, just last year was the first time any sponsor donated and start/finish line. Before then, there was just a line in the dirt. Now, a local coffee shop called Velodrome Coffee that is based on biking, donates a start/finish line. The coffee shop also provides more racers for the event as it has its own bike team. Because it is a rough sport that causes injuries to its participants (such as broken legs or stitches on the forehead), the community has not supported it as much. However, now that more bike companies are supporting the event as it goes continues through the years, the community is becoming more knowledged on the sport and are more accepting of it.
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