Since I now have a CX bike, how do folks warm up for a CX race???? Trainer like in road or just ride around? I always need a lot of warm up it seems... Do anything different as the temps at start time drop???

Oh, and here is a pic of my CX bike. I had it out for a shake down ride, riding it around as I took pictures of todays road crit before my cat 4/5 race (lapped once, and pack finish once they came around... :( )

2003 C'Dale CX frame and fork, 105 drive train 48/36, 12-27, bar end shifters, Bell Lap CX bars, Michelin Jets, SPDs, and a nice thick Specialized TelluRide MTB saddle. ~21 pounds, a bit heavy...

I wrote an article about this here:
http://spokepost.com/cross/2004/?articleID=3

There is a lot going on in the time before the race, you need to make some equipment decisions, ride the course at least twice, decide on some lines you will be taking, what gears to use, etc. On top of all that, you need to get you body warm and ready for a fast start. It's really key to get the course figured out and have your equipment dialed in right, that's my number one priority, even if I am suffering a little extra the first two laps from a less than perfect warmup.

I guess the two big things I believe are a) do your warmup by yourself so you can think a lot and re-ride sections and b)do the first lap of your warmup nice and slow so you can really see how the course lays out.

Oh, and here is a pic of my CX bike. I had it out for a shake down ride, riding it around as I took pictures of todays road crit before my cat 4/5 race (lapped once, and pack finish once they came around... :( )
Nice Bike!

I guess the two big things I believe are a) do your warmup by yourself so you can think a lot and re-ride sections and b)do the first lap of your warmup nice and slow so you can really see how the course lays out.

I used to ride the course beforehand but now I don't. I've found that the race schedules usually only allow about 15 minutes before my race to preride. I've found that I'm better served to stage within the first two rows at the start rather than preride. Generally, I'll jog beside the course to preview it as part of my warmup. That said, I come from a mtb background and one of my strengths is analyzing terrain on the fly.

My raceday routine is:

* Arrive a little more than an hour before race time.
* Register.
* Preview course. I do this while a race is going on. I like to pay attention to trouble spots and how other riders handle them.
* Ride around for a warm up. I wear lots of layers to stay warm. I try to keep pretty mellow.
* 15 minutes before race time, I get close to the staging area and pay attention to gathering riders.
* Once riders start lining up, I do too. A couple minutes before the gun, I strip off all extra layers and dump them.
* Race.