In early October, a ragtag group of singlespeeding cyclocross racers from around the world descended on Madison, Wisconsin for the Singlespeed Cyclocross World Championships (better known as 2024 SSCX Worlds). Photojournalist Erik Mathy returned to his hometown to document an event that was filled with fall colors, incredible bike infrastructure, and Wisconsin-style cycling shenanigans.

Wisconsin, in the fall, is one of my favorite places in the world. The temperatures range from just warm enough for short sleeves to just crisp enough for a cozy flannel. The foliage in the trees is a mix of light greens, yellows, and reds. Some of the farm fields still have an abundance of late crops, while others have been harvested, cleared, and tilled under in preparation for the winter months. You can see boats going out onto the water for late-season sails or fishing. And the riding, be it along Wisconsin’s extensive network of state-maintained rails to trail routes, wooded singletrack, or back country roads, is absolutely perfect. Wisconsin in the fall is a gem that you’re missing out on if you’ve never experienced it.

The fall in Wisconsin is also apple season. The state is home to a bazillion apple orchards. Sure, the changing of the leaves heralds the return of pumpkin spiced everything, but in Wisconsin it also brings more fresh apples, apple butter (YUM!), apple turnovers, fresh pressed apple cider, and apple pies than you can shake a freshly grilled bratwurst at. That’s really what Wisconsin in the fall is for me: a piece of freshly baked, homemade, warm apple pie made with apples from the orchard just outside of town.

Another ‘sconi thing, something my Pops introduced me to, is putting a fat slice of good, sharp Wisconsin cheddar on top of that piece of warm pie. It melts just enough to be easily cut with a fork and adds a little tang to the apple pie sweetness. It sounds weird. People look at me like I’ve grown a third and fourth eyeball when I tell them about it. Hell, it IS weird! Putting that slice of cheddar (again, a good, sharp Wisconsin cheddar if you’re going to do it right) is odd, delightful, and even a touch bit mischievous because you just know people anywhere outside the Midwest are going to look at you funny when you ask for it.

And that, ladies and gentlemen and everyone who doesn’t care for such titles, is what the 2024 Singlespeed Cyclocross World Championships in Wisconsin (SSCX Worlds Wisco) was like: all of that amazing Wisconsin fall goodness with a nice topping of sharp, unexpected, high quality, damn tasty, slightly gooey and mischievous singlespeed cyclocross action on top.

Last year at the ’23 SSCX Worlds in Santa Cruz when it was announced that Madison was going to host the ’24 SSCX Worlds,  I made the decision on the spot that I had to go. While I live in the SF Bay Area, I was born in Madison. It’s my spiritual home. My folks took us to the farmer’s markets around the capitol square, up and down State Street and to UW Badger home football and hockey games. Over the years Madison has built arguably the best bicycle infrastructure of any city in the entire country. It is, in turn, connected to by a brilliant set of multi-use trails that are both county and state-maintained.

Madison also has an extremely strong cycling community. There are over a dozen bike shops in the Madison area. Trek, and the now sadly gone Waterford/Gunnar brands, call Madison home. You can’t throw an apple core over your shoulder without it bouncing off of a cyclist, a bike shop worker, or a Trek employee. Say what you will about Trek’s corporate strategies but the boots on the ground employees I’ve met are all very, very passionate about bikes and are highly active in the local community.

SSCX Worlds Wisco was broken up into 3 days of shenanigans. A Friday morning pre-ride made up of 40 miles of pavement, rails to trails, and singletrack, with a mid-ride stop at Riley Tavern for beers, pizza, burgers and chili dogs, kicked things off. That was followed by race number pickup at Motorless Motion Bicycles, which is a massive shop housed in a former railway station.

This was in turn followed by a night time group ride through Madison to a Top Secret Pre-Party held in some woods at the center of a little network of single track. MAJOR kudos goes out to the cargo bike guy who rolled that single track while loaded down with a keg of beer! Also kudos to the crew who set the party space up. Finding an easy chair, a chaise lounge (a nice nod to the Chase the Chaise), party lights, and other little touches in the middle of the woods was really pretty damn cool!

On Saturday the riders underwent race qualifying by participating in the Feats of Strength Sightseeing Tour. Everyone was broken up into random groups and sent to 7 different stops spread out over the Madison area. Each stop had a different activity that rewarded stickers. Get enough stickers, and you qualify to race. Don’t get enough stickers? There’s a consolation opening race for which no World Championship is awarded.

The Feats of Strength included a bike toss, hot dog eating contest, hill climb, single track speed laps, picking up a can of beer without putting a foot down with bonus stickers for opening and drinking said beer without putting a foot down, bunny hopping, bike limbo, and the impossible reverse-steering bike. All of which was then celebrated at Delta Beer Labs that night at the Pre-Race Party.

You’ll notice a theme: Every night at a SSCX World Championships is a party night. Which is as it’s always been and always will be.

On Sunday was the race itself. The racing was at Englewood Farms, a private facility outside of Madison. Part working farm, part bike park, Englewood Farms has over 4 miles of singletrack and hosts USAC and WORS mountain bike and cyclocross races throughout the year. The SSCX Worlds course included grass fields, singletrack through woods, technical rock sections, log step ups, small jumps, a wooden banked turn, and a maze made up of giant rolls of hay.

While the maze was initially set up to be static, the spectators quickly realized they could not only stand on top of the rolls to heckle and give hand-ups, they could also move the rolls to change the maze itself. In each race, at least every other lap, a dedicated crew of spectators gleefully changed the maze to keep the racers on their toes.

Throughout the course impromptu human bridges were formed, gummy bears were handed out, cupcakes delivered, beers poured, shot-ski shots were thrown back, donuts shoved into mouths, an opera singer performed, cycling shorts were lost, and, yes, some bike racing went down.

When it was all said and done, Caitlin Neuman (Women’s Class), Risa Hustad (Non-Binary), and Brian West (Men’s Class) were inked with fresh tattoos as the ’24 SSCX World Champions. At the After Party of All After Parties to End it All there was tattooing of trophies, and much moshing to a Danzig cover band that eventually gave way to dancing to an EDM DJ.

A cheese curd eating contest was held to decide who would host the ’25 edition of the race. After much dry-mouthed noshing, some minor amounts of vomiting, and a few curds that went over the shoulder to disappear into the aether, the crew from Minneapolis won a hard-fought (but mostly friendly) battle.

Then, like a great slice of apple pie with cheddar cheese on top reduced to crumbs, the weekend was over. Everyone went home, be that nearby to Madison or far away to the Czech Republic, to plot their trips to the next SSCX World Championship in Minneapolis, Minnesota.