The bikes have developed from light weight racing bikes but more robust and can handle mixed terrain. Cyclo-cross often looks like a cross between MTB and road racing, but it also has it's own character.

Key differences to those other cycling disciplines are the short laps that the races are held on and the race lengths. The laps are typically about 1.5 miles and elite riders race for just 1 hour children & youth racers between 15 & 40 minutes, except National Championships these are longer - this makes for intense racing which can be seen every few minutes by supporters as the action happens.

The classic image of cyclo-cross are the 'hike you bike' sections, where riders sling their bikes on their shoulders to climb a slippy bank or leap obstacles. These are actually quite rare in racing, but the bikes are light and can easily be carried in all situations - when it happens in a race the photographers love it!