Skyway Classic Criterium Series

To make racing more inclusive, we’ve changed our traditional “Men’s” fields to “Open” to make it explicit that they’re open to all. Come bring your best vibes, whoever you are, and however you roll. We believe you are who you say you are. The Open categories are open to men, women, and non-binary racers and we welcome people of all gender expressions in our races.

All racers must have a current USA Cycling license. Annual and one-day licenses can be purchased on the USAC website. One-day licenses will be available on-site for Novice (Cat 5) racers, but experienced racers will need to purchase either an annual or a one-day license online prior to your race.

We recommend using the online pre-registration at BikeReg.com for the 3-day series and for single days of racing. Day-of registration will close 15 minutes before each race. (*While the field limit is 65, pre-registration is capped at 55 per field to allow space for day-of registrants.)

Riders wishing to participate in more than one race a day will be able to register online for multiple series registrations. Those wishing to compete in more than one race each night will be given a discount for their second series registration.

Get your warm-up in by riding to the park! Follow the Bike Route signs from the Lake Front Path.

If you must take a car, we recommend this route from the city: Exit the Dan Ryan I-94 at 63rd (exit 58B), go east on 63rd, south on King, and take South Chicago Ave. Then left on 95th, which leads into the park. Stay right at the T with Crilly. Alternately, take Lake Shore Drive and follow along the new 2 mile extension to Ewing which leads straight to the park! You can park along Crilly before the Ave G stop sign. (FYI, online directions will often direct you to get off the I-90 Skyway at 92nd, the first exit where you’ll be required to pay the toll, which will cost you $4 each way every day.)

Racing will be the loop following S Ave G south, left turn onto E 100th Dr, continuing left onto Crilly Dr, then left back to Ave G. We may switch up the direction of the course from day to day–we let our course designers make that call, but don’t worry, you’ll know where to go on race day!

Events will be starting rain or shine.

This is a low-tech training criterium series. Results will list top finishers (we aim to have 10-deep placings, but it is not always possible) and all other riders will be scored as the last place to have been scored. For example, if we are only able to score nine deep, all other riders will take tenth place, per USAC guidelines. Omnium scoring is based on points earned by placed racers each night.

Points Awarded Toward Series Omnium
Place – Points
1 – 13
2 – 10
3 – 8
4 – 7
5 – 6
6 – 5
7 – 4
8 – 3
9 – 2
10 – 1

Prizes for the top three Omnium winners in each category will be presented at the end of the series. All prizes are donated by our gracious sponsors, items such as socks, water bottles, gear, stickers, etc. No cash is awarded. We try to at least assemble podiums with photo opportunities for each race.

All USAC rules apply. All riders must wear an approved helmet at all times while at the race venue. No alcohol is allowed in the park.

Racers are not to utilize the park fieldhouse facilities. Portable toilets will be available and we’ll try to have a changing tent or two available.

Half Acre Cycling has a scholarship fund for BIPOC racers as well as for underrepresented genders which can be applied to any race entry, including Skyway Classic. If you don’t qualify for either scholarship but would like to race and the only barrier is financing your entry fee, consider reaching out via email and we’ll see if there’s something we can work out.

Half Acre Cycling believes that racing should be affordable and we have worked hard to make this series the least expensive racing in the region. Still, we know it’s not cheap. Our main costs include permitting fees (City of Chicago, Chicago Parks District, and USAC), USAC licensing fees (how we get insurance for the event), paying our officials, and paying our paramedic. A key reason this series is so affordable is because we’ve chosen not to have cash payouts or prizes and most of the work is done by volunteers. If you would like to help out, please let us know! Or, if your club is interested in hosting a more affordable, accessible event, we’d be happy to share how we’ve done this with you.