OSSFEST // THE OSSINGTON CRIT
2016
July 23, 2016 we celebrated the first ever Ossington Criterium as part of Oss Fest, The Ossington BIA's first community event. It was the first time Ossington has ever been completely closed to traffic and we were very proud to bring criterium racing back to the streets of Toronto. Our 4 corner, 1km closed circuit bike race course in the heart of Toronto made for an exciting new event for our amazing city.
Criterium racing is one of the most exciting formats in the cycling world. Up to 100 riders line up on a 1km circuit and complete laps of the course for anywhere between half an hour to 2 hours, with the fastest rider winning the spoils. Speeds can range from 40-50 km/h with intermediate and final sprints clocking in at 60-70km/h.
The Ossington Crit featured five races: sanctioned Pro/Am men’s and women’s races, beginner and intermediate races, open fixed gear races and a community kids race. It was the first Canadian race that included both road races and fixed gear races. The Ossington Crit had primes (pronounced "preems", a sprint lap during the race where riders sprint for cash or prize from one of our sponsors), fastest laps prizes and a great purse for the overall winners in addition to a sponsored bike pavilion.
We wanted to bring the tradition and excitement of crit racing back to downtown Toronto with a race that attracted top riders from all over. We have such a great cycling community in this area and wanted to celebrate that with an event that drew people to come and share in Ossington’s dynamic and vibrant energy. The Ossington Crit was a wonderful success. The turnout was amazing and everyone put on a great show. We had national team members, current and former national champions, pros, amateurs and the cutest kids race ever. We had teams driving overnight from the States to make our race, teams driving down from Quebec and riders making their way to Ossington from all over our country.
We put this event on in a very short time period with a small group of dedicated people who saw our vision. We couldn't have done it without the support from our team, The Ossington BIA, our volunteers, our councilor Mike Layton, the city of Toronto, all of our generous sponsors, the neighbourhood and spectators who came out to cheer and of course the riders who came and raced their hearts out. Everyone played such an important role that we became "The Oss Crit Fam".
Thank you to everyone who joined The Oss Crit family. We couldn't have done this without you. By joining the Oss Crit fam you helped make our event a success and we are so grateful that we got to celebrate our great cycling community and the community that is Ossington avenue together.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for jumping on board, The Ossington Crit happened because of your support. We look forward to what we can achieve together next year. We can't wait.
PHOTOS
Pedal Mag
Cycling Magazine
Bojan Uzicanin Photo
Ossington Village Blog
Life Is A Beautiful Detail
Real Deal Racing
Velo iBike
MEDIA
CBC
Pedal Mag
Cycling Magazine
Bojan Uzicanin Photo
Ossington Village Blog
Life Is A Beautiful Detail
Real Deal Racing
Velo iBike
MEDIA
CBC