One of the summer’s most exciting weekends is upon us with four great races near the Quad Cities, three days of masters racing in the suburbs and a new stage race in Wisconsin.

The weekend’s jewel is the legendary Snake Alley Criterium on Saturday. The course features a steep, famously crooked switchback paved with brick, followed by a steep, technical descent. As the day goes on, the hill becomes a spectacle as rowdy spectators badger and cajole riders struggling to navigate the climb, and it’s looking like perfect weather. (Tradition in the Pro/1/2 race is for fans to hand cold beers to racers as they throw in the towel.)

The race plays out almost like cyclocross: The sprint comes at the beginning, not the end, and packs will immediately disintegrate into small clusters of riders. Success hinges on being among the first to the Snake on the first lap, lest you get bottlenecked behind the inevitable crashes and overmatched riders. Get forced to dismount and you’ll be half a lap down by the time you get to the top. And if you’re not passing people on the way up, you’re doing something wrong.

My personal experience notwithstanding, the descents are fast but safe. Find a good line early, lay off the brakes and trust your bike.

Once the race starts, riders will be too fried from climbing the Snake to think straight, so it’s important to have a reliable routine for getting through the rest of the course. This turn-by-turn guide from Steve Thordarson (Smart Cycling) is essential pre-race reading. Read it. Memorize it. Tape it to your stem.

The weekend stays hot with big, popular criteriums in nearby Muscatine, Iowa, and Rock Island, Ill., the latter of which is affectionately known as the “Cage Match.”

New this year is the Tour of Elkhart Lake, an omnium stage race near Sheboygan, Wis., with a crit on Saturday, a flat road race around an airport on Sunday and a time trial on Monday.

Locally, ABD is hosting not one, not two, but three days of masters racing in Wood Dale, each day on a different loop. The categories start at 30+ for both men and women, with separate races for beginners.

Friday Wapello-Burlington Road Race USAC road race Burlington, Iowa Distance from Chicago: 4.5 hours

Saturday ABD Memorial Day Weekend Masters Race ABR criterium Wood Dale, Ill. Distance from Chicago: .5 hours Previous wrap-ups: 2008, 2009

Tour of Elkhart Lake Criterium ABR criterium Elkhart Lake, Wis. Distance from Chicago: 2.5 hours

Snake Alley Criterium USAC criterium Burlington, Iowa Distance from Chicago: 4.5 hours Previous wrap-ups: 2007, 2008, 2009

Sunday ABD Memorial Day Weekend Masters Race ABR criterium Wood Dale, Ill. Distance from Chicago: .5 hours Previous wrap-ups: 2008, 2009

Tour of Elkhart Lake Road Race ABR road race Elkhart Lake, Wis. Distance from Chicago: 2.5 hours

Melon City Criterium USAC criterium Muscatine, Iowa Distance from Chicago: 4 hours Previous wrap-ups: 2007, 2008, 2009

Monday ABD Memorial Day Weekend Masters Race ABR criterium Wood Dale, Ill. Distance from Chicago: .5 hours Previous wrap-ups: 2008, 2009

Quad Cities Criterium USAC criterium Rock Island, Ill. Distance from Chicago: 3.5 hours Previous wrap-ups: 2007, 2008, 2009