Boulder, Colorado.
After a very successful local, regional and national level CX season, there is only one more big goal to conquer, US nationals. The biggest race on the national calendar takes place January 8th through the 12th in Boulder, Colorado. With last year’s national race taking place in our own back year in Madison, this year will require a little more travel and logistics.
The venue for the event is the Valmont bike park just outside of Boulder. It also hosted the Boulder Cup UCI race earlier this year and has done so for multiple years. Boulder is widely known as a cycling hotbed with a lively cross culture. The race will be held on a permanent course, which is becoming a more common thing in the US. Adding all these factors together, the racing should be fierce and the crowds are sure to be large and loud.
The course begins with a long packed gravel straight that crosses the middle of the park near the base of the hill. It narrow slightly and then makes a hard right hand corner. The corner is wide but there is really only one line with good grip so look for a battle to the corner. Riders getting left out here will be caught behind a bottleneck and lose a lot of time and a lot of spots. Especially with the longest climb of the course right after, riders will be losing a lot of time. The climb takes the field to the top of the course.
After hitting a few sweeping hairpin corners, there is a short sand pit. The moisture from the snow has made the sand an easy obstacle but there is really only one line through the sand so if riders have not already gone single file, they will be by this point. After the sand pit the real fun begins when the course plays around going up and down the hill. The first off-camber section has two defined lines. The upper line is slightly faster until riders encounter the left corner back up the hill. The lower line allows riders to carry more speed and widens the corner making the hill ride-able. Which gives a huge advantage because at the top of the climb is more sand meaning you can’t remount until after the next corner.
One of the more technical features on the course is the next drop. The course drops from the top of the hill almost to the bottom, crossing a trail in the process and then making an off-camber right hand turn onto another long off-camber slope. This descent will cause some carnage and look for attacks to come just before and then into the next straight. After the straight it’s one more time up the hill at the 5280 stair section. The steps are made for running with long and shallow steps with a landing half way through. Speed will be high here, but look for the speeds to slow as the race goes on. The last time down the hill features the most technical section of the course, another off-camber sweeping turn. The turn has a very steep slope and the ground is very bumpy. After yesterday’s course inspection, a few defined lines have worn their way into the track. The key to this section is to commit to the rut and stay in it.
The course then flows it’s way down to the bottom with some high speed sections. After passing the pits for the first time its on to the sandbox. The sand box is made of fine gravel which is easy to ride, made easier by the moisture. From there, the UCI categories hit the ditch, a steep drop, then right back up. Being at the bottom of the hill, look for this to be very muddy. With one more section of stairs, known as the Belgium steps, the course finishes out with some fast sweeping corners, some even banked.
The early reports on the course have indicated that the stairs will present the biggest challenge but with the recent snow fall, it will be all about the off-camber sections. A rider who can ride these fast, smooth, and with the greatest ease will have the energy left to hammer the flats and create gaps.
Now that we know the course, let’s get to know the players. KS Energy Services/Team Wisconsin is sending 4 riders out to Boulder.
Alex Martin has had a rough year and is looking for redemption. He was plagued with mechanicals at Jingle Cross Rock and is looking to forget them with some success here in Boulder. Alex will be racing the men’s single speed race Wednesday afternoon. The snow will still be a factor so his chances of a good finish are high after performing incredibly at the snowy Midwest regional race. He made the trip early, by coming up 2 weeks early and training at altitude as well as getting out on the course. He’s left nothing to chance and will have a good race. He will also be representing the Wisconsin Cycling club in Sunday’s D1 Men’s collegiate national championship race.
Tyson Hausdoerffer made the trip even earlier, driving out back in December with his daughter to visit family. He’s been training at altitudes well about the 5000 mark, in Crested Butte at 9400 feet. He raced in the Altitude adjustment race along with Alex Martin placing 19th in the pro men’s field. He’ll racing in the men’s 40-44 championship on Saturday at 9am. He’ll arrive in Boulder Thursday to preview the course. Tyson has had an incredible local and regional season, and has a serious shot at a national title come Saturday.
Dave Eckel and Joe Maloney drove out this past weekend, escaping the cold weather just in time. With a week of time to adjust to the altitude and weather, they are both looking for a good race. Dave will be racing on Thursday in the Master’s 50-54 race at 3pm. He’s been racing well, having a good finish in the snow of the Midwest regional race, and is looking for the course to stay sloppy to give him that extra advantage. With the warm weather melting the snow, the course is changing by the minute soonly time will tell if he gets his muddy, snowy course.
Joe Maloney drove out with Dave a week prior to racing. After a long mountain bike season and a focus on both local and national level racing, the time off after regionals to train has been welcomed. This has allowed him to put all his focus on his race on Sunday afternoon in the elite men’s race. His second place finish at the Midwest regional race gave the opportunity to use the Pro Bike Express service during the week in Boulder. This means his bike is always cleaned and he can hang out in a warm tent as the week goes on. In short, no excuses for a bad race.
This year, USA Cycling will be broadcasting the elite men’s and women’s races on Sunday live via Behind the Barriers TV. Check out behindthebarrier.tv for more information.