The last race of my Cyclocross calendar was this weekend's UCI World Championships held on the infamous Huesden Zolder course. This time I was delighted to be representing Ireland and wearing Irish kit instead of my usual Scott/Eurocycles.com kit. I was racing at 11am on Saturday while David Montgomery was racing at the same time on Sunday in the U23 event. Also with us were Andy Layhe (my coach all season) as team manager and Simon Curry as mechanic. We also had great help from Donal O'Brien who provided spares, a team tent and was at the start and finish to look after my kit. Martine Verfaillie also helped, she has looked after Monty all season and provided some great photos of the races and she cannot be thanked enough for what she does for Irish cyclists in Belgium.
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| One of Martine's excellent shots |
I won't bore you with our exact timetable and what we ate and where we were at every minute so I'll keep it short up to Saturday. Thursday: flight, Brussels, van, hotel, meet Donal. Friday: course practice while Donal sorts paperwork, meet Monty, more practice, bike swap, practice, hotel, swim, dinner, early night.
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| Martine capturing a dismount before the sand |
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| Photo credit: Donal O'Brien. Team talk |
Saturday was an early start after a small breakfast. It had rained all night and was still lightly raining as we drove to the course. Due to being the first race the course had changed very little and it was mostly surface water, I did my warm-up and was at the start at 10:45 as needed for gridding. I was gridded 30th out of 80 so a pretty good position. With a minute to go it was the usual chorus of zippers and flying jerseys. Then the reshuffling started, I thought it would be ordered and everyone would obey the gridding and rows........ I was wrong, everyone surged forward and into gaps that did not exist as soon as the commissaire turned his back, everyone still had their foot on the ground and already I was fighting for places.
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| Photo credit: Donal O'Brien |
The start was absolutely nuts, no words can describe the speed and the lunacy of some of the passes/pushes, we hadn't even made it to the first corner and already people were forcing themselves into gaps that didn't exist. I made up a few places round the first corner by taking the inside line, by UCI rules the course has to be a minimum of 3 metres wide but we were all riding single file for most of the race. I got caught in a crash on the corner after the pits, an American fell and blocked the line I was aiming for, I had to get off the bike and hop over him while 30 other riders tried to do the same (some even trying to ride over him), then it was up and over bridge No.1, making a sneaky inside pass on a Japanese rider. Rounded a chicane, down a sand descent, back up through sand, tight twisty forest section, out onto the widest section of track. Here I finally got over being stunned after the start and realized I needed to crack on. I passed three more people between here and the pits, one on the grassy climb, one on the descent(a welcome place to recover) and one on bridge No.2. Past the pits and onto the off camber turns above the start finish, I rode the high line all weekend as it was faster and held less water/mud. Bridge No.3 shortly followed and seemed to be put in purely for someones twisted sense of humour, after this bridge was another quick gasp of air and then the craziest descent I have ever ridden on a cross bike.
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| Photo credit: Toby Watson |
After this descent it was the sandy run-up followed by the climb(wall) of screaming legs, this was a forest climb of about 30% which was the talking point of the track, running up leg sapping sand, trying to get clipped in in 10 metres and then attacking this climb is something even Mathieu, Wout and Lars dread. Then the course slalomed down the hill to the start/finish. I was 52nd after the first lap, just under two minutes between 1st and 52nd, that's a lot of riders. I was at the max for the remaining 4 laps but only gained 4 places to finish 48th. My goal was a top 40 and I am slightly disappointed not to get it but it was still a fantastic race and a great experience, hopefully Cycling Ireland send a bigger team next year and I hope to be back next year in Luxembourg as a first year U23.
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| Again: Toby Watson |
That's it for my time as a junior cyclocross rider. A great way to finish it off. A big thanks to Paddy Daly, Scott/Eurocycles.com and all the team sponsors. Also big shout out to everyone who has helped or offered to help me with anything over the year and to everyone who has supported or cheered me on at a race, especially at the weekend, the Irish support was phenomenal and it certainly boosted me on. Thanks also to Toby Watson, Martine Verfaillie, Andy Layhe, Donal O'Brien and everyone else who documented this fantastic trip. Bring on Luxembourg 2017.
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| Toby Watson capturing the Irish support |
