In The Crosshairs

After a couple days of above-freezing temperatures, Sunday’s elite races at the 2013 U.S. Cyclocross Championship were held in frigid conditions. What was a muddy slopfest the previous four days became a frozen rutted pain in the butt for most everybody racing on Sunday at the Verona, Wisconsin, venue. This is footage from the elite men, won by Jonathan Page (EngVT). Zach McDonald (Rapha-Focus) was second and Jamie Driscoll (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com) third.

Special thanks to my Crosshairs Cycling teammate Larry Miller for manning a second camera on Sunday. Follow #LARRY on Twitter at @capitalcrewbike.

Music is The Wombats https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/jump-into-the-fog-ep/id419251692

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Check out the shop: www.crosshairscycling.com/shop

2013 U.S. Cross Nationals: Elite Men from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

Today’s video is footage from the U.S. Cyclocross National Championship race for junior men 17-18, which took place January 12, 2013, in Verona, Wisconsin. In sunny but muddy conditions, Logan Owen (Team Redline) captured his eighth consecutive national championship, winning by just over two minutes. Curtis White (Hot Tubes Development Cycling Team) was second and Peter Goguen (C.F. Racing) was third.

Additional camera work on this video by Ryan Dudek (@KelpiusCycling) and Larry Miller (@CapitalCrewBike).

Music by Cold War Kids coldwarkids.com/site/dmlh2012-splash

If you have a minute, please visit our Crosshairs Cycling shop. Pick up a shirt. Or some socks. Maybe a new pair of sunnies? Go. www.crosshairscycling.com/shop/

2013 US Cyclocross Nationals Junior Men 17-18 from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

At this year’s U.S. cyclocross championship, which took place in Verona, Wisconsin, we took some time to look at pit exchanges. It’s a part of cyclocross that you get brief glimpses of in big European cross races, but for most of us, unless you are paying close attention at your local races, it’s something that goes mostly unwatched. In the video we take a quick look at the crews, the strategy and the technique.

Big thanks to Ryan Dudek who manned the camera for this footage. We plan on doing a lot more collaboration in the coming year with Ryan’s new Philadelphia-area team, Kelpius Cycling. So do yourself a favor and check out KelpiusCycling.com and follow them on Twitter at @kelpiuscycling.

Music by Pinback: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/summer-in-abaddon/id541491499

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CXNats 2013: The Pits from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

Got a sec? Take a look at our Crosshairs Cycling shop: http://www.crosshairscycling.com/shop/
 

USA Cycling has announced the squads for the 2013 World Cyclocross Championships to be held February 2nd and 3rd in Louisville, Kentucky.

Here are the rosters:

Elite Women

Katie Compton (Colorado Springs, Colo./Trek Cyclocross Collective)
Kaitlin Antonneau (Racine, Wis./Cyclocrossworld-Cannondale)
Georgia Gould (Fort Collins, Colo./LUNA Pro Team)
Meredith Miller (Boulder, Colo./California Giant Berry Farms-Specialized)
Amy Dombroski (Boulder, Colo./Young Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team)
Jade Wilcoxson (Talent, Ore./Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies)

Elite Men

Jeremy Powers (Easthampton, Mass./Team Rapha-FOCUS)
Jonathan Page (Northfield, N.H./ENGVT)
Ryan Trebon (Bend, Ore./Cannondale-Clement)
Tim Johnson (Topsfield, Mass./Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld.com)
James Driscoll (Sandy, Utah/Cannondale Cyclocrossworld)
Daniel Summerhill (Englewood, Colo./Unitedhealthcare)

U23 Men

Zach McDonald (Bainbridge Island, Wash./Team Rapha-FOCUS)
Andrew Dillman (Fairdale, Ky./Bob’s Red Mill Cyclocross)
Tobin Ortenblad (Santa Cruz, Calif./California Giant Berry Farms-Specialized)
Skyler Trujillo (Fort Collins, Colo./Boo-Enve)
Joshua Johnson (Fort Wayne, Ind./Indianapolis Cycling Club)

Junior Men

Logan Owen (Bremerton, Wash./Redline)
Curtis White (Delanson, N.Y./Hot Tubes Development Cycling Team)
Maxx Chance (Boulder, Colo./Clif Bar Development Cross Team)
David Lombardo (Crystal Lake, Ill./Verdigris-Village CX Team)
Stephen Bassett (Knoxville, Tenn./Bob’s Red Mill Cyclocross Team)

See you in Louisville!! Get LUCKY!

Verona, Wisconsin, was foggy, damp, chiily and muddy today. The course at U.S. Cyclocross Nationals changed hourly and lines that worked in the morning were treacherous by the afternoon. We spent some time watching some juniors and other riders recon the course and dial in the downhill turn that comes right after the staircase climb at Badger Prairie Park. There were three commonly attempted lines. Which one do you think works the best?

Check back for more coverage from 2013 Natz.

And thank you for watching.

Starts. We all know that the sprint in cyclocross is at the beginning of the race rather than the end. So how important is the start? In #SVENNESS No. 5 we look at a few of the top pros to gauge their start, first lap position, and finish. Where do you need to be to have a chance at winning? And how important is the hole shot?

We try and figure it out in #SVENNESS No. 5.

Footage is by Vier http://www.vier.be/tags/cyclocross

and Sporza http://www.sporza.be/cm/sporza/wielrennen/veldrijden

Music is by Silversun Pickups https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/lazy-eye/id410129445?i=410129474

Buy some swag at Crosshairs Cycling: http://www.crosshairscycling.com/shop/

Thanks for watching.

SVENNESS No. 5 from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

UPDATE:

Somebody’s watching!! Check out the beginning of today’s World Cup race in Rome and listen to the commentary:

SVENNESS No. 5: Afterword from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

Click to Get Lucky (the shirt)

In #SVENNESS No. 4 we take a brief break from strategy and technique. This installment is all about respect. Respect for the sport. From a racer’s perspective and also from the fan’s perspective. We all have bad days. It’s how you handle those days that define you.

Footage is from a muddy race in Loenhout. Slippery conditions and boisterous fans. Not always the best mix.

Music is by The Neighbourhood itunes.apple.com/us/album/im-sorry…-ep/id548656698

Video footage via Sporza sporza.be/cm/sporza/wielrennen/veldrijden

And please take a tick to go check out the Crosshairs Cycling shop. Our sweet looking Worlds Shirts will no longer be available after Jan.4 crosshairscycling.com/shop/

Thanks for watching.

SVENNESS No. 4 from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

Click to Get Lucky (the shirt)

Let’s ride some mud!! #SVENNESS No. 3, Modderbad or Mudbath, is in Namur and we take a look at a long off-camber muddy straight. There is the proven line and then there is the Sven line. Which one is going to prove to be the fastest? How about the safest?

This installment has an early look at Jeremy Powers as he shows off his balancing skills during a great start. Also keep an eye on Sven’s drive side dismount on lap 2. So smooth.

Video is from Sporza http://www.sporza.be/cm/sporza/wielrennen/veldrijden

Music by STRFKR https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/while-im-alive-single/id582582861

As always, please take a tick to go check out the Crosshairs Cycling shop. Our sweet looking Worlds Shirts will no longer be available after Jan.4

Thanks for watching.

SVENNESS No. 3 from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

#SVENNESS No. 2, A Tale of Two Lines. In this installment we look at an unassuming 180 degree turn at Superprestige Geiten. Sven has his favorite line and the Sunweb-Revor boys have their favorite. Is one better than the other? Keep an eye on the entry and exit of these guys on each lap to see where they start and where they end up.

This may not be a strategically important part of the course, although it could spell disaster for one of our featured players, but it is a good look at how the pros pick their lines.

Also included is the interminably long sprint. Does Sven wait too long to get in those drops?

Video via Vier: vier.be/tags/cyclocross
Music by Linkoban: itunes.apple.com/us/album/super-into-on-it-ep/id540645200

Worlds T-Shirts!!! Get Lucky in Kentucky: crosshairscycling.com/shop/gettin-lucky-in-kentucky/

Thanks for watching.

SVENNESS No. 2 from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

With the Mid-Atlantic cyclocross season at an end and Nationals still a couple weeks away, we have been spending our time obsessing over the Euro-cross scene and Sven Nys in particular. Sven is something special. He is not only the fastest guy out there on most days but is also meticulous about how he attacks a course. On most days he seems to have every turn, hill, mud bog, dialed in and nails his line each lap. At this past Sunday’s World Cup race at Zolder, there was one feature, an uphill section with two-switchbacks, in which Nys’ strategy changed throughout the race. It’s fascinating to watch him figure out the puzzle and nail the feature by the final lap. It’s also fascinating to watch Niels Albert try a new line every lap with no apparent plan. In the end, Nys’ mastery of that feature gives him the gap over Albert that he takes advantage of to solo for the win. For your viewing pleasure, I’ve mashed it all together in a short video that is truly a 2 and a half minute masters class. It’s called #SVENNESS.

And what is #SVENNESS you ask? Although I do not speak or understand Dutch, I love the post-race interviews with the pros. Nys has one of those names that his competitors always seem to turn into one word. Sven Nys, Sven-Nys, SvenNess. And from that came #SVENNESS. I like to think of it as a state of being and something we can all use a little of in our racing and maybe even everyday lives. It’s cool, calculated, and killer: #SVENNESS.

Thanks for watching.

And, oh by the way, Please take a minute and check out the shop over at CrosshairsCycling.com. We currently have a pre-order going for our Worlds shirt that you have to see. www.crosshairscycling.com/shop/gettin-lucky-in-kentucky/

Enjoy.

SVENNESS #1 from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

Video via Sporza

Music: Grimes