World Cup Koksijde - Return to Belgium - New Gear

I arrived in Belgium on Wednesday, and was greeted at the airport with a familiar face, Jeroen (Roeland's brother and pit mechanic from last year) was kind enough to take me from the airport to my new home for the next 2 months. I'm again staying with Roeland and Rose, who are now living with Roelands mum Karine. Its a big house, and I have the entire attic to myself, which is perfect for spreading my clothes all over the floor, just like home.
Since I left last year, Karine and Patrick have two new dogs, an Irish setter and a Spaniel of some sort, so together with the little troublemaker Peppa the house will always provide entertainment.

Roeland's a very handy cyclist too, and is planning on returning to Australia with some form, so he's stopped working early, and I now have a training buddy to go and tear up the mean streets of Belgium with. Roeland scored a gig on the Marathon MTB team and will be racing enduro MTB races and a few road races back in Australia.

Koksijde is the location of last years World Championships where 60,000 people rocked up. Its an insanely technical course where something like 40% of the lap is on sand dunes. On my practice lap, I crossed paths with a few friendly and familiar faces such as Alex "Mo Man" Revell, who I met in NZ in July, and who has now got a huge following in Belgium, having raced here since November.

Danny Zelck

 I also ran into my coach Mark Compton-Legg, whose wife Katie is leading the World Cup Series.

Danny Zelck

Mark is an encyclopedia of information on anything bike or cross related, and he gave me a few handy last minute pointers on my practice lap. There was another kiwi, Angus, who popped over from Denmark to race, and of course Yannick Mayer, everybody's favourite German.

I made some last minute adjustments to the new bike, and figured out which sand sections I would attempt to ride and which ones were quicker to simply run. I had a few bungles on my practice lap, and stepped on my new Zipp wheels when my front wheel sunk into the sand, sending me A over T infront of a few spectators, a broken wheel would have been a terrible start to the trip, but it held up fine. Riding in the sand is all about timing your remounts, speed and positioning your body weight, and whilst I managed to link up a few tricky sections, it was still slightly terrifying riding down steep hills in 40cm of sand.

New Gear
I've got to say, after riding a practice lap in the mud at Zolder last year on a set of carbon wheels, I swore I would only ride alloy wheels in CX from then onwards, the braking power was just awful. I have been lucky enough to be looked after by Sram Australia this year, and they were kind enough to hook me up with a set of Zipp 303s to take overseas. I was a little apprehensive at first, however after inspecting a few pro bike set ups, I figured if it works for them it can surely work for me. Aside from the fact that they look incredible and weigh 1250g, the wheels provided heaps of stopping power, even in the wet and mud I had control down the steeper descents. I'd partnered the wheels with some yellow swiss stop pads, which are what most of the pros use, and they work exceptionally well. 

Paul Larkin

The trick new wheels were glued to some new tyres I bought off Paul Larkin; FMB Super Muds. These were recommended to me by my coach, and are apparently second to none in muddy conditions (they weren't ideal in the sand, but I only have two tubular wheelsets, and most of the race conditions will be muddy). Come race day, the rain had been pouring all night, and sure enough large portions of the course became thick sloppy mud. The tyres never once lost traction in the filth, I am very impressed. FMB are handmade, just like Dugast, however Dugast require treatment on the sidewalls, to prevent the casing from rotting in the wet, whereas FMBs come stock with a protective barrier to moisture. They are expensive, but I can see why Mark suggested I buy them.

New bike!
Giant have been my biggest supporter since 2011, and I have recently been given a 2013 TCX Advanced to take with me along with my 2011 version. I now have two carbon cross bikes, with very similar components (2012 and 2013 Sram Red), which will be a massive advantage in the pits. The new TCX Advanced is similar in design to the previous models, but comes in a different colour scheme and at a lower price of $4299; an absolute bargain for a top level, Red equipped CX bike.

THE RACE
Race day came around and we all loaded into Jeroen's new Volvo. Its been kitted out with a sweet rack for the bikes, and some blown up decal magnets for the passenger doors. No pics yet, but I'll upload them in the next post.

The weather was awful, 6 degrees and constant rain. Classic Belgium. I rode another few laps of the course and tried to stay warm. After a good warmup on the trainer, I rode to the start and we were all called up. The gun went off, and I got an alright start, with myself, Alex and Angus all riding together, just in touch with the main bunch. I was riding between the two kiwi's, with Alex infront, and Alex came down around a slippery corner, I managed to avoid him and the bike, and rode off in pursuit of the few riders still in sight. Sand is so energy sapping, whether you ride or run, to the point where your throat is on fire from trying to gulp enough oxygen.

Danny Zelck

I was gaining ground on a Spanish rider ahead of me, and whilst focussing on him, and keeping an eye on Alex, I completely forgot to swap bikes, the new bike held up beautifully though, and after 3 laps I grabbed the old and familiar rig and set off once again. I'm pretty sure I rode 4 laps in total, it was just shy of 40 mins, before I was pulled, and just as I was within about 20m of the Spanish guy. I was happy to be pulled off though, everything hurt and I was exhausted. Alex came through a minute or so later just as the top guys came past. We were 4 laps down, and only one lap down on the Luxembourgians, who are pretty handy riders. Somehow, we all managed to slip into the top 50. I managed 45th, which nets me 300 euros prizemoney and 15 UCI points. So I only need 5 more to qualify for Louisville! Happy days! You may remember I was 7 laps down last year, so I'm pretty happy with the improvement (even though the course and pace were a little different).

Danny Zelck

Time to rest up, clean up, cut my hair, shave my face, recover, train, buy stuff, and work out what races I want to do over the next few months. Roubaix World Cup is next Sunday.

Cheers!

PS: Apologies for a distinct lack of updates over the past few months. Having paid minimal attention to uni for most of the semester it was time to step up and focus on studying to ensure I can pass all my subjects and wrap up the course ASAP.

Victorian Cyclocross Championships!

The state cyclocross championships were held yesterday at Bundoora park, the highest point in metropolitan Melbourne. The course was dry and fast, on grass and dirt, with a sketchy creek crossing full of rocks, which claimed a dozen punctures in the earlier races. I decided to run 45 psi in the tubs (way too much!) to eliminate any chance of a puncture, on a course like this a puncture would end any chance of doing well.

Lining up on the start was a small but high quality field of around 20 riders, including national cx series leader AJ, ex national road champ Allen Iacuone, National Series front runners LSD, Grover, Paul Redenbach and more. This was probably the most important race outside the national series in Australia for me, and whilst I wouldn't be disappointed with a podium, a win would leave me happy with my form approaching another euro winter. 

http://fameandspear.tumblr.com/

 

I've been working on my explosive power with coach Mark, and replaced my cleats, which seems to have solved the exceptionally poor starts I've had at all the other races. From the front, a group of 5 formed, which was whittled down to 4, and then 3. Myself, AJ and Allen rolled turns for about 20 mins before I lost my rear wheel on a sharp corner and dropped my chain. As AJ and Allen rode off, I struggled to put it back on and was passed by 2 other riders. Frustrated, I caught back up to these two, trying to convince myself to continue and race for 3rd place. I was around 45secs behind at this stage. I caught 3rd and 4th, regained my breath, and noticed I was gaining ground on the two leaders. 

http://fameandspear.tumblr.com/

I managed to solo across, and at about 38mins in, caught up to  within 10m of Allen and AJ again. AJ clipped a barrier at the top of the course, coming off his bike, leaving just Allen who had a small gap on me. I was able to bridge across to Allen, and we rolled turns for the next 15mins, trying to drop one another, but never putting more than a few metres into each other. 

 Knowing Allen's experience on the road would have him roll me in a sprint, and that my remounts were a little faster than his, I attacked after the first barrier on the last lap, looked back and had the gap that I needed. I managed to keep it upright and roll through as the 2012 Victorian CX Champ! 

www.brianmangano.com

There's plenty of people to thank, particularly Giant and  my associated sponsors;Sram, Adidas Eyewear, Champ Sys, 4Shaw and Schwalbe. The support from everyone at the race made a massive difference and helped me push through the cramps that threatened to ruin my chances of a win. The dirty deeds crew were superb in helping CV run an awesome event, I'm pretty excited for their spooky cross race in November! 

http://fameandspear.tumblr.com/

And I should also announce on this blog that I'm on my way back to Belgium for another season of CX in November! Absolutely pumped for this, and considering the form CX genius Mark Legg will have me in I'm hoping for a top 50 result at any world cup. If all goes well ill be in the USA for CX worlds, and then Japan for some end of season races. This is going to be a big one, but you're only young once, so why not. 

Thanks for reading this massive post, catch you all soon!

A win at last - DDCX Rapha Supercross

At the knoll photography

CX in Australia has really stepped it up this year. I knew the competition was going to be tough, but I had held some expectations of myself to be able to come away with a win or two. Until now the win has remained elusive, and it was with a mixture of joy and relief that I crossed the finish line first yesterday.

DDCX put on awesome events and partnered with Brunswick Cycling Club on Brunswick Velodrome, it is a special course as it was not only my first race, but my first win two years ago. This race was sponsored by Rapha as part of a number of races world wide named "supercross." An awesome turn out and I'd almost say the best atmosphere at a cross race yet, there were heaps of people making heaps of noise. Yesterday was what bike racing was all about for me, whether I ended up winning or not. The crowd get into it, and all the racers are grinning despite putting themselves through physical hell.


I got off to what is now a trademark shithouse start, pulling a foot out of the pedal and into the spokes...smooth. Sitting in 15th or so, I saw Luke Fetch and AJ off the front already, with Allen Iacuone and Paul Redenbach not far behind. I was able to weave my way through all the riders, and avoid the carnage on the off camber descent, eventually catching Allen at lap 2 or 3. I reeled in AJ, then Luke and was able to gap them both, but took Allen with me, sticking to my wheel like glue. This was a little concerning, as Allen is a very experienced racer, and would probably roll me if it came down to the wire. I made the most of some misfortune on Allens part when he slid out on a tarmac section, and made sure I rode smooth, took it easy on the slippery stuff, and hammered the smooth stuff to eventually hold off everyone else for the win. Such a nice feeling to win a bike race again! It feels like quite a while, and to beat such awesome riders makes it that much better.

At the knoll photography

Whilst in NZ I got chatting to Mark Legg, Katie Compton (world #2 woman)'s husband and coach. He's been destroying me for the last 4 weeks, and even though it's early days, it's already paying off, I just need to work on my race start!


Thanks to all my awesome sponsors who you can see down the side of this post, but also thanks to all the people making noise out on course, the organizers, BWK CC, volunteers etc etc. Without all these guys the races wouldn't exist/wouldn't be half as fun.

Cheers!

NCXS rAdelaide!

Just got back from a pretty full on weekend of CX racing in Adelaide on the weekend. Adelaide have a pretty sweet cx scene going on so it was about time I went over to check it out. The first race on Saturday was on a very fast and fairly flat course in some pretty parklands about 10mins ride from our host Jackie's house. There was tarmac, plenty of grass, a sand pit, an awesome stair section and a few muddy sections to power through.

Rob Parbery

 Upon arriving to the course I was greeted with even more custom cycling gear from the legends at Champ Sys! Jersey, knicks, rain jacket and fleece/windproof jacket, awesome! These guys make some really high quality gear, hit them up for custom clothes for your team/club/charity ride.

 

 

After a few practice laps, we were on the start line waiting for the gun. After being called up 2nd, I got a shocking start as I struggled to clip in, and was riding in about 20th. Over the first lap I saw Lachie fly off the front with AJ and Jade Lean off the front of the main bunch in chase. I was able to remain calm and move up infront of the numerous riders and finally bridge the gap to the leading trio.

Rob Parbery

The 4 of us rode a few laps before we dropped Jade after one of the technical sections. About 40mins in, Lachie turned it on and gapped both AJ and myself. AJ gapped me giving chase to Lachie, but he was too strong and put 30 odd seconds into us pretty quickly. I destroyed myself to catch up to AJ, but buggered it after putting a foot down in the sand pit, and AJ got another gap on me; the final result, Lachie, followed by AJ at 41'' and myself at 55''. Considering the level of these guys I am absolutely stoked with the result, and this has given me some confidence that I'm on the right track fitness wise. The prize was pretty cool too, an engraved beer mug!

Rob Parbery

After a dip in the freezing pool and a delicious dinner at Jackie's the next day's race was upon us. Today was a different course, still very fast, but with a few rocks, some barriers and plenty of sharp corners. Off the start I was back in 15th or so, but again I was able to bridge up to the same trio of Lachie, AJ and Jade after the first lap. We were riding well together and I noticed my front wheel was washing out around some of the corners. By the start of the third lap, it was well and truly flat; bummer, and the tech zone was at the end of the lap! There was no hope of keeping with the leaders as I was losing my front wheel round every corner. I ran most of the windy sections of the course, and was passed by a heap of riders, before swapping my bike and tearing after everyone. I was able to reel in a few riders and just caught the main chase group on the finish line, ending up in 9th place (I still managed to score some series points!). The course had plenty of victims with punctures, as there were sharp rocks and a little glass scattered round the track. Not the result I was hoping for, but my lap times have me right up with the leaders if you ignore my 3rd lap. Nothing that could be done, I'm happy with how I rode all things considered. Lachie took the win again from AJ, with Jade in third.

The ladies racing scene is pretty strong now too, Lisa Jacobs is killing it, winning every race so far, with Gemma Kernich, Mel Anset, Jackie Schapel, Lindsay Gorrel, and others all fighting for her wheel. Great to see!

Jackie repping Liv-Giant and 4Shaw!

It was an awesome weekends racing, and Adelaide certainly has a CX scene to rival Melbourne's. Port Adelaide CC put on a great event, and I'm looking forward to heading back soon.

A few people to thank for such an awesome weekend; Aaron from Giant got us over there in the Giant van, which made life super easy, so much room! His mate Jake was also on hand to share the driving and help out on course. Jackie and Matt were exceptionally generous guests, and staying in a house was so much nicer and easier than accomodation. Jackie also put in a stellar effort on the bike, picking up two 4ths, and some impressive efforts off the front. Evan and the crew at Giant Cycling World Adelaide helped us wash and prep the bikes after the mud on Saturday, and they were in perfect running order forSunday's racing. They also had a sweet setup with tents on course providing an ideal place to warm up on the trainer and hide from the sun.

We now have quite a few weeks before the next round at the end of September in NSW! Time to knuckle down and get training!

Cheers,
Lewi

TV Time!

Cyclocross has finally got some airplay in Australia, the premier cycling tv show 'Cycling Central' featured almost 10 mins of CX action from the opening national round. Pretty cool to watch, and I got a bit of air time in there too (note the sweet bed-head hair-do).

There is also an article of my european trip in the current edition of "Enduro" magazine.

Trying to string together some good training sessions is tough when the weather's so cold and wet, I had a road race on the weekend which was a good hitout, but an average result, finishing just outside the bunch due to more cramps! Good training though...

Cross Melburn is this weekend, looking forward to it!

National CX Series Rounds 1 and 2

It was all a bit of a mad rush getting myself sorted for the opening round of the National CX Series. Luckily super mechanic Ben (with some help from D-man) from St Kilda Cycles had my back up bike dialed to perfection! I have also been lucky enough to have my own custom skinsuit with sponsor logos on it made for me by Champ-Sys custom clothing. Look at any custom clothing out on the road or trail and chances are it's made by these guys, they make some awesome kit, so to be on board with them is very flattering. It came up an absolute treat too!

Ozriders Australia

The National Series is sponsored by two of my own sponsors, which is fantastic, in Champion System and SRAM, and it will be getting some coverage by SBS program Cycling Central! I ended up doing an interview for them, and surprised myself by how well I answered the questions. Just my luck, the loudspeaker was on at the same time and I had to re-do it on Sunday, where I made a complete mess of it. Hopefully they can use something!
The first race was in Port Melbourne, held by Full Gas, on a Go-Kart track. Very cool set up, with tarmac, grass, mud, puddles and a few gravelly sandy sections. It was tough! We also had a full hours racing. With 70 odd starters in A grade, I was very lucky to be called up first. The start list included about 10 of Australia's best XC mountain bikers, a couple of NRS level roadies, and a couple of stoempers from a few years ago. I was asked to pick who I thought would win prior to the start - it could quite literally be any one of 20 odd people.

Creux Velowear

I got a decent start and slipped into 4th or 5th, before moving up into the top 3. Myself, Adrian Jackson and Paul Redenbach and Mitch Codner got a gap on the field, and were working together well and we were soon joined by Luke Fetch, who had stormed through everyone from a poor grid position. The gravel sections started taking their toll, as a wrong line choice would mean you work excessively hard and go painfully slow, and dismounting to run would result in gravel stuck around your cleat and not being able to clip back in! About 30 mins in, I began cramping, and my race got a whole lot worse. I dropped off the back of the group into no mans land. Fighting the cramps and trying to hold my position took its toll and I starting losing concentration, eventually going over the bars in the gravel! I was reeled in by Marc Williams and Andy Blair, with Alan Iacuone closing in on me, Mitch was unlucky, breaking his derailleur and having to run the last lap! The race seemed to go on forever, and I seized up over the finish line, unable to stand up properly! Considering the field, I couldnt be dissapointed with 6th, but given my experience I was expecting a little more! And I was pissed off about the cramps. I've tried everything! Magnesium, Potassium, Quinine, Sprays, Tablets, sports drinks, plenty of water, and still I get cramps! Any ideas anyone?

Creux Velowear

First timer Luke Fetch ended up taking the win, from Adrian Jackson and Paul Redenbach. Luke's hardly a newbie to racing though, he's raced MTB Worlds and is consistently in the mix at National Road Series.

Creux Velowear

Round 2:
I pulled up very stiff and sore on Sunday morning, thinking I would have a rubbish day on the bike. Luckily the bike was running as good as its ever been, as I am exceptionally lucky to have a mate in Ben, who works at St Kilda Cycles and occaisionally for his own business, Velo Lab. Ben grabbed my bike on Saturday and prepped it for Sunday! Superstar!
The Dirty Deeds crew always put on a good show and Sunday was prime time. I have a soft spot for Darebin as it's where I had a big win last year, and was also my first race on a CX bike the year before. Mud, grass, ups, downs, bike paths, it's got it all.

Ross Wilkinson - I-Ride Bikes

From the gun I was in about 8th or so, and dug deep to get out the front with AJ. I like Darebin because a bit of a break goes a long way, you cant see round all the corners. For the first 30mins or so we were riding well, before that familiar pinch arrived and I started cramping again! AJ started pulling away, and I wasn't able to keep with him, I had to stretch out my cramps and try to keep hold of second place. Lachie Norris had a much better day and ended up reeling me in with a lap to go. Malachi snapped a pic of the moment he caught me, and it pretty much sums cyclocross up. Cramping, getting caught by 3rd place, and we both look like pigs in sh*t. Heaps of fun.

Northside Wheelers

The crowd got right into it, especially around the mud puddle, and it was great having plenty of support from friends and family.

Rik Blazevic

Fame and spear photography

A much better result for me and hopefully I can improve on it at the next double round in Adelaide in a few weeks!

Check out the custom bread loaf AJ won! - Cam Wells

Pain - Fame and Spear Photography

I also have to thank a few other individuals for their help over the weekend. Rob (SRAM), who had all sorts of spares ready, with mechanics, and had my pit bike ready in the case of a mishap. Aaron (Giant Australia), who brought the Giant tent and chairs down, providing a perfect place to warm up on the trainer and get ready. Aaron brought down Jake, who was exceptionally helpful before the start, and made sure I kept warm!

Of course I would also like to thank my fantastic sponsors: Giant, Sram, Adidas Eyewear, Champ-Sys, Schwalbe, 4Shaw, Creux.

NZ CX Champs

I've had a week in NZ to race the first UCI Cyclocross race in the southern hemisphere. My old man and I were originally going to fly into and out of Napier (near the race location), but decided to fly into Auckland and out of Wellington, stopping at Rotorua (MTB heaven on earth) and Napier/Hawkes Bay on the way.
Poor dad got a bit ahead of himself in Rotorua and nearly burnt out on the first ride of the day. 

It's easy to do in Rotorua, Dad managed 4 hours and I ended up with about 6 hours. Not ideal tapering for a race but this place is insane. So much fun.

After a quick stop in Taupo we drove to Taradale just outside of Hawkes Bay, where the race was to be held.

We had a couple of nights there, and met Katie Compton (world #2) and her husband Mark who were over to race and teach a few skills clinics. There was also Andrew Barlow and Dan Warren (reigning CX champ from the year before), who were exceptionally helpful in making sure I was well looked after and had everything I needed for a good race.

The course was brutal. A tarmac section led into some punchy grass hills, before winding around and down a minature vineyard and up another grassy hill to a muddy run up. From there you descend for all of about 5 seconds, before climbing again up to a staircase that was absolutely exhausting. You keep climbing afterwards and ride through more punchy inclines and through some mud. From here you have a fast off camber descent into an off camber bumpy climb before winding through a paddock, over some barriers, up a small pinch and down back to the pavement to start again. Reminded me alot of the courses in europe, though perhaps even tougher! Maybe not more technical than Koksijde and Zolder, but close.

Race day was shaping up to be a real challenge, the field only had about 13 riders, but they were all bloody fast! I had a good warm up on the trainer and was called to the start line first. Off the gun I got the holeshot and held a slim lead for most of the first lap, before BAM Gary Hall came flying past me up the off camber climb, and ended up putting about 30 seconds into me after 3 laps. I had about the same back to 3rd, the winner of the previous National Round Alex Revell. From here the race remained unchanged, with 4th and 5th (Logan Horn U23 and Dan Warren) another 30 odd seconds back, riding together. I was secretly hoping Gary would fade but he gradually put more time on me and I started losing ground to Alex. On the second last lap I slipped out on the off camber climb and slammed my leg into my bar end. After that I faded even further and Alex caught me half way round the last lap.

This was my first hour long CX race, and it took its toll. I was destroyed both mentally and physically, Alex put in a great race to reel me in, and Gary absolutely demolished the field, I was lucky not to be caught by Logan and Dan. For such a small field the quality was a great credit not only to the calibre of cyclists in NZ, but the growth of CX too, the top 7 were all within 5mins of the winner after an hour, with the others not far behind. The crowd really got into it and I pretty much had a grin on my face the entire time.

I'd like to thank the CXHB team, everyone involved in making the event such a success and for making me feel so welcome. I had an awesome time and am looking forward to heading back soon.

On the way out we had a ride round Makara Peak in Wellington, again Dad nearly killed himself slipping down the hill. He's already snapped his leg in half on the bike! Better get him on an Anthem.

As always a big thanks to Giant Australia, Sram, Adidas Eyewear, 4Shaw, Schwalbe, Creux and Champ-Sys.

Worrells, the SRAM distributor helped out with bits and pieces at the race, which made life alot easier. Thanks guys!