More than 1,400 athletes will converge on Joe Creason Park, with the women's and men's UCI main categories of Junior 17-18, Under 23, and Elite leading the schedule on Saturday. All six races of the day will be broadcast live by FloBikes.
“Cyclocross is a pretty niche sport, but there are a lot of people across the country who love the sport and want to watch. To be able to broadcast live from Louisville is great for us and for the sport. Greg Fante, CEO and president of the Louisville Sports Commission, told Cycling News that.
“We are pleased that USAC (USA Cycling) has signed on with FloBikes to provide content on Saturday. This is a step up from previous years and will provide better staging and a more enjoyable experience. Louisville has a long and strong history in cycling and we are fortunate to partner with USAC, Medalist Sports and FloBikes.
FloBikes' live broadcast will be available to subscribers with analysis and commentary by Brad Thorner and former U23 US champion Ellen Noble, who returned from retirement this year at the JAM Fund/NCC and finished sixth in the women's single speed event on Thursday. The junior men will begin live streaming coverage of the six races at 8:40 a.m. Japan time on Saturday. The elite women's and men's awards will conclude the broadcast at approximately 5:30 p.m. local time. subscriptions to FloBikes start at $29.99 per month or $150 per year.
A free preview show will be available on USA Cycling's YouTube channel on Friday at 14:00 local time. The pre-show, “On Course with USA Cycling: Presented by goodr), will feature course previews, athlete interviews, and event highlights.
Louisville is a sports-centric city known for its fast-paced, internationally acclaimed competitions, from thoroughbreds competing at Churchill Downs in the Kentucky Derby to runners and climbers crossing Joe Creason Park for cyclocross glory.
Louisville made sporting history in February 2013 when the “Gateway to the South” became the gateway to cyclocross in North America, becoming the first city outside Europe to host the UCI Cyclocross World Championships. The event was held at Eva Bandman Park on the banks of the Ohio River and became famous when heavy rains and rising water compressed the two-day event into a single Saturday,
avoiding the cancellation of the race.
The following year, the same park hosted the Singlespeed World Championships, and in 2017, it moved away from the river to Joe Creason Park, a 61-acre park near the Louisville Zoo, to host the Pan American Cyclocross Championships. This marks the third time that the U.S. Championships have been held at the same venue.
“The course is always weather dependent, and I thought we had a great course for 2018, but we had six inches of rain during the event, so it was very hard, very muddy, very long, and required a lot of riding,” Fante said of the first National Championships held at the park. Fante said of the first U.S. Championships held at the park.
“Last year they shortened the course a little bit and it didn't rain. It was very dry and the lap times were a little too short. This year it was longer and tougher. If it is muddy, we can shorten it a bit. Riders will have to take what nature gives them and what the course gives them and plan accordingly.”
The start/finish point will remain along Sheridan Avenue, a flat section at the west end of the park, and the route will circle counterclockwise. The descent will be extended at the base of the large naturalized grassy area beyond the “mansion,” the Metro Parks administrative building, and the climbing section used in 2018 will be reinstated. The elevation gain on each lap is only 70 feet, but it is concentrated in open field sections.
“I liked the old course at Pan Am better than the course at Nationals last year. From what I've heard, there will be a lot more climbing this year. Defending elite men's champion Eric Brunner (Competitive Edge Racing) said, “The course will be a little better this year because it goes pretty low on the hill before climbing back up.”
“What surprised me last year was that the gaps weren't as big. If it had been dry, I think it would have been more of a group race because the course wasn't as selective. But as the elevation goes up, the gaps might widen that way.”
Slight rain is forecast for Saturday, which will make the off-camber sections tricky, slow lap times, and spread out the field. Whatever Mother Nature brings, this is a course that demands technical skills and plenty of power sections to make the moves.
“I definitely want rain for our race. I'm keeping my fingers crossed,” said Katie Kruse (Steve Tilford Foundation Racing), last year's elite women's runner-up.
With five-time elite women's champion Clara Honsinger retiring, a top step is in place: seven-time junior and U23 cyclocross champion Clouse will compete with Steve Tilford Foundation teammate Clouse will compete with Steve Tilford Foundation teammate Raylyn Nuss.
What makes the elite women's race so interesting is that U23 national cross champion Lizzie Gansalas (CCB p/b Levine Law Group) and last year's junior women's champion Vida Lopez de San Roman (Bear CX National Team) will advance in this category. Also challenging for the crosses will be Lauren Stevens, a two-time U.S. gravel and two-time Pan American road race winner.
In the men's elite race, defending champion and four-time Pan American winner Brunner will be joined by the top four riders in the 2024 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Series, Andrew Strohmeier (CXD Trek Bikes) Scott Funston (Cervello/Orange Living), Kelly Warner Jr. (Groove Off-Road Racing), and Curtis White (Steve Tilford Foundation).
The elite men's wild card is 2019 U.S. elite men's champion Gage Hecht, who has been committed to road cycling since 2021, and former two-time top 10 finisher at Georgia's Nash Dash and has four 'cross races this year. American criterium champion Ty Magner.
In the other girls' division, Lydia Cusack (CXD Trek Bikes) is the heavy favorite to defend her 17-18 year old girls' junior title; the 17 year old won the junior race in Dublin, her first World Cup win, and is also a two-time top 10 finisher in the Nash Dash in Georgia. The winner will be Alyssa White (Fincraft Junior Cycling), who was second at last year's Nationals.
The women's U23 category is packed with top riders, including Ella Brenneman (CXD Trek Bikes), Cassidy Hickey (CCB Racing), and Lauren Zoerner (Competitive Edge Racing). Zoerner is the reigning U23 Pan American Champion.
In the men's junior 17-18 field, more than 50 riders have won one jersey, and the top contenders are Benjamin Brafman (Bear National Team), Jack Barnhardt (Fincraft Junior Cycling), Dylan Haynes ( Boulder Junior Cycling), Porter Melvin (Team Stampede), and Aidan Vollmuth (Fincraft Junior Racing).
Defending U23 men's winner Jack Sprunger (Bear CX) returns along with last year's silver medalist Dylan Zakrysek (Competitive Edge Racing). They will compete against former top juniors Henry Couto (Competitive Edge Racing) and Miles Mattern (CXD Trek Bikes).
.
Comments