The cross county MTB season is freakin’ lit and can be seen live on Redbull TV. Let’s talk about it.
Has Nino Schurter lost a step or is Matheiu Van Der Pool JUST THAT good? (the later)
Is Kate Courtney like, really great, or what? (OMG Becky)
Will American men find their way back up the ranks?
Will Jolanda Neff regain the points title?
How disappointing was the course at Albstat? (completely)
And other assorted questions of great import.
let’s chat.
No mention of Chloe Woodruff?
No mention of how bad Annika has been?
To hell with their ability to burst and recover, im jealous of their handling abilities. I mean dayyyyyyyum, last week in the mud no less. My mtb is a glorified townie bike right now…
It was definitely an exciting race. I think Nino is building while MvD was peaking. MvD is now taking some time off - they didn’t say how long but since after the next two rounds, there’s a several week break then I’m assuming he won’t be back until Andorra. I saw where Kate is back in the states for a break, so I’m assuming she isn’t racing this weekend. I wonder if she is skipping the next round too?
Chole Woodruff spanked everyone hard on the short course. MVDP (the JCVD of cycling, obviously) and Courtney both also won on breakaways. With short course being so chaoitc I wonder if that’s the secret sauce.
And poor Annika! Winning Cape Epic but struggling in the XCO season. I can only speculate that her night job fighting crime is cutting into her recovery but I’d love to hear a more informed explanation. Perhaps what is required at Cape Epic is too contrary to what is required in the comparatively short world cup races (Nino too?) and we will see her get some explosiveness back in Andorra. Nobody who kicked ass at Cape Epic is having what would be considered their best early season.
My go to trainer material…
Nino peaked and the new wave is starting their take over. That’s not to say Nino isn’t elite, there’s just a lot more people at the same level now. MVDP is a joy to watch - I like the more mature/professional rider he has seemingly become. Looks to me like Kate Courtney found the endurance she lacked last season. Personally routing for Woodruff though.
Way too much woodwork at Albstadt. That being said I still wouldn’t be able to ride a lot of it lol
yeah, the sanitized 90 degree corner that they bridged in Albstat still looked like tight as hell to me. I tried to unclip just watching on TV.
The XCC at Albstadt was great though, how MVdP attacked when he caught up to the group, damn. Nove Mesto was a way nicer track though, one of my favorites next to Stellenbosch. The average speed during XCC at Nove Mesto was incredible, around 37kph. They don’t seem to be going really fast up the climbs but they were trying to kill eachother there. The speeds over the tree trunks and jumps was ridiculous.
The women’s races are so much fun to watch, mainly because there are so many strong riders and you never quite know who will take the lead.
The XCC at Albstadt was great though, how MVdP attacked when he caught up to the group, damn. Nove Mesto was a way nicer track though, one of my favorites next to Stellenbosch. The average speed during XCC at Nove Mesto was **incredible, around 37kph. **They don’t seem to be going really fast up the climbs but they were trying to kill eachother there. The speeds over the tree trunks and jumps was ridiculous.
that surely is a typo? not even CX races are that fast
XCC are the short track races. Given that I bet that number is accurate.
Annika won Cape Epic in 2018 as well and it didn’t impact her like this. But yeah, it seems her heavy race schedule earlier this year, maybe coupled with her age finally getting to her, has really hit hard. I hope she comes back, I’m a big fan.
Courtney clearly figured something out, and I wonder how much of it was mental and confidence. But she looks like somebody who can dominate for many years. I’m also very happy for Woodruff and felt horrible for Tauber. I wanted to see a Tauber / Courtney sprint finish.
The XCC at Albstadt was great though, how MVdP attacked when he caught up to the group, damn. Nove Mesto was a way nicer track though, one of my favorites next to Stellenbosch. The average speed during XCC at Nove Mesto was **incredible, around 37kph. **They don’t seem to be going really fast up the climbs but they were trying to kill eachother there. The speeds over the tree trunks and jumps was ridiculous.
that surely is a typo? not even CX races are that fast
I’m not kidding you, they even say so during the broadcast if you watch it again on redbull.tv. They had a 1.2k loop I believe, which they completed in less than 2’. Ridiculously high tempo.
I’d love to see Annika up at the front again, I think she’s in need of a bit of a rest. As you say, Cape Epic and then going all in to the Spring classics on the road with Boels Dolmans has probably left her a bit overcooked coming into the XCO World Cup season.
I stumbled upon XCO last year in December and have been watching all the old seasons, very entertaining on the trainer. One question though, why so few races in a season? I would love a race every weekend but obviously know that’s not possible but could we get like a 10 or 12 race season?
Good question. I’m not sure, I know the answer.
I had a look back and seems that eight rounds has always been the maximum, and sometimes six.
I’d like to see another couple of weekends of racing through the year, but I guess XCO and downhill have to play nicely in the calendar and I don’t know what the availability overall of suitable courses might be like. There must be enough to add a couple more rounds a year though.
If you can find some Cape Epic highlights, there’s a race that looks amazing.
https://www.strava.com/activities/2393798268/analysis/4214/5471
6.5 mile race in 21 minutes, about 19 mph
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yeah, the sanitized 90 degree corner that they bridged in Albstat still looked like tight as hell to me. I tried to unclip just watching on TV.
LMAO I know exactly what you mean. Their handling skills are really next level and it blows my mind that they’re riding over some of that stuff on 100mm hardtails.
This has been my go-to trainer material as well. The women’s races are a ton of fun to watch because you really don’t know who is going to win.
I think the road races and the associated training must have overcooked Langvad. She won Cape Epic with Courtney last year and hit the World Cups flying.
I hope that’s the case and she shows out for the next part of the season. Neff vs. Courtney is exciting but throw Langvad in there and it’s a party.