Cyclocross - CX and SSCX races and training

Didn’t you podium yesterday?

Yeah. Spent the first few laps on the back of a group of 5 racing for 3rd trying to find my lungs and flow. When everything started to come together I enjoyed using the corners to pick people off

Too ill to race today. Gutted! The mud has finally come

Hog Hill was quite the spectacle.

I'm broken. At least the content will be good even if the result can go in the dustbin.

Absolute monster ride from Cameron mason in today’s World Cup! Where did that come from!!!

he was 17th in (edit) Zonhoven last week too I think. Seems like he's having a break through year.

yeah and he started both races really far back so great results. top ten today is awesome

Hard wasn’t it? Either uphill, downhill or slogging through mud.

I was lucky, as the rain stopped just before our race, but I imagine the later races were harder as it dried out in that sun and wind.

He’s been improving year on year, but seems to have gone up a level so far this season. He’s technically skilful and light so a course like Overijse suits him, but that was one hell of a ride yesterday.

It does feel like a bit of an omission in the coverage that you seldom see riders who make up 20-30 positions even once during the hour.

Having said that it was a pretty good race at the front. I felt bad for Aerts but Vantourenhout's dick move into the off camber running hairpin was beautiful

Some sections fine, but yeah, some parts pretty claggy towards the end of the race. Bike weighed a tonne and I couldn't clear all of it while shouldering. I stacked it about 5 times :D

Cameron Mason's good form continues, he was a close second to Pim Ronhaar, reigning u23 World Champion, at the u23 Koppenberg Cross this morning.

That team work was beautiful.

Just wish it was the other way round. Can't stand Iserbyt. No idea why though

You're not the only one I know to say this.

I, however, have taken an active interest in him this season. Because everyone else hates him.

I was at the Zonhoven race and big cheers went up when Hermans and, later, Aerts overtook him. I assumed it was because Hermans and Aerts were popular (lots of fans were wearing Hermans branded clothes) but is it because they don't like Iserbyt?

big iserbyt fan over here, but i think i might be the only one. I think a combination of domination (when the big three arent there), a tendency to chase down team mates, pawels sauses still standing by Denise Betsema and some race tactics might make him not a fan favourite.

Watching the fourth best cx'er dominating is dull. We want to see the best guys and they aren't here yet, so everyone knows he's just cleaning up whilst he can.

the fourth best cx'er

TBH, "the big three" cannot be considered real cx'er anymore in my opinion, impressively strong and riveting to watch, but they don't care about any of the cups or trophies, just the rainbow stripes. WVA won the world cup by chance rather than by design last year. Fair to them obviously, with so much they try to pack in the season, but their disregard of the overall competition makes me appreciate riders like Iserbyt and Vanthourenhout more, although I really root for Hermans to do good this season. Aerts is likeable and strong, but seems to lack that aggressive edge when it matters

You make an interesting point, but what if you replaced the word real with the word 'pure'? They are so talented that they don't have to be pure CXers anymore, and as the top three they are certainly real in both talent and results. It's not their fault everyone else is a mid-pack specialist when they start. Why be a pure CXer when you can pull in results from other disciplines as well?

Can't get more real than winning a CX race.

Would be like saying Pogacar isn't a real grand Tour rider cos he only does the Tour

To my eyes a fair comparison would be more like saying Pogacar shows up to the tour only to win the queen stage.

Also, I'm not taking away the fact that when they show up they make racing exciting, if anything I was trying to add to the argument that these races without them are also interesting to watch (have not watched Koppenberg yet)

I think it's his line choices. He rides like a bell end.

He's the sort of rider that if you were racing against (assuming he was fat and slow too) he'd get on your tits taking choppy lines and crossing your front wheel for no reason.

You'd just elbow him and put him in the tape. (Or maybe I'm just an arsehole)

From that description he sounds like me!