CANMORE – Heavy snowfall made for some epic conditions for athletes in the Rundle Mountain Cycling Club's seventh annual Drie Zussen Superprestige Cyclo-Cross race.
“It was really good and then the weather of course. The weather created a lot of mud and mud in cyclo-cross kind of go together. It makes it much more challenging on the equipment and the riders,” said race director James Kendal.
“The majority of the people in that cyclo-cross team, they want that bad weather.”
On Sunday (Sept. 29), one of the youngest participants in cyclo-cross endured the cold to take first place in the sport men 12-km category. With a time of 0:40:51, Seth Robertson, 14, crossed the finish line with a three-minute lead.
“It feels really good. It’s tough conditions out today and the pedals were a big struggle and getting all iced up, but overall it was really fun,” Robertson said.
In the final cyclo-cross sport men's race, Robertson with RMCC and Jean Sebille from bicisport, rode closely together throughout the race. Robertson took the lead in most of the laps, but commented that Sebille was good competition.
Sebille came in second place with a time of 0:44:03 followed by Scott Anderson from Cyclemeisters and Bow Cycle, with a time of 0:44:32.
With cyclo-cross being a combination of both road racing and mountain biking, Kendal, who is a cyclo-cross racer as well, said that he enjoys the intensity of the sport
“What you can ride for an hour normally on a road bike, you’re doing well above that so it’s full gas and there’s no let up. As soon as you think of trying to recover or taking a breath, three people will pass you. It’s a battle,” Kendal said.
The cyclo-cross community is also a very inclusive community, Kendal added. It acts as a good introduction for youth to be introduced to cycling. The sport pushes cyclist to their limits, challenging them to overcome the course in any condition.
“The other thing I like about it, is that it’s a very inclusive community … if you can’t win, you’re still going to have your own little battles out on the course with your friends, or your peers, who are of similar skill,” Kendal said.
In the future, Kendal hopes to continue hosting the RMCC Drie Zussen Superprestige event at the Canmore Nordic Centre.
