GRAND PRIX OF CYCLOCROSS 2018
The finest cyclocross racers from (mainly) Australia come together to battle it out for the lesser medals.
We would finish the season where we started, and despite a whole winter to soften up, the conditions were more or less the exact same as April’s visit to Fields of Joy. The Melbourne GP of CX, now in its second year as a UCI category event hosted the best and brightest of Australia’s Cyclocross talent fighting over the last 2 rounds of this years national series. Alongside them was international riders from New Zealand, the Squid CX crew from the states, riders from Japan and a few mad legends from the holy land – continental Europe.
I: ALL GOT OUR RUNNELS NOW
Kit game set to 100, it was the women from the Squid CX team that lit up the course during the Elite Women’s race. For the first few laps of their race things were close-ish, but as the race went on it would be Sam Runnels that pulled away, shaking of probable heavy duty jetlag with a resounding victory in rather dry and windy conditions.
II: BABY'S DAY OUT
In the men’s race it was former junior world champ Jens Dekker who had the Elite Men’s field on strings. With a face about 20 years younger than everyone else in the field, and legs probably forged in the dry docks of Rotterdam, it took about a lap before he pulled away from Australia’s best cyclocrossers with minimal fuss. Technically he was near perfect, and even when he wasn’t – flying over the handlebars while navigating the sandpit and bonus Ogaram chicane – he didn’t bat an eyelid as he went on to a resounding victory.
Watching it unfold from the top of the course looking down it was like watching Neymar and the rest of PSG fucking around with some Ligue 2 side made up of part time staff from the local Boulangerie. Other Euro-pro contender Gosse van der Meer, racing alongside our m8’s at Bombtrack Treadly took out 2nd place a nautical mile behind, daylight between the two of them and the Australians over the course of the weekend.
III: DAY TWO
The final race day for the season came with great anticipation. All sections of the Fields of Joy course that proved hardest the previous day would be taken in their dustier, much more extreme reverse, presenting plenty of opportunity to grab a feature on GCN’s Extreme Corner if that’s your vibe.
IV: #LIBSPILL
Much like the last decade or so, Australian politics had been rocked with further cases of scandal, infighting turmoil. Out on course two team mates were doing their very best to replicate the antics of those in Canberra. Fresh off her first National Champs win, April was under threat early from her teammate Jo, and with no speaker keeping order in the house of reps, the latter challenged the status quo and pushed on ahead.
V: KNOW YOURSELF
“I WANT THAT FERRARI, THEN I…
..swerve. At time of publishing we’d be notified that that very Sunday would be final time riders would be ducking and weaving between the sticks at the bottom of the Fields of Joy course. Pastures new in 2019, the Elite Men would kiss the bunting gently as they descended and weaved back towards the business part of the course as if they were in their playground among the Swiss alps.
XI: SLIM DUSTY CC
There would be little chance for the dust to settle at the bottom of the big hill, riders taking the opportunity to either tear down to the bottom still aboard their bikes, or abort mission early and run the corner – Squid CX’s Anthony Clark staking a claim for a spot with Hunter Athletics such was his running form. Beej from CyclingAcross, the Focus Attaquer mad-legends and other capable mountain bikers among the field wowed the audience with some hella skids, Fields of Joy seeing out the race, the season, and a handful of joyous years in dusty style.
