With Tábor Calling, Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com Team Preps in Hoogerheide
by Jake Sisson
January 27, 2010
Team Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com newsletter. For the first time this year, Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com had their entire operation in full swing on the European side of the Atlantic Ocean. American Cyclocross Champion Tim Johnson joined compatriots Jeremy Powers and Jamey Driscoll in Hoogerheide, the Netherlands, for the ninth and final stop on the UCI Cyclocross World Cup series. For Powers and Driscoll, European racing would be nothing new, having already spent three and four weeks, respectively, in Europe, but for Johnson, it would be his first chance to mix it up with the world’s best cyclocross talent. For more information visit www.cannondale-cyclocrossworld.com.
All three members of the Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com team had been doing their best at honing their skills ahead of next weekend’s UCI Cyclocross World Championships. For Johnson, the captain of the Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com squad, mid-season training had come in the form of training camps in Bend, Oregon and Santa Barbara, California. Driscoll had returned to racing at the World Cup in Roubaix, France one-week prior, but was hindered by a nagging illness and was looking for a strong performance in Hoogerheide to get his Worlds preparations back on track. Powers too had taken a short hiatus from his European schedule, returning to Massachusetts for two weeks, before returning to action in Hoogerheide. Powers considered his time off helpful in the lead up to Worlds, saying, “It was really good to go home and recharge the batteries mentally, and come back over here and be able to suffer.”
Coming over to Europe with Johnson and Powers was team manager Stu Thorne and Cannondale Demo Rig driver Troy Laffey, who had been key to Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com’s successful domestic season. For Powers and Driscoll, the logistical support would allow the duo to focus solely on racing and training. Thorne and Laffey brought support and manpower to the team as well as spare equipment to ensure smooth operations. Team bike sponsor Cannondale also provided the team with the Cannondale Factory Racing’s European support truck, along with mechanic Giacomo Angell, who will assist Thorne and Laffey in managing the efforts of Johnson, Powers, Driscoll and fellow Cannondale sponsored rider and Italian National Champion, Marco Aurelio Fontana. “Not having to worry about all of the logistical stuff is a massive weight off of our shoulders,” said Johnson of the team’s support.
Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com was eager to prove that they were in the right place ahead of the World Championships in Tábor, Czech Republic in one week’s time. Johnson, Powers and Driscoll each took away many positive aspects from the weekend’s race, and each bolstered their confidence for their trip to the Czech Republic. “My race was successful in the fact that I took care of the worries that are the biggest for someone just coming over to Europe. I was worried that my body wouldn’t respond from the travel and I was happy with the fact that it did respond. I wanted to be able to finish the hour basically as fast as I started, and I felt good at the end, so that was a good sign.” Johnson’s race met with some bad luck in the form of a crash, and while Johnson will certainly look to improve on his 32nd place finish in Hoogerheide, he was confident that his form is headed in the right direction. “I left probably 10 positions up for grabs, because of a lot of little mistakes that added up. I know that with a cleaner race, I will be able to get those places back,” said Johnson. “Here, I wanted to get situated, and now I want to leave for Tábor knowing I rode a good race. If I felt like I had a good race, that’s fine with me, but I want to do the best I can.”
Powers, who finished the day in 51st, was also satisfied with his ride on the day, but is eager to improve on his final standing at the World Championships. “Yesterday was some of the fastest racing I’ve done over here in a long time. Everyone was taking it out of everyone else so hard,” said Powers of the racing in Hoogerheide. Powers’ season has been one of the most consistently positive in the world, and he is keen to finish the year off on a high note. “I think it’s going to be good. I think it’s going to be a good course for me and I think it’s going to be on ice so I’m looking forward to going out and racing as hard as I can.” Driscoll, too, is heading in the right direction, finishing up the day in Hoogerheide in an even 40th place. Driscoll’s ride improved from a 44th place in Roubaix, and with another week of healing, Driscoll will be sure to move up the final standings.
All of the pieces are coming together at the right time for the Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com team, as they can now focus entirely on the World Championships in Tábor. Wednesday will see the team head to the Czech Republic after two days of training and preparation in Belgium. Johnson, Powers and Driscoll will get their first look at the World Championships course on Thursday, making notes and starting to work out their lines for Sunday. Another training day of Friday will give way to their final preparations on Saturday, which will consist of a few laps of the course at top speed to dial in their race-day strategy. From there, Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com will have only one hour of racing left in their 2009-2010 cyclocross campaign, possibly the most important hour of all three’s season. “We’ve got the World Championships up next, and they’re the last race of the year,” said Powers of this weekend’s affair. “We’re going to leave it all out there."
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