In some ways, a time trial is the complete opposite of cyclocross. Hunched over aero bars, you turn over consistent power instead of start, stop, start, stop, repeat. At the same time, as Coach Mayhew has written, the sustained threshold effort that a TT requires is the kind of workout we should all likely be doing for cyclocross.
Given the latter above, perhaps it is not surprising that a slew of cyclocross racers had standout performances in the Individual Time Trial of Day 1 of Amateur Nationals in Hagerstown, Maryland on Thursday.
We run down some notable Junior and U23 finishes.
U23 Men
In the Men’s U23 race, Gage Hecht (Aevolo Cycling) was back to defend his 2018 title after his Dirty Kanza 200 adventure. In 2019, he took home the silver, finishing behind Ian Garrison of Hagens Berman Axeon.
Hecht, here at the 2018 Amateur Road Nationals, finished second in the 2019 ITT. photo: USAC / Bruce Buckley
Eric Brunner (303 Project) finished 8th.
Junior Women 17-18
Last year at Amateur Road Nats, Katie Clouse (DNA Pro Cycling Team) picked up her 24th and 25th national championships, and in December she won her 26th at Louisville Cyclocross Nationals. She was vying for number 27 of her Junior career on Thursday.
Clouse came up a bit short but still took home a bronze for her efforts the day before it was announced she will be racing for the Cannondale p/b CyclocrossWorld program this coming cyclocross season.
Clouse won her 26th national championship in Louisville in December. U23 Women. 2018 Cyclocross National Championships, Louisville, KY. © A. Yee / Cyclocross Magazine
Zoe Ta-Perez (Lux Cycling) took the win, and Megan Jastrab (Rally Cycling), who had an impressive European campaign this spring, took second.
Faith Montreuil (Zone-6 Endurance) of Louisville finished fourth.
Junior Men 17-18
Two cyclocrossers also placed in the Top 10 in the Junior Men 17-18 race. Jared Scott (Lux Cycling) finished sixth and Magnus Sheffield (Hot Tubes Development) took eighth.
Harrison White finished 15th, Lucas Stierwalt (The Endurance Collective) 29th, Tyler Reynolds (Above and Beyond Cancer) 34th and Nick Carter (Hot Tubes Development) 40th.
Young wunderkind Quinn Simmons (Lux Cycling), who won the Junior Men’s Gent-Wevelgem and made an appearance in our gravel coverage thanks to his ride on Moab’s White Rim, took home the Junior 17-18 ITT win.
Junior 15-16
In the Junior Women 15-16 race, two young women showed their consistency by finishing in the same places they did in the Junior 15-16 race at Louisville Nationals. Cassidy Hickey (Sho-Air Twenty20 Development) finished 2nd in the ITT and Kaia Schmid (New England Devo p/b Cadence Wealth Management) took 3rd.
Hickey finished second in Louisville. Junior Women 15-16. 2018 Cyclocross National Championships, Louisville, KY. © A. Yee / Cyclocross Magazine
2018 Reno Junior Women 13-14 cyclocross national champion Katherine Sarkisov (Battley Harley Davidson) finished 12th and Keira Bond (Rage Cycling Team) 14th.
For the Junior Men, Luke Feuerhelm (Above and Beyond Cancer) of Iowa finished 9th and Dylan Zakrajsek (Above and Beyond Cancer) of Wisconsin finished 10th.
Junior 13-14
Alexa Stierwalt (Cincinnati Cyclocross), who finished 5th at Louisville Nationals, took 7th in Thursday’s Junior Women 13-14 ITT. Dahlia Kissel (Cincinnati Cyclocross), another Top 10 Lousiville finisher, finished 8th.
Men’s Louisville 13-14 silver medalist Wesley Haggstrom (Mountain Events) finished 3rd in Hagerstown Thursday.
Junior 11-12
Alexa Jaramillo (Rage Cycling Team), third in Louisville, took home the Junior Women 11-12 ITT title. Maya Brothers (VeloDash), who finished sixth in Louisville, took home the silver. Alyssa Sarkisov, who finished fourth at Louisville Cyclocross Nationals, took home the ITT bronze. Louisville Cyclocross National Champion Eire Chen (Team Velosport-CA) finished fourth.
Louisville Junior Men 11-12 National Champion George Frazier (1 Eyed Cat Racing) took home 2nd in the ITT.
George Frazier won a title at Louisville Nationals. Junior Men 11-12. 2018 Cyclocross National Championships, Louisville, KY. © A. Yee / Cyclocross Magazine
