BTB TV Presents is back at the Cincinnati Cyclocross Festival, three days of intense racing in some of Cincinnati, Ohio, and the surrounding area. Friday saw riders tackle a hilly, heavy course in Covington, Kentucky, for the Cyclo-Stampede, while Sunday took the field to Harbin Park in Fairfield, Ohio for the Harbin Park International. Saturday was the weekend’s headline event, as the USA Cycling Pro Cyclo-cross Calendar and the Cross After Dark Series collided for the UCI Category 1 Kings International in Mason, Ohio.
While BTB TV was there, we caught up with Belgian expat Ben Berden of Raleigh–Clement, to talk about his decision to come to the United States to race full-time and how that has brought his career to a new and exciting place! We find out what it was like to be racing at the front of the European peloton and how living that life led him over to America.
We also take a look at the trailer of American Classic Pro CX Team, which is owned, built and operated by Robert Marion. Despite being one of the smaller pro teams on the scene, Marion spared no expense in building of of the most sophisticated, purpose-built trailers on the whole cyclocross circuit. We take a tour through the artfully crafted transportation equipment, and show how it was built specifically with the needs of cyclocross in mind.
Finally, it’s time for the racing, and it was three vastly different days that awaited. Friday’s race was one of the ones with climbing fitness, while the mud was finally out in force when it was time for Saturday’s action. On top of that, it was dark and chilly, making Saturday the year’s first true cyclocross day. Finally, on Sunday, it was a gorgeous day for racing at Harbin Park, and it produced some of the tightest racing of the weekend.
