Back in 2011, Keough sails in to victory after sprinting McNicholas at CSI Day 1. © Cyclocross Magazine
When Luke Keough stopped focusing on ’cross in order to switch to road—first racing for Smart Stop p/b Mountain Khakis before landing on United Healthcare—it was clear that there were great things in store for the sprinter. Older brother Jake Keough had already made the switch from the mud to the road with great success, and Luke, younger by five years, was clearly going to follow in his footsteps.
In the past, Luke had some great criterium wins, including the famed Tour of Somerville. Now, early on in this road season, he’s taken a stage win in the Tour of Taiwan—in a criterium sprint—showing that much as we hate to see him leave ’cross, he’s made the right choice for him.
We just hope other young racers like Logan Owen and Yannick Eckmann, who have also had great success on the road, continue to race ’cross at a high level, and of course, we’re hoping to see a return to ’cross from Luke Keough. He does occasionally return to race—this year at Gloucester, for example—and UHC teammate Brad White has been known to put in a solid ’cross season, so a return isn’t out of the question.
