Henry Kramer Holds Off Shields to Win Masters Men 55-59

Henry Kramer of Cal Giant gets the big title that has eluded him for years. 2013 Cyclocross World Championships – Masters Men 55-59. © Cyclocross Magazine

“The reason I screwed the start up was I was in too big of a gear … So I had to be patient and wait,” Henry Kramer of Cal-Giant said after his race, smiling. And he had reason to: after years of trying, he’d finally taken home the title of World Champion, in a hard-fought battle with Randy Shields. Behind them, Thomas Hayles took home third, while the Swedish racer who had snagged the holeshot, Ben Andersson, fell behind to seventh place.

“You’re pedaling and pedaling and can’t go,” Kramer said after collapsing at the finish line. “And that’s the hardest thing in the world.”

What catapulted him into the front? “The cold weather,” he wheezed, then laughed. “You did. You all did. A lifetime’s worth of work catapulted me into the front.”

“Pit stops were  everything,” Kramer said, adding that he pitted twice a lap. But still, “You could hardly move by the end.”

“You don’t know how hard I’ve worked to get this. I felt like I might lose it! But I was struggling so hard.”

Henry Kramer Interview:

[youtube kDhUWfZYVlI 580 380]

Randy Shields Interview:

[youtube SJJdKWBwfXs 580 380]

Thomas Hayles Interview:

[youtube MCR4f0UYl7I 580 380]

Masters Cyclocross World Championships 55-59 Results

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