Karen Brems is becoming one of the most familiar faces on the podium at the biggest stages. Although she missed out on her Masters National Championship in 2014, when the World Championships came to the United States in 2012 and 2103, Brems was able to both win and defend the rainbow colors in her age group. Her last stars and stripes jersey was earned in 2013 in the 50-54 age group in Madison.
Most recently, she took a big win in her 50-54 age group at Austin in a vicious dual with rival Karen Hogan. Brems fired away at the start line, out of the saddle, and was able to hold Hogan off by 12 seconds at the finish. Today, we look at her Stevens Super Prestige Canti that helped send her to the top of the podium.
After securing the sponsorship to Mathieu van der Poel’s team, Stevens has become one of the most highlighted brands of 2015. While the BKCP-Powerplus team uses frames with a traditional seatpost clamp, Brems’ Super Prestige has an integrated seatmast, which is a matching Ritchey. This pairs off well with her choice of cockpit, which is a Ritchey Carbon Superlogic II handlebar and WCS stem.
For drivetrain duties, Brems made the jump to the ever popular CX1 system, now rebranded as Force 1 for the 2015-16 season to do away with the cyclocross-specific moniker. She employed a 40t chainring for Zilker Park duties, and for braking power, she used Avid Shorty Ultimate cantilever brakes.
Although her race day was relatively fast and mild compared to Saturday and Monday, she was far from alone with her choice of mud treads, which was the overwhelming tread selection on the week. For these she used Clement PDX 33mm tires, which were glued to her Ritchey Superlogic 48mm tubular wheelset.
Use the arrows to navigate through the images, and check back for more 2015 Nationals bike profiles (we’ve captured each winner’s bike!)
Karen Brems’ 2015 Nationals-winning Stevens Super Prestige Canti cyclocross bike. © Cyclocross Magazine
