Compton riding off the front at Tokyo Cyclocross. © 辻啓／Kei TSUJI
Katie Compton has had a crazy past month—from a 10th National title to a devastating performance at Worlds to a redeeming win at Tokyo, and then finally home to Colorado, where she had time to catch her breath and start reflecting on her past season. It’s been a season filled with high points, but by her own accounting, it’s hard to focus on the highs when the sole low point was arguably the most glaring.
On the month of January… I struggle in January because there’s so much racing in such a short bit of time and coming back to the US for Nationals, it’s hard to get any training in. We need to figure out a better way to approach it.
On 10 National titles… It feels good and it’s an amazing accomplishment that I haven’t thought about too much yet.
On what happened at Worlds… It breaks my heart to feel like it wasn’t going to go well even at the start. And it didn’t. But what can you do? I had a great season, I had the legs, it’s just a matter of if I have breathing issues, but that’s how my body is and I have to deal with it and move on. But it sucks.
On racing—and winning—in Tokyo… It was such a fun weekend. I don’t think I’ve had that much fun racing in a long time. The course was fun, it was super technical, muddy, snowy, sandy, and the people were just so excited to have me there and have a ’cross race, and they were so warm and friendly. It was a great way to end the season.
On not ending the season at Worlds… Trek wanted me to go to Tokyo and I thought it sounded fun, and thought why not? But after Worlds, I was definitely ready for something different, just getting out of Belgium and not dealing with allergies as bad. It was nice to get away and have a vacation from Belgium!
On her allergies… I have a really bad mold allergy and pollen as well. I get every season, apparently! Ever since I got back to Belgium, I just can’t breathe there, the mold spores are really bad since it’s been warm and wet, and every time the wind blows it kicks up the mold spores… and it’s been super windy!
On making a pedal change and focusing on having better starts… I don’t know what it is with me. I either nail the start or miss it completely and roll the pedal. I like the Crankbrothers [Eggbeater pedals] because they’re so easy to clip into in any position. But I’m not sure what I’m going to do next year. I’m going to see, I’m going to think about it more.
See the next page for more on Compton’s new goals and off-season plans!
