Tom Meeusen talks Vegas, tires and American cyclocross. © Cyclocross Magazine
The last time we caught up with Tom Meeusen, Christine Vardaros was inquiring about his offseason training before the start of last season. This year, I was given an opportunity after Challenge Tires organized a dinner that allowed me to see the latest development of tires as well as catch up on Tom Meeusen’s preparations before the season. This is part one of a two part series with Meeusen. Stay tuned for the second part, concerning talking tires and rubber technology.
On American Cyclocross Courses…
“I went to the Valmont Park a few days ago, the park that was for the American Nationals a few years ago. It’s totally different than in Europe. When you go to Belgium around where I live, you go to a field and you don’t see all of these rocks in the ground. We can ride with really low tire pressure, and when we go into a rut, we don’t have to worry about getting flat. When you ride in the US, you can find stones in the field, and you have to look out for other stuff.”
Tom Meeusen offers some input into the latest model from Challenge Tires. © Cyclocross Magazine
On the World Cup Expanding Outside Europe…
“I’m excited that it is growing. This is my first time in America, but mountain biking brought me to Australia and New Zealand. Those had good courses and I enjoyed my time there, and I’m excited to experience what a World Cup in cyclocross will be like outside Europe.”
On Aspirations and Predictions for the World Cup at CrossVegas…
“For me it will be one big gamble. The first cyclocross race is always hard, and you can go out hard, but until you start, you just don’t know your race level. Here in Vegas it will be a big gamble… My guess is that Wout van Aert may win. The big thick grass that everyone talks about will work to his advantage. I think that he will change the way the race will be raced. I see on the internet video that CrossVegas is often packed together. That won’t happen this year. I think it will be very spread out. It will be a very long race.”
On Growing Up in the Belgian Culture of Cyclocross…
“You used to have fathers encouraging kids on the road ten years ago, but now, there is so much more towards cyclocross. Much of it is because of the money. You have to be a great rider already to do well on the road, and there are so many crashes. No one goes into mountain biking anymore, and only a few in Belgium have made a career out of it.”
On Being the Best Cyclocross Bunny Hopper in the World…
“I started out on BMX and focused on the technical aspects of cycling. I like having this technical aspect in many of the races. I think many of the spectators come for this. I hope they put cool stuff in cyclocross races for people to enjoy.”
On Las Vegas as a City…
“It is hard being a cyclist here. It’s really hot out here. Boulder is hot enough for us Europeans, but coming out here is something else. It’s crazy and dry here. Something new is always nice, and I’m really happy the World Cup is happening here.”
On the Ozone Doping Scandals…
“It is so nice to have that behind me, and now I can think about racing. I think that having those things [organizations for investigating doping] in place is important for cycling, but it was very stressful. It was the reason I was not already in America for cyclocross with Louisville, and when it came up again for last year, it was very hard. Before the Belgian National Championships, I wasn’t performing well at all. Now I think I can put that all behind and focus on racing.”
