Interview – World Cup for Carter and Clarkson

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Talking to Hope Factory riders Jack Clarkson and Adela Carter about their World CupsCyclo-Cross races in Milton Keynes last weekend

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Interview – World Cup for Carter and Clarkson

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Jack Clarkson
Britain’s Jack Clarkson rode out of his skin in the Milton Keynes World Cup to pull out a great result wearing Great Britain colours. He admitted he was surprised by the ride he pulled out. “I went into it wanting to finish top 40 and I achieved that (32nd) so it was above expectations and I’m very happy with it”.

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“It were a hard race though and I had to work for it for sure! The crowd was amazing though. I have ridden World championships and World Cups but Milton Keynes was the best crowd I have had in my life. As a whole, ‘cross in the UK can take a lot from that weekend and world wide cross can take a lot from it as well”.

“Home support means so much to the riders. With two laps to go I could have quite happily sat up and had a rest but with two laps to go, I’m dying I can hear my name being shouted which just gives you that extra lift”.

“Simon (Burney) did a great job organising it all and hats off to everyone involved.

Asked what it felt to be racing alongside cyclo-cross legends, Jack replied “I kind of didn’t bother with it! I just went in with the view to crack on to go as hard as I can for as long as I can. I came into it thinking top 40 or top 50 and probably last 40 minutes. To last an hour, I was made up with that”.

The course to many looked unrideable but Jack admits it was okay. “There were quite a few lines you could take where you could carry a lot of momentum. The first off camber sector, I blitzed through that!”

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Adela Carter
A teammate of Jack’s at Hope, Adela finished a couple of places behind Amira Mellor, the first of the ‘home’ riders and admitted it was a lot of fun. “I’m happy to admit that was the best racing experience of my life! The fact we had a top level cyclo-cross course with a top level crowd and top level competitors in the UK; it was just ridiculously fantastic”.

“I was proud to be part of it even though I knew I wasn’t going to win or be anywhere close to the front end. I was really able to enjoy it though and I do hope we inspire the younger kids to get into cross and adults as well. To get them out on their bikes and enjoying the sport which is such immense fun!”

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“The race panned out as I expected. I knew I’d be dead last on the start but that wasn’t an issue as I knew there’d be some form of crash or sliding off at the start. I managed to stay upright and stay out of the way and gradually brought the race back”.

“I had been riding a couple of sections in practice but in the race with people around me, and working on the numbers game, I decided to run a couple even though running is definitely not my forte and I lost time there. But it did mean I didn’t crash and risk damaging the bike or myself”.

“It was a good course and you had to be a good cyclo-cross rider to do well here. It tests fitness and skill. I’m training two or three hours a week and that really isn’t sufficient. I just haven’t got the time at present and I’m finding it hard to keep up the training. I was fortunate though on this course I could use my head”.

“It’s a full on effort for the whole race. There are places you can rest but they are micro rests, so the descents you can micro rest like three or four breathes to calm down. The corners you may get a micro rest if it’s a non pedalling corner but other than that it really is hard work and you have to decide when making an effort if it’s a macro effort or a bit of an effort!”

“It surpassed my expectations though and I’m grateful to GB for giving us that opportunity and Hopetech as well”.

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