Q & A: Matt Cronshaw (Madison Genesis)

MadisonTeamBanner

A rider on early doors duty in races in 2016 and a winner of races too, we grill Madison Genesis rider Matt Cronshaw

RST Cycle Clothing & Trigon Bikes

Q & A: Matt Cronshaw (Madison Genesis)

A rider on early doors duty in races in 2016 and a winner of races too, we grill Madison Genesis rider Matt Cronshaw

I was getting quite used to seeing Matt Cronshaw in early breaks in 2016 including the Tour of Reservoir and probably the toughest stage in the Tour of Yorkshire. But Matt Cronshaw is much more than just a domestique to draw the firepower out from the other teams.

cronshaw_02_web

Tour of Yorkshire and Matt suffers on Sutton Bank when part of the break

He was the winner of the John Walker Cup this year and third in the Colne Grand Prix as well and has a good sprint for the times when a race is decided in a sprint. Matt has also re-signed with Madison Genesis and so we grilled him about his 2016 season and the one ahead of us in 2017.

1. What was the highlight of 2016 for you and why?
Matt: Amidst a whole selection of great results, one that could be quickly forgotten about, due to JLT-Condors domination of the Tour Series, is our final round win. It was the culmination of a lot of hard work in the face of defeat, when the whole team bound together and delivered something that meant more than just a spot on the podium.

2. What was the toughest race of 2016 for you and why?
Matt: The Tour of Britain was definitely the hardest race of the year. Nothing cryptic about it, it was just bloody tough. All the time.

3. If there was one thing you learned most in 2016 to help you go faster/better, what was that?
Matt: Nothing new really, train hard and try not to be soft.

4. We saw you in quite a few early doors breaks. Tell us more!
Matt: I found myself in a very supportive role this year, which sometimes entailed getting in breakaways and sometimes just staying in the pack laying-in-wait or trying to keep someone out of the wind. I do enjoy being in a breakaway, but as the UK scene has got stronger and teams more professional, the breakaways are becoming more and more fruitless in comparison to a few years ago when it was often the breakaway that stayed out until the finish.

5. What is your warm up routine for races – rollers or turbo? Music or no music?
Matt: I like having some resistance, so I usually use the turbo, always with music!

6. What’s your favourite discipline on the road; road racing/crits and why!
Matt: I have a love hate relationship with crits. If you’re going well, they’re great but if you’re even a fraction off your best, they’re torture.

cronshaw_03_web

The leadout for Alex Blain and Tom Stewart pulls across for Matt Cronshaw with winner Alex Blain on the wheel ready to launch a lap later.

7. What comes first when starting over again for a new season – long steady miles or a mix of miles and efforts?
Matt: I have just started working with a new coach (Matt Kipling). He has an amazing attention to detail and from that comes a real mix of training efforts.

8. Is the training bike the same/similar to the Genesis race bike?
Matt: Our training bikes are the same as our race bikes apart from the groupset. We have Shimano Di2 on our race bikes and Electric Ultegra on our training ones.

9. What are the goals for 2017?
Matt: I want to be more versatile again. Over the past few years my climbing ability seems to have completely escaped me. With my experience now, if I can resurrect it, I will be in the hunt for a lot more races.

10. How many hours a week would you do in a typical week at this time of year?
Matt: In a typical week probably around 14, but if the weather is really awful I like to do some running or hiking to keep going.

cronshaw_01_web

A chopper (thats helicopter …) following his every move, Matt Cronshaw is part of the early break on stage 3 of the Tour of Yorkshire

11. On winter roads, your favourite tyre is in training?
Matt: Continental four seasons have probably seen me well over the years. They come in a range of sizes but for winter, the 28mm I’ve found to be awesome. The compound is grippy and the width means you can run a lower pressure, which combined in the greasy winter conditions is a life saver.

12. With Genesis doing carbon and steel frames, which is your favourite?
Matt: I prefer the Carbon Zero to race on, but for day to day use, the Volare is hard to beat. The dimensions are very similar and the Volare has great tyre clearance for some nice fat, comfortable training tyres.

13. Which is the most used one piece of Madison clothing during a season?
Matt: I’ve been road testing their new RoadRace Light range, which is incredible. The materials are pretty new and make everything super comfortable and well fitted.

2016_ShuttVeloRapideAdvert

AlpsCyclesMidstory

 

Send your results as well as club, team & event news here

Cero

Other Results on VeloUK (including reports containing results)

Other News on VeloUK

Tags: ,