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2002 Spring Mountain Challenge September 23, 2002 Interview with Jeremiah Bishop Trek/VW Factory Team 1st Place - Pro/Expert Men Race Bike: Trek Fuel 100 How was your fitness level going into the Spring Mt Challenge? JB: I had been training for Univest, training pretty hard. It didn’t happen so I focused all my energy to make a negative situation a much more positive one. During the race I felt goose bumps, I was going so fast. Some days are good, some are bad (laughs…some are real bad), but you know it when you are having a really good one. |
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How was your position going into the single track? JB: I felt good, had a solid start. The Super Series race starts are usually ballistic. I managed a decent position. Chris Eatough took the lead after the first singletrack section. Chris wrecked on the short downhill where I then took over the lead. I put it in max pace and went with it. How did the race progress after you took the lead? JB: At the top of the course I took a bit of a wrong turn. I could see Chris at the water station and I knew that I had to hit the gas hard to secure a gap. When you are out front, do you race hard throughout or do begin to feel confident in your lead? JB: I pushed as hard as I could. Anything can happen; a wreck or a mechanical… You can be leading a race by one minute, get a stick caught in your derailleur or get a flat that takes you one minute and one second to fix. Then you’ll wish you had gone a little harder. Spring Mountain brought the end of this season’s Super Series, any comments on the race? JB: It was a good day for the team. A good way to end the team races was to see our racers on top. Chris secured the series Championship. Pos was excited to wrap up the series so successfully. The mood was upbeat. It was an awesome course to top off the 2002 Super Series. You really liked riding on this course then? JB: It was a real entertaining, fun course. It had rocky technical sections, ski slope/singletrack transitions that really made use of your momentum…. One ski slope banked to the right and threw me into the woods. I jumped a boulder and then stood on it still going full speed and slammed my momentum going right out of it. Are you planning to race cyclocross again this year? Does your fitness level look good for the sport? JB: My current fitness is a good sign for cross, although it's a different sport entirely…we’ll see. I am going straight into cyclocross. I’m going to chase UCI points the first half of October. Then I will make a decision when I can see if my legs are holding out…. I am coming off my hardest season of racing. I look at training in the fall season as preparation for next year, so I have to be careful, have fun (with ‘cross) and try not to get too focused on it. I try not to overemphasize high intensity ‘cross specific workouts until I prepare for Nationals. This time last year you were anticipating the coming season with your new TREK/VW team. Looking back on the season how do you feel? JB: I stepped up to the plate and upped my game. I have been diligent and very focused. The Trek/VW Factory Team organization is excellent and the camaraderie is even better. It’s a fun team to be on, as well as a professional one. I think that is the underlying theme with how successful Trek/VW riders have been. Just look at Sue Haywood and Chris Eatough. Sue has moved up to the Trek Volkswagen World Cup Team. Chris is a three time World 24-Hour Solo Champion. With excellent support from Ernie Martin, Jon Posner, and my teammates everything really came together. The Trek Volkswagen Factory Team is proud to be sponsored by: Volkswagen, JBL, HKTtrafficPro.com, Rock Shox, Platypus, Powerbar, Nike, Sram, Hayes, Zeal Optics, Bontrager, Chris King, Time Pedals, Wrench Force, Saris, Powertap, and CycleOps. For more details about the Trek/VW Factory Team or to follow Bishop’s cyclocross racing through the 2002-2003 season visit us at http://www.trekfactoryteam.com/ Happy Trails! |
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