Australian National CX Championships: U23 Men and U19 Men Preview

Some of the most exciting races at any big championships often come from the younger grades - giving spectators and fans a glimpse of the future of the sport, as well as a chance for make a name for themselves in the here and now. Here’s our guide to some of the riders who’ll be looking to make their mark in the U23 and U19 Men’s categories at this weekend’s Australian Cyclocross National Championships!

Tristan Nash keeps it loose at round 6 of the AusCycling Cyclocross National Series in Creswick.
Photo: @thatbikenerd

The Venue

While Greenvalleys Mountain Bike Park is a privately owned facility that normally caters to the enduro and downhill crowd, this Saturday will see the venue swap suspension forks for skinsuits as it hosts the 2022 AusCycling Cyclocross National Championships.

The course is draped over the hillside at Greenvalleys, situated on Tharawal land about half an hour’s drive southwest of Wollongong. With a couple of decent climbs and long descents and plenty of the circuit out in the open to make spectating a breeze, it looks as though it’ll be a challenging course to end the Aussie CX season.

While Greenvalleys MTB Park usually hosts events with a gravity riding focus on the upper slopes of the hill to the right, this weekend will see riders on the flatter terrain of the lower slopes.
Photo: AusCycling MTB & CX

The Weather

The weather on race day looks to be almost perfect for spring cyclocross, with temperatures projected to reach 21ºC under partly cloudy skies.

Given that conditions at Australian CX races this winter have tended towards the wet and muddy side (especially at the final weekend of the CX National Series in Ballarat), the grassy conditions and relative lack of recent rain should promise somewhat drier conditions for this year’s National Championships.

With a few showers on Thursday the only scheduled rainfall between now and race day, it’s most likely to be a course for intermediate tyres rather than a full mud tread - though given the amount of elevation gain per lap riders will likely want to trim weight from their machines where possible.

U23 Men

Tristan Nash (Unicorn Racing Australia) - WA

One of the stars of CX Down Under’s Between The Tape video series, Tristan Nash has been the rider most capable of challenging Chris Aitken and Garry Millburn at the CX National Series in 2022.

He’s been utterly dominant in the Numbat Cup series in Western Australia, and although mechanical troubles scuppered his races at rounds 3 and 4 of the National CX Series in Queensland, he’s been a podium finisher at the other six rounds of the series.

He has come close to victory at the National level before - holding a 20 second lead over Chris Aitken during round 7 of the National CX Series in Ballarat - but as of yet hasn’t been able to land the big one.

Given that the contenders for the Men’s U23 national championship will start at the same time as the Elite Men, if a U23 rider beats the Elite Men’s field they’ll win the Elite national title as well. Based on the form that he’s shown throughout the season, Nash seems the rider most likely to pull that off.

Tristan Nash on his way to a season’s best 2nd place in Elite Men at round 6 of the AusCycling Cyclocross National Series in Creswick.
Photo: @thatbikenerd

Finn Kane (Bont Cycling) - NSW

The winner of this year’s NSW/ACT State CX Series in Men’s A Grade, Finn Kane was nothing if not consistent, finishing third twice and fourth twice across the four races in the 2022 series.

This is his first time racing at the National level, so it’ll be fascinating to see how he measures up against the rest of the field.

Finn Kane is a picture of speed at the NSW/ACT State CX Series at Mt Stromlo in Canberra.
Photo: David Blucher

Markus Chandler (Whippets Workshop) - SA

The recently crowned South Australian state champion for U23 Men, Markus Chandler has competed in the AusCycling South Australia State CX Series and four rounds of the National CX Series in 2022, including a third place behind Tom Chapman and Griffin Knight in the most recent round of Port Adelaide Cycling Club’s Crossfire Cup last weekend.

He also competed in four rounds of the AusCycling National CX Series in Elite Men, managing a best finish of 6th place at round 6 in Creswick.

Markus Chandler speeds along the shores of Lake Calembeen at round 6 of the National CX Series in Creswick.
Photo: @thatbikenerd

Other riders competing:

Declan Trezise - NSW
Max Hobson - NSW
Dillon Swifte - VIC
Brayden Martin - QLD
Erik Vetisch - NSW

U19 Men

Sam Northey (CyclePath) - VIC

With a bright red jersey and hair to match, this tall youngster from the Victorian cycling haven of Bright has an extensive background in mountain biking - indeed, he might be the fastest ‘cross rider in Australia who still competes in a peaked MTB helmet.

In 2022 he consistently found himself finishing third in Men’s A Grade at the Victorian State CX Series behind Garry Millburn and Paul Redenbach, the latter of whom is more than twice his age.

Winning the U19 title at the Victorian State Championships was a much tougher ask, as he went toe-to-toe with Ty Whitford for over 40 minutes before taking the victory in a rare (for cyclocross) sprint finish.

Sam Northey negotiates the fastest line between the mounds at round 4 of the AusCycling Victoria State CX Series in Shepparton.
Photo: @shotbyleealexand3r

Wil Holmes (SASI) - SA

Another wicked fast youngster with red hair, Wil Holmes hails from Adelaide, and has been competing for South Australia in both track and road in recent years.

He won the Men’s A Grade race at the second round of the South Australian State CX Series and took victory in the U19 race at rounds 7 and 8 of the National Series in Ballarat ahead of Ty Whitford. Holmes also finished in second place at the U19 Time Trial national championship earlier this week, so he’s clearly in good form.

Wil Holmes shows off his barrier technique on his way to 2nd place in Men’s A Grade at round 3 of the AusCycling South Australia CX State Series in August.
Photo: @rideadelaide

Ty Whitford (Ride Coach) - VIC

Another rider who dipped his toe into CX after starting on fat tyres, Ty Whitford first gave cross a go in apocalyptically muddy conditions at the Victorian State CX Series in Creswick in 2021. It clearly wasn’t enough to scare him off, as he went from lapping riders in B Grade to competing for A Grade podiums by the end of the 2022 season.

He’s coached by Todd Cuthbert, who’s mentored several prominent young Aussie off-road riders in the past, and who will no doubt have some words of wisdom for his young charge on race day.

Most importantly for spectators, Whitford has the kind of dreadlocks that indicate he means business.

Ty Whitford makes a splash in the sand at round 4 of the AusCycling Victoria State CX Series in Shepparton.
Photo: @shotbyleealexand3r