For many riders and fans, the Cyclocross World Championships serves as the final showdown of the season. Even as some full-time ‘crossers prep for the final block of post-Worlds races, road stars like Wout Van Aert, Fem Van Empel, and Mathieu van der Poel hand off their cross bikes to their mechanics to be cleaned for the last time and head to training camps with their road teams in sunny places.
So, before Bicycling's race tech coverage switches back to road, gravel, and mountain bike mode for a bit, I figured it would be interesting to take a look at a few bikes used in this year's championship races. If you're looking for a recap of the race action itself, you can find recaps of the Elite Men's race here and the Elite Women's here.
One thing worth noting about all of these bikes is that they are all equipped with SRAM and use 1x drivetrains. This is the norm in U.S. Cyclocross regardless if the rider is running SRAM or Shimano systems. But in Europe, Shimano-sponsored pros opt for a 46/36T double crankset over available 1x options almost 100% of the time.
What's interesting to me about the SRAM-equipped bikes we see here is every single one is running some type of chainguide. It seems that despite SRAM's insistence that the combination of a narrow-wide chainring and clutch rear derailer is enough to keep a chain in place, no SRAM-sponsored riders are taking that chance, especially at the biggest race of the year.
Here's a look at U.S. National Champion Clara Honsinger's Cannondale SuperSix Evo CX, complete with a 3d printed chainguide. In the event that the chain manages to escape off the chainring, this guide is designed to be snapped off quickly. This allows the rider to put the chain back on and get to the pit for a fresh bike. It solves the rare issue of when a chain manages to derail under pedaling with a fully enclosed guide, it will be very hard to fix without tools.
Honsinger has raced cyclocross on SRAM components since her Cannondale-Cyclocross World Team days. But her current sponsor, EF Education-TIBCO-SVB, rides with Shimano. It's a rare case of component mix-and-match in a team, most likely because EF purchases its own drivetrain components.
Simple, externally routed cables, a two-piece bar and stem, and a custom paint job for the American champ.
Maghalie Rochette is another name that should be familiar to long-time North American fans. The former Canadian and Pan-American champ had her 2022/23 campaign hampered by illness, but she bounced back with a strong 9th-place finish at the World Championships.
Rochette is a Specialized-sponsored athlete and rides a custom-painted S-Works Crux. The bike has a full suite of Specialized components, with SRAM and Zipp filling in the gaps. You can also find my full review of the Crux here.
Rochette uses a K-Edge chainguide to ensure the chain stays put.
Cyclocross pros were likely amongst the most worried group when the tubeless tire takeover began a few years back; and for good reason. Many wheel brands, including Roval, announced that they are no longer investing development resources into tubular rims. This is why Rochette is riding Roval wheels, which are two model generations behind the current Roval road lineup.
Specialized tubular cross tires are not very popular, and it's pretty rare to see them on bikes of non-Specialized cross racers.
At just 20 years old, Fem Van Empel is not only European Cyclocross Champion but now Elite World Champion as well. She has made the jump to the Jumbo Visma Women's team for 2023 and now rides the same Cervélo R5-CX bike as Wout Van Aert and Marianna Vos.
Van Empel has a Wolf Tooth chainguide securing her chain.
While other brands simply offer riders older tubular models, Reserve was a brand that had no such models in its portfolio. It has seemingly developed tubular rims specifically for Jumbo Visma riders. Like other Reserve road rims, these have varied depth profiles with a 39mm rim in the back and a 36mm rim in the front. It will be interesting to see if these wheels show up under Jumbo Visma road riders later this year, perhaps at Paris-Roubaix or Grand Tour mountain stages.
Fully hidden cable routing for the new Champ.
Here's a look at the Trek Boone used by the riders of Steve Tilford Foundation Racing. The full bike seen here belongs to reigning U.S. National Cyclocross Champion Curtis White, but detailed photos were taken using the bike of Pan-American Champion Raylyn Nuss.
Trek's Boone has the cables enter the frame at the headtube. It's a nice compromise between aerodynamics and serviceability.
The chainguide used here is actually built into the Boone frameset. It's a neat feature for a bike intended for use with a 1x drivetrain.
If this dive into CX tech got you excited, or curious about what the pros are riding on the road, check out my piece about pro bikes at the Tour Down Under here.
Test Editor Dan Chabanov got his start in cycling as a New York City bike messenger but quickly found his way into road and cyclocross racing, competing in professional cyclocross races from 2009 to 2019 and winning a Master’s National Championship title in 2018. Prior to joining Bicycling in 2021, Dan worked as part of the race organization for the Red Hook Crit, as a coach with EnduranceWERX, as well as a freelance writer and photographer.
