The past two weekends have been breakout cyclocross race performances for 20 year old Nick Weighall.

Nick and I have been working together for two years now and it’s been nothing short of amazing to see his progression to the national level in cross. And it’s no mistake that he is hitting his stride now. We used the road season to continue building a structural foundation that would support him through the Fall and Winter months and continued his progression in the realm of strength training. But a program can only work if a rider does the work and provides honest feedback and Nick does the work and provides the feedback that helps to keep the program evolving.

Nick is a TRUE natural on the bike and is one of the most impressive bike handlers I have ever seen. Two weekends ago at the Toronto International Cyclocross Race Nick scored a 3rd place finish and performed a TREMENDOUS wheelie crossing the line.

I tried this last week on my bike and almost knocked myself out.

This past weekend Nick made his way East to the USGP Mercer Cup in New Jersey which is one of two race weekends used for selection to the U23 National Team which will race the World Championships in Belgium in January ’09.

AND, not only did he WIN the U23 classification both days he scored a 7th place both days in the Pro category and also earned the most aggressive rider award on the first day of racing. When I got the phone call from Nick right after the races THAT made my week. Below is a quote from Cyclingnews.com from day 2 of the Jersey weekend:

A well represented, seven-man chase group emerged from behind the leaders to include the younger Wells, Ryan Trebon (KONA), Andy Jacques-Maynes (Specialized), Jamey Driscoll (Cyclocrossworld.com), Barry Wicks (KONA), Dan Timmerman (Reynolds) and U23 USGP leader Nicholas Weighall (Rad Racing). However, during the second lap the chase group disjointed into seven equal parts, each approximately ten seconds or more from the other.

I’ve been motor pacing a lot and working with my coach Todd Herriott to prepare for this season,” said Weighall. “He’s really gotten me on track. It’s nice to be up at the front and I know I can be there. I hope I can keep gaining points towards the U23 USGP title. My focus is to get the points to have a better start when I go over to Europe next month.

Now that Nick is getting into the THICK of his cross season, the goal is to keep him healthy and rested between events which is no easy task when you consider the amount of travel he has to endure and the intensity of racing that he is doing. The GREAT news is that Nick is well on his way to being one of best cross riders in America and at age 20, time is definitely on his side. And on top of that, he is one of the most well mannered and gracious riders I’ve had the opportunity to work with.

Cyclingnews.com does a great job of following the national and international cross calendar with great articles and great pictures. Watch for Nick in the results and in the photo section as the photographers have really taken to his scrappy riding style.

Best,
TH