Castleton cyclist makes national debut

By Evan Johnson

Castleton University’s cycling club rode into the national collegiate cycling scene earlier this month in Reno, Nev. At the 2018 Cyclocross National Championships, the club’s president, Andrew Borden, placed tenth in the collegiate division and 21st in the Under-23 men’s division.

“That’s quite a haul for us Vermonters but I was super happy that I got to go,” said Borden. “It’s quite an opportunity to travel and see the world and race you’re bike while you’re doing it.”

Borden, a sophomore from Pittsfield, started the club as a freshman last year. This year, he said, interest “has exploded.”

This year, Castleton’s club consists of 25 riders, ranging in interest from downhill mountain biking to road cycling. The club teamed up with Killington Resort to train on the expanding downhill mountain biking trails.

Meanwhile, the club has also been exploring cyclocross, a division of racing consisting of many laps on short courses of about a mile long featuring a variety of terrain and obstacles that require the rider to quickly dismount, carry the bike while navigating the obstruction, and remount.

“The cyclocross team has been a little bit slower to grow, but we have six or seven riders who are super dedicated and were expecting some serious growth and results as they progress.” said Borden.

This spring, a group of six riders will compete on the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference, alongside other major cycling programs, including the University of Vermont, Harvard and Yale.

“We’re trying to grow the cyclocross interest a little more,” Borden said. “But for right now we’re just starting with road [cycling].”

Photos submitted
Castleton University sophomore Andrew Borden races at the national level in Reno.