Sven Nys may have retired from professional racing, but he’s still waving the Trek banner and targeting a few events that wouldn’t fit into a pro’s typical race calendar. Case in point, the two-time cyclocross world champion tried his luck at the Singlespeed Cyclocross World Championships held last weekend in the ‘cross-crazy city of Portland, Oregon, on a very special bike.
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Nys finished second to defending champion Adam Craig, who collected a fifth victory tattoo. Perhaps the unconventional course favored Craig, or maybe Nys wasn’t as keen to get the win indelibly etched into his skin. We may never know, but fans and fellow racers appreciated his presence at this 10th annual unsanctioned world championship event.
Nys rode a singlespeed version of Trek’s alloy cyclocross bike, the Crockett, with a beautiful paint scheme that reflects the 40-year-old Belgian racer's storied career.
A bike worthy of a world champion
It’s not uncommon for racers to show up at SSCXWC with chain tensioners or to simply zip-tie their shift levers in place to create an ad-hoc singlespeed. Trek was clearly not having any of that, preferring to create a singlespeed CX rig worthy of Nys palmarès.
To tension the chain this Crockett uses 142x12mm Stranglehold sliders, which Trek developed for mountain bikes such as the Stache and Farley, but with a flat mount brake caliper.
Nys' 56cm frameset has a brushed aluminum finish with a wealth of personalized artwork under the clear coat that references his victories, heritage and the event itself.
Component highlights include an Ultegra crankset with a 50t chainring milled down to serve as a bashguard for the 42t chainring.
In the back, Nys ran a 17t Problem Solvers cog, which, given the very muddy course, would have been a very tall gear for most weekend warriors. Although it seemed to suit the six-time world cup winner just fine.
To power out of the turns, Nys used a fast-engaging Industry 9 Torch rear hub.
Given the nature of the event, shifting was never a concern, but Shimano ST-R785 Di2 levers paired with Shimano’s flat-mount calipers handled braking duties. Nys ran 140mm rotors on the front and rear.
Not a production model (for now)
There’s no singlespeed version of the Crockett in Trek’s current line-up, but given how dialed Nys bike was, it’s quite clear that it will be available, at least as a frameset, at some point. Additionally, the fact that the current Crockett and carbon-framed Boone lack rear thru-axles and flat-mount disc brakes, both of which are present on this frame, signals that there will be makeover of Trek's cyclocross line for next season.
Michael Mayer, Trek’s road brand manager, was professionally coy when asked about the possibility of a production version of this bike.
“As of today, we do not have a Crockett SS available for the public to order. We are always in future development with our pro riders and will announce the new products when they are available to the world.”
Complete bike specifications
- Frame: Trek Crockett SS, 56cm
- Fork: Trek IsoSpeed Cross, carbon
- Crankset: Shimano Ultegra, w/42t chainring and milled 50t ring as a bashguard
- Cog: Problem Solvers 17t
- Brakes: Shimano ST-R785 Di2 levers with BR-RS805 calipers, 140mm brake rotors
- Front hub: DT-Swiss 240, 100x12mm thru-axle
- Rear hub: Industry 9 Torch, 142x12mm thru-axle
- Pedals: Shimano XTR Race
- Rims: Bontrager tubular alloy
- Tubulars: Dugast Typhoon
- Handlebar: Bontrager Elite VR-C, 44cm
- Stem: Bontrager Pro, 120mm
- Saddle: Bontrager Serano
