After the race in Leuven we had a nice chat with Jonathan Page (Fuji-Spyoptics). The 37 years old american rider from Tilton, New Hampshire, is having a hard season because of some injuries. Jonathan couldn’t renew his national championship title last week at the US nationals held in Boulder, Colorado, but he fought till the end for getting the sixth place. He has won four national titles and his best international result is the second place at the 2007 World Championship. Jonathan tells us about this season and his upcoming future.
How it’s going the season Jonathan?
The season hasn’t been according to plan, I had some bad luck, some bad health, I broken four ribs, too recently, before Loenhout, that became in a lot of pain and then I got sick and then I went to the Nationals in Boulder and there I suffered once again, the race was on height, at altitude and that didn’t help. So it didn’t go the way I hoped.
Well, you placed at the Nationals and after last year’s victory I think you had different expectations…
Yeah, if I don’t win there’s no fun (laughs).
And how do you see the other guys in the US? You did it great last year, but I guess that year after year is becoming more difficult to win.
Yeah I mean, it depends on the course. This year for example the course was very dry and well, Jeremy Powers did it really well, he prepared that at altitude, he had the choice to do it correctly. Jeremy did the right for winning the national championships. I had to race here and do mine.
Yes, that’s something different from last year. Your plan is almost the same but Jeremy decided not to race the World Cup and not even a single race here in Belgium. So, why did you take the decission of racing here in Europe?
Well, I came because I wanted to race with the best riders in the World, and this is the best place to do it. Finanacially it makes more sense for me to stay here with the start money and to continuing into racing but if you have a season like this one I’m having… is not the way you want the things to go, so it’s unfortunate I guess.
And now, for the upcoming races, mainly the World Championship in Hoogerheide, any plan or goal?
Right, I like the course a lot, I’ve done it there well before and let’s see… this weekend I suffered really again, because I came back from the United States and the different time zone issue, and I hope to catch up and I hope to do it well in Nonmay next weekend and then of course on the World Championships, so probably I could save the season in the next weeks I guess
For the Worlds, I just wanna be at my top, to do it the best I can, and hopefully I can do that. I don’t really want to see me at a certain place because things haven’t gone so well, so if I can ride and have a good day I’ll be happy, how is this?
After the Worlds I have a few more races, tree more weekends and then I’ll be ready to finish this season and…
Time to turn the page?
Yeah, the page! (laughs). Exactly, turn it and then I’ll decide what I going to do the next two seasons. I have two more seasons signed with most of my sponsors, Fuji bikes mainly. And maybe I could go back to the United States and race there, but this all depends on if I have more sponsors because I have to travel a lot more by plane, and that’s my only issue there, the travel expenses. I would like it for me and my family, to start settling down in some place other than Belgium and starting another chapter of my life while I’m still doing the thing I love to do.
When racing is over, do you think in a future related with cycling?
It doesn’t matter to me anymore. If it happens and it’s in cycling, great, if not great too. I’ll be happy either way.
I don’t see you living in a big city in the United States…
No, no way, a smaller town, surrounded by nature, with mountains and skiing. That’s what I would love.
Let’s get back into your decision of racing here in Europe. It isn’t weird that you get money from your sponsors for racing in Belgium, with being most of them US companies but, at the same time, it’s difficult for you to get more money and/or sponsors to be able to race again back in the United States.
Yes, that’s right, I put myself in a funny situation (laughs), it’s not so easy. I’ve done it for so long that I guess that I don’t know any better. I made my stuff a hard life (laughs).
J. Page at Leuven cyclocross. (c) cobblesandhills.com
Well Jonathan, how do you see the cyclocross scene in the US?It seems like it has grown a lot over the last few years.
Yeah, I see that is growing. At the Nationals it was awesome, there was a lot of people and I liked a lot. The amount of people that raced is incredible, over 2,000 people that raced from Wednesday to Sunday at the national championships in America, that’s a lot of people! And it’s a big country, and they’re enthusiastic about cyclocross so it has to come something good from there.
A few days ago we interviewed Sven Nys in Baal and he told us that for the next season he is planning to race more in the United States, at least for the beginning of the season in September.
Well, he has a big sponsor like Trek and it makes sense, and he’s smart and he will go where the monay is. And I mean, that’s good for the cyclocross in America, that can also help to promote and expand cyclocross there even more.
Do you think that probably in a few years we can see the United States like one of the big players in the world cyclocross scene.
I think that it is another market and I hope the americans are competitive worldwide but it’s also hard to travel back and forth, there’s no doub about it. Katie Compton has got the hell out of it this year, but other than that… it’s really… it’s a hard thing to come back and forth for me. Anyway, yeah, it’s gonna grow there. It’s still the same here, Belgium is always a kick bottom, is kind of boring sometimes. I really want to see more nations doing it well in cyclocross.
What are you going to do when this cyclocross season is over? Are you going back to America?
Right now we are staying here. My kids go to school here in Belgium, we’re my wife and my three kids. But we’re gonna go skiing to Switzerland for a little while and we’ll decide what’s going on.
In that sense, you are a different from many cyclocross riders. You enjoy doing different activities other than cyclocross or just cycling. You skii with your family, you ride mountain bikes just for fun with them…
Exactly, we like to have fun. I like to get my kids opportunities, my wife is really good in that also. Yeah, there’s a lot more life than just racing.
And I suppose that’s also related with your future goals when racing is over.
Indeed, it’s time for my family after this, it’s not my time anymore I’m having my time, now is theirs.As long as I can pay the bills, I’m ok (laughs), cause I’m not getting rich doing this (laughs).