Cameron Mason

From shattered elbow to cross Worlds top 10, the young Scot tells us how he rebuilt his form

You dominated the national cross champs in January, then took a superb ninth at the Worlds in February. Did you prepare differently in the lead-up?

Yeah, partly as a result of having had my busiest summer season ever. The context was that, in spring 2021, I broke my elbow and coming back took a long time. When I did return, I was incredibly keen and motivated, so I basically just did as much racing as possible. When I got to September [2022], I was very ready for a break, and I realised it would be a mistake to go straight into a full cross season. We decided that for two months I’d revisit weaknesses and build solid foundations.

You raced only once during October and November?

Yes, it did feel quite weird coming into cyclo-cross so late – my first [UCI] race was 11 December. Part of me was like, ‘Oh, are we doing something wrong?’ But as soon as I got racing, I realised we’d made the right decision to really take a step back, go back to basics and build really good foundations.

What were you doing during that period when normally you’d have been racing?

I’d finished the MTB season pretty burned-out mentally and physically. But I know how to fix myself mentally – by giving myself the space and time to let those feelings [of freshness] come back. Physically, I had two weeks with no riding, but even during that time I was walking up hills and being incredibly active. It was such a good period, I even went bikepacking in Sweden. I need stuff that gives me really full feelings but from a totally different stimulus, almost like activating the other side

of my brain.

Your elbow was very badly broken in 2021 – how did you manage to come back stronger?

It feels like a different chapter now, as things move so quickly. But I do think it’s important to look back and realise it was a huge life event – a big portion of my life not doing the thing I wanted to be doing. My perspective probably changed a little bit. I did everything I could to get back to the level I’d been at, and by doing that so well, I gained a lot of confidence in my body and my ability, in knowing that I could do it again.

How cyclo-cross-specific is your training?

I did a surprisingly small amount of cyclo-cross specific off-road training before this season. I did a [National Trophy] race in October in Callendar Park [Falkirk], just for fun really,

as it’s 10km from my house. [Mason won.] I was in the first phase of building back up. My cyclo-cross bike was sent to me two days earlier. I rode it the day before the race and realised that my cross skills don’t really go anywhere – there was no rustiness.

As long as physically I’m good enough, I know that technically I’ll be fine. That’s a good thing, looking forward, knowing that I don’t need much off-road training.

In training we do a lot of cyclocross specific intervals on the road bike with over-under efforts, uncomfortable powers, and all that type of stuff, which works just the same for the cross.