From zero to hero: Conor Dunne takes a cyclo-cross crash course

GCN’s Conor Dunne certainly doesn’t lack cycling pedigree. He’s enjoyed a six-year professional career, has competed at cycling’s biggest races, and counts two Grand Tour finishes on his palmarès - one of those was in last position at the Vuelta a España, but for the other Conor reached the loftier heights of 135th.

Despite his impressive career (they may joke, but the other presenters are secretly envious of Conor’s Grand Tour exploits), Conor doesn’t have a pro-level reputation for his bike handling skills. Ask any other GCN presenter and they’ll say that he corners like a double-decker bus.

Read more: 5,000m of climbing and 35 repeats: Conor Dunne's bid for Local Legend status

Conor is sick of his fellow presenters’ mud-slinging, so he’s decided to prove the haters wrong, entering a cyclo-cross race. For anyone unfamiliar, cyclo-cross falls somewhere between road and mountain biking, with riders tackling tricky off-road terrain on dropped-bar bikes (for elite competitions anyway, but it’s perfectly acceptable to use flat-bar bikes at local events). There’s lots of mud, uneven terrain and even the odd obstacle in the way, so handling skills are critical.

To hone his ability and restore some bike-handling respectability ahead of the race, Conor met up with CX specialist Amy Perryman at Clanfield for a crash course. Having competed all across Europe, Amy knows a thing or two about what it takes to be successful at CX, and in her own words, without bike handling skills “you’re a bit screwed”.

There was no one better to whip Conor into shape ahead of his cyclo-cross debut, but was she successful and did Conor make a triumphant return to the office, able to show off his newly-found skills? Watch the full video above to find out.

For more advice and guides, head over to the skills section on the GCN website, linked here.

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