JS: First off, tell me about yourself. Where did you grow up, where do you live now, how did you get into bikes?

 

BS: I grew up in several places. Born in Philly. Lived in Iowa City through junior high and eventually ended up in Richmond, Virginia. Met the love of my life while living and working in the Twin Cities. I now live in DC with my wife, two daughters, two dogs, a really bad cat and two rats (my wife is a veterinarian, we have a lot of pets).

 

I grew up on a bike. Rode everywhere, always. Loved riding and bike racing but never raced until my thirties. I spent most of my time playing basketball. But soon realized 6’5" slow white guys who could shoot were a dime a dozen in the college game. 

 

After a couple knee surgeries I went from playing basketball to playing ice hockey. The best part about hockey was hanging out in the parking lot until 2 a.m. drinking beer. I had a buddy on that team who raced ‘cross. He convinced me to bring my mountainbike to a game and to drive to Charlottesville, Virginia, after the game and race the next day. We played the game, drank in the parking lot until 2, slept in the car until 4, drove to Charlottesville (2 hours away), slept in the car until 8 and then raced. Then we drank beer in the parking lot and that’s when I had an epiphany: I can do a sport that involves drinking afterward and still get home before dark? It’s the little things, I guess. That happened in 2003. Started racing on the road and cyclocross since then. Added MTB racing a couple years later. As far as the rest of my cyclocross experience, I’ve raced for a decade as mediocre masters racer, I’m the series director for the BikeReg.com Super 8 Series in the Mid-Atlantic and announce about 15 to 20 CX, road and MTB races. I also run a team of amazingly awesome misfits: Crosshairs Cycling presented by Spy Optic, Bike Doctor of Waldorf and Acme Pie Co.

 

JS: Drinking beer and racing bikes, people here will love you. How did the #SVENNESS videos come into being, what was the inspiration?

 

BS: Along with playing basketball, I also coached. And I loved watching game film, breaking down offenses, etc. Also, when I watch the Tour with my wife, she is obsessed with the sprint stages and we always go back and watch them multiple times to see who came from where, did what, and how did it work out (JS: BILL HAS THE BEST.WIFE.EVER). So breaking down races is something I sort of did for years without even thinking about it.

 

In the back of my head I always thought it would be cool to do a chalk-talk, telestrator-type video series of cyclocross skills. That’s what I started doing in the original #SVENNESS videos last year. It was just looking at one feature on a course -an off-camber hill, a 180 turn, the start- and tracking it throughout the race. This year, I expanded on that idea and started mixing in the technique and skill discussion with a race recap. That has been a ton of fun to do and seems to have caught on with folks. I describe it as a mash up of ESPN Prime Time and VH1 Pop Up Video. And the name #SVENNESS came from the way Belgians pronounce Nys’ name. It always sounded like svenness to me. And I started playing around with that as being the quality of precision and cool.

 

I started in The Crosshairs, CXHairs.com, in 2008. The original idea was to start a website that focused on local racers who made the podium. I interviewed them about their strategy, what they ate, how they trained, equipment, etc. I later started doing helmet cam videos of races and then went back the next year and made course previews out of those race videos with voiceover explaining the best lines, etc. I guess in a way that was the beginning of #SVENNESS vids.

 

The other factor in being able to expand on the coverage of #SVENNESS, or maybe more accurately the confidence to do so, was the idea to write a book.

 

JS: So what’s the deal with the book, where does that fit in?

 

BS: Strategy and technique were always things I nerded out about. When I got into bikes and bike racing that part really appealed to me. A couple years ago I decided to write a cyclocross skills book with my friend, Dan Tille, who owns Fulcrum Coaching. I helped Dan with some administrative and PR duties for clinics he put on with Jeremy Powers. For the book, we enlisted JPow to be our model and soundboard. The end result is Skills Drills and Bellyaches: A Cyclocross Primer, which we published this year. To write that book I spent about a year and a half immersed in cyclocross strategy and technique. I watched a ton of races and really started to see a lot of the minutia that I found fascinating. That’s the kind of stuff I try to highlight in #SVENNESS.

 

JS: How long do the videos take and whats your fav part of the process?

 

BS: I usually watch the race a couple times. I will take some notes that I may or may not look at again and then I’ll wait a few days before editing. Once I start editing it is about a seven hour and three bourbon process. The text screens go through a lot of versions. And a lot of dumb jokes hit the cutting room floor. Although some seem to still slip through. I also spend a couple hours a week trying to figure out the best music to go along with the video. And not to go against the party line, but cyclocross is not punk rock. 

 

Once finished, I post the episode and wait to hear about the typos or little screw-ups. I’m lucky to have some really knowledgeable people who are super helpful in quickly letting me know what isn’t right. If that happens, I will edit the mistakes and replace the video with a new version. I’ve probably done that three times this year. Most notably after Ian Field, current UK National Cyclocross champ, DM’d me to explain how the sprint points work in the BPost Trofee series. That was really nice of him and pretty darn cool for me.

 

My favorite part is when I start to cut down the video and seeing how the narrative begins to come together. Sometimes I will see something I didn’t before that will completely change how I approach everything. I’m the biggest fanboy out there so watching these guys race on these amazing courses is something that never gets old. It’s also fun to watch how themes sort of appear throughout the race season. Like  #VANDERHOLESHOT, The Sven Line or the play on Jaws.

 

JS: You mentioned Ian Field contacted you, which is pretty awesome. Anyone else from the pro ranks dropped you a line to berate/say thanks/etc? Sven?

 

BS: Sven tweeted about "doing a #SVENNESS." That was mind-blowing. And that came about because Tim Johnson really liked the videos. http://www.cxhairs.com/2013/10/24/svenness-on-svenness/

 

I’ve talked to Mark Legg about the #LIKEAVOS videos and Katie’s racing. He has been really positive and a nice resource for behind the scenes info.

 

I think the first inkling I got that these were being seen is when the Sporza guys used #VANDERHOLESHOT on a broadcast. That was nuts. https://vimeo.com/56868333

 

JS: #LIKEAVOS is amazing. Obviously, women’s racing doesn’t get the coverage they deserve, so it’s nice to see that series (and for the record the vids are just as awesome). are there any challenges/differences/issues you have encountered creating #LIKEAVOS that you don’t experience with #SVENNESS?

 

BS: I love doing the #LIKEAVOS videos and wish I could do more. There are some amazing bicycle racers out there who deserve the same coverage as the men. Unfortunately, I am limited to the races that are broadcast in full. This season that has been the World Cup races on the UCI YouTube channel. Sporza and Vier limit their coverage of women’s racing to a two minute recap before the men’s race.

 

JS: So what’s the goal with the videos? Is there one? Do you plan on doing anything similar for road or track once cross season is over?

 

BS: The goal with the videos, hmm. First and foremost, I really like to make them. It’s not my day job by any stretch (but ‘cross takes up about the same amount of time). So if it wasn’t fun, I’d probably move on to something else. Beyond that the goal is to put out something cool and entertaining that involves ‘cross and to maybe give some pointers that may help the amateur racer on the weekend. That people are using #SVENNESS in their everyday ‘cross language is just awesome. That I hear about folks yelling "find the Sven line" or "that was some #SVENNESS shit" at races blows me away. That I get e-mails from Australia, Denmark, France, etc. about the series is ridiculously cool.

 

I have no plans to do any similar coverage for road or track. I love what Cosmo does with the How The Race Was Won series. And keeping this just to ‘cross will hopefully keep it fresh. Also, I used to spend ‘cross season making videos with my own footage, like the Bilenky Junkyard Cross stuff I put together the last couple years. For example, https://vimeo.com/album/2569487/video/24363961. I’d like to get back to some projects like that I have percolating. I need to ride my bike more, too. Cyclocross makes me fat. Always has.

 

JS: And ladies and gentlemen, I leave you with that little pearl of wisdom. Cyclocross makes you fat. Period. Thanks a lot Bill, it’s been awesome.