20 YEARS AGO, CANADA’S GEOFF KABUSH RULED AMERICA’S BIGGEST XC RACES

In 2004, Canada’s Geoff Kabush was an almost unstoppable force in North American cross-country racing. The U.S. has always been one of the biggest markets in the world for mountain bikes, so riders from Canada and other countries have often come to the U.S. to prove their abilities against America’s best racers. As a matter of fact, riders from Great Britain, France, South Africa, and Australia often came to the U.S. to compete in America to prove they were the best riders in the world. The National Off-Road Bicycling Association (NORBA) race series may have been the most important mountain bike series in the world after the  World Cup series. The riders from outside the U.S. might have been denied the right to be called the U.S. national champions, but if they beat all the top Americans in the races, the foreign riders proved their worth, and their sponsors loved it.

As we said in the caption that appears inside the above photo of Kabush from the 2004 NORBA National Championship race at Durango, Colorado, Geoff won four of his six Short Trace races in the NORBA national race series, and three of the six Cross-Country races in the 2004  series. He was also one of the top XC riders on the World Cup series.

Geoff won seven national XC titles in Canada between 2005 and 2014. He also won five cyclocross national titles in Canada.

Kabush won one World Cup race in mountain biking, taking the win in Bromont, Canada in 2009.

Geoff raced in the Olympics three times. placing 9th in 2000, 20th in 2008, and 8th in 2012.

Geoff shared the following tip with MBA in 2017:

“When riding a really steep section of trail or feature, there are a few key points I try to focus on. Once you enter a steep section it can be too late to adjust speed, so make sure get any braking done before dropping in. Traction can really be a challenge when the trail gets steeper; the easiest option is to go straight down the fall line so try to pick an entry point and line that minimizes changes in direction. Look for shallower sections of trail with good traction before and after a steep section to set up and regain control and direction. Body position and braking bias is also key. The steeper the trail the more you want to use your rear brake and shift your weight back over the rear tire to maintain pressure and traction. As you shift your weight back you also want to be careful to feather and minimize your front brake use; the last thing you want is to lock up the front wheel on the steepest sections.”