British track stars set to race fixed-gear criterium in New York

Two of British Cycling's track stars are trading the high-pressure, marginal gain environment of the velodrome for a high-octane, marginally hipster fixie crit held in Brooklyn, New York. 

Callum Skinner, who won gold in the men's team pursuit and silver in the individual sprint in Rio 2016, will be joined by Kian Emadi, who has medalled in sprint events at the World Championships, in the Huez* team that is due to line up at the race on Saturday 29th April. 

The pair go to the Red Hook Crit after having just competed in the track World Championships in Hong Kong.

Above: One of the infamous Trimble bikes, designed and built for the Olympic Gold medalist and track cycling legend, Marty Nothstein, which Skinner and Emadi will be riding.

The race, which in its ten year history has gained notoriety for its custom bike and kit designs, increasingly serious competitors (and crashes) is a criterium around an old fishing dock in New York, in which riders can only used fixed-gear, brakeless bikes. 

'The fixed gear scene has been growing and building momentum around the world and since I saw my first race I was captivated,' said Huez* co-founder, Lorenzo Curci. 'Unlike other sports it is incredibly inclusive allowing couriers, amateurs and professionals all to compete against one another.'

Indeed, it's a racing format and culture niche that is seeing a real growth at the moment, and as well as the Red Hook-organised crits that are now being held in London (July 22nd), Barcelona and Milan, there are others popping up all over the place. 

'I think it's important after an Olympic year to try new things and branch out a little bit because what we do is so specific and so niche,'said Skinner in a Q&A with Huez Apparel, 'but it [the calendar break] gives us the opportunity to do stuff like Red Hook. It really focuses that love for cycling, ultimately.'

Above: Red Hook Crit riders in action

'I saw pictures and videos of Red Hook Crit on Instagram and YouTube, and a few of the guys I follow on Instagram were racing Red Hook in Brooklyn and in London,' added Emadi. 'I saw the kind of style of racing and thought it was pretty cool.

But whether or not the two track heavyweights will be able to apply their trade to an hour-long, full gas criterium with unbanked corners remains to be seen.

'The guys who are successful at this are incredibly talented and it’s a real technical art to get around in the most efficient and quickest way,' said Emadi. 'Hopefully I can just hang on to some coat tails!'

Read the full Q&A with the pair on the Huez website