JAM FUND in the time of Coronavirus
Above: Chris Niesen races at Hendersonville, North Carolina, Nov. 24, 2019.
Chris Niesen is one of our most improved athletes in the JAM Fund rider program, and is a huge help at all of our events including at our annual summer Grand Fundo. We count on him and his foodservice expertise to keep our events cooking at a high level. He's traveled across the country and overseas representing JAM Fund in search of the best racing we can find. It's been good for him to see the world and meet athletes from a wide range of cultures.
Cooling down after a breakout race
“Yesterday was a big day for me, years in the making to go top 10 in a UCI race and pick up precious UCI points. Top 5 is up next.”
Go Cross at Fallon Park, Sept 1, 2019.
Photo by Dan Brock.
“The year 2020 started out on high point, coming off my best season in 2019,” Niesen said. “The winter was filled with trainer miles and then in March a trip to Spain with the goal of getting in a winter block going into the spring road season and then another summer racing in Belgium.”
But Niesen’s plans changed, just like everyone’s when COVID-19 hit the United States in mid-March.
“Before we left for Spain, I really didn’t think too much of it,” he said. “For sure, it was a little scary, but it wasn’t until the last week in Spain when COVID was now a full-blown pandemic to us. The country went into lockdown. Being in a foreign country during the explosion of a pandemic is for sure up there on one of the crazier things I’ve ever experienced.”
Niesen wasn’t fully prepared for what was about to come.
“Three days prior to the lockdown we marched down the streets of Malaga, 100-thousand strong for the international women’s day march,” he said. “Now the streets are empty, flights are canceled, borders closed, and no one knew what was going on, or at least I didn’t. There was only so much information happening. At that point in time I was completely okay with settling into my new Spanish life and probably wasn’t as concerned as I should have been. We eventually found our way home. ‘The last flight out of Spain,’ is how our pilot announced it as we took off for the United States.”
With races canceled over summer and then early fall, it wasn’t long before we all realized that cross season wasn’t coming.
“This was hard to accept,” he said. “All the time and commitment to be at my best… but obviously there is a bigger picture and bike racing is well, just bike racing.”
With not much choice, Niesen took off the 2020 cyclocross race season that hardly existed, but says he will be back next year.
“The goal is to put the bike aside for a bit and focus on some more life goals, at least for the time being,” he said. “I’m trying to figure out what I want to do in the future.”
During the challenging coronavirus times, Niesen discovered a new love: carpentry.
“I wake up and start my day framing a deck and end the week with fine detailed trim work,” he said. “I’ve had three raises in two months. The detail and focus it takes to do the job means discipline. This is the most important thing and a take away from bike racing and the JAM program. It is because of bike racing that I’ve had the chance to explode into the world with this year’s honed discipline. It is a gift I’ve received through bike racing. It’s something I will use and be grateful for the rest of my life.”
Grill Skills
Niesen cooks up a cowboy breakfast as the sun rises on the July 2019 JAM Fund Grand Fundo. His bacon and eggs are legendary.
Photo by Meg McMahon.
Even with a new career underway, Neisen says he will still focus on bike racing.
“While I may have toned down my training for the moment, when the time comes, I’ll be ready to rip,” he said.