By Rex Reynolds

What started out as a helping hand became the impetus for the one of the biggest success stories of the 2010 domestic cyclocross season. In 2009, Valentin Scherz set out to spend a few months racing and training in the US, but needed a place to stay. Philadelphia native David Berson reached out and offered to host the young rider from Switzerland, not knowing much about his ability, personality, or character. Thankfully, Scherz and the Berson family were well matched and his three month stay was a smashing success. Scherz took the MAC series Elite title as well as U23 crown, and left the states ready to rejoin the Swiss national team as they prepared to battle the rest of Europe in the prestigious UCI World Cup. Scherz went on to place 21st at the U23 World Championships. Since he was only 19 years old at the time, he’ll have a few more opportunities to improve upon this breakthrough result.

“We really had no idea that he was such a powerful rider,” said Berson of Scherz’ success. “I had a similar experience when I traveled to compete in Germany in 1991, and have established a life-long friendship with my host family and fellow riders, and hoped to extend the same experience to Valentin during his first US campaign. We were really lucky that he was such an incredible guy and fit so well into our family’s daily routine.”

When the season came to a close, Berson reached out to a friend, local cyclocross promoter, and industry veteran Jed Kornbluh, in order to hatch a plan to bring Scherz back to the US for the 2010 season, along with one or two more Swiss U23 riders. Their goal was quite simple in design: Obtain some product and cash sponsors to help offset the high costs of supporting a regional elite team, provide housing with local cyclocross-minded families, travel to races as a team to build camaraderie, and win the 2010 edition of the Champion System Mid Atlantic Cyclocross Series.

Kornbluh set out to court sponsors while Berson handled the initial logistics with Valentin, who had suggested adding Swiss rider Anthony Grand to the roster. Dan and Jodi Meier, parents of 2009 MAC junior champion Julz Meier, asked to be a part of the program, and offered to house Grand for the season. The roster was filled out with three other regionally based elite riders;, Kyle Peppo and David Sommerville of NYC, and Matt Spohn of West Chester, PA. Cyfac, Champion System, and Revolution Wheelworks each took a gamble with the fledgling team and offered their generous support, which enabled the team to use their shoestring budget to plan their travel for the rest of the season. Some other prominent members of the local cycling scene also contributed to the effort.

“I guess the big difference is the way people look at me,” Scherz stated, recalling his return to the US to reclaim his MAC champion title. “I’m little bit known now. People know that I can be fast, spectators know my name. No more “who is this kid who passes me”. I know the riders too, know their abilities. The reason of my coming [to Philadelphia] is different. Last year I was here partly to ride my bike, partly to learn English, to discover the US, to learn about culture, cities etc… This year I’m here to ride fast, to follow, and sometimes beat the pros! The organization around me is different. Last year I came over with my bike and I raced with the colors of my Swiss team. Dave was here to help in the pit with a borrowed spare bike. This year Dave and Jed created a team and a staff around me. Other riders like my Swiss friend Anthony [Grand] or the US guys like Julz, Matt, Kyle and David are at the race and we can support each other.”

Both Scherz and Grand have been tallying impressive results, including being 1st and 2nd, overall respectively in the MAC series (editor- as of the time of this article, following the FSVS CX at Fair Hill, with only 2 races remaining). Scherz is currently on the top of the international U23 leader-board, and ranked 4th in the domestic NRC rankings, just behind national stars Tim Johnson, Jeremy Powers, and Jamie Driscoll. Both riders will return to Switzerland following the MAC finale on Long Island on November 21st.

“When David [Berson] and I set out to help Valentin [Scherz], we never expected to run a professional cycling program,” Kornbluh said. “We’re very happy with the results and will continue to find the industry and financial support to enable our management to build the best U19/U23 cyclocross program in the country, with the hopes that we can have a hand in developing a great crop of elite riders for the future.”

The program for 2011 is underway, with plans to expand the team to an international squad and split the season in the US contesting the MAC series, other domestic UCI races such as the USGP and, then going to Europe through December and January. For more information, please visit phillycxschool.wordpress.com.