Cole Punchard grew up in Novar, Ontario. A quiet speck of a place just north of Huntsville. The kind of town with a grocery store, a gas station and not much else. But from those humble beginnings, he’s now wearing the Canadian champ’s jersey and lining up against the best in the world.
“I’m from Novar actually,” he says with a laugh. “It’s like 25 minutes north of Huntsville. Middle of nowhere.”
He started riding at Buckwallow, a local trail centre many Ontario riders cut their teeth on. It’s gone now, but Punchard’s career certainly isn’t. He just took the elite men’s XCO title at Canadian Nationals. His first time winning the big one. And he’s feeling pretty good about it.
“Last year I won the short track, but it was sort of unexpected,” he says. “This year, nationals was a big goal. I wear the jersey with a lot of pride.”
A jersey that means more
The elite national champion’s jersey means a lot in cross-country mountain biking. And for Punchard, it marks a shift in mindset.
“It’s not like the short track doesn’t count,” he says. “But this is the real one. The big one that you want to win.”
It didn’t come easy, even if the course wasn’t the most technical.
“It was just a double track climb and then a green trail down,” he says of the Langford course. “There was one rock in the descent that a lot of people were catching. I don’t really know what happened, but Carter Woods flatted on it and I came out of the descent with a big gap.”
He held that gap to the finish.
The deep end: choosing elite over U23s
Punchard is still technically U23, but chose to race elite this year with Cannondale Factory Racing. It’s a bold move. But it’s how Cannodale Factory does it. Charlie Adridge did the same thing.
“It was a bit scary, because I mean, you’re just gonna get the crap kicked out of you for an entire year,” he says. “But I thought that in the long term, this would be better for me. So I just committed to it.”
Cannondale made the offer and with teammates like Jolanda Neff and Charlie Aldridge, it was a no-brainer. He showed up at team camp in South Africa, wide-eyed and ready.
“It was pretty cool when I showed up to team camp for the first time… all the staff, all the riders, all the bikes. It was just unreal.”
Still learning, still hungry
Racing elite comes with hard lessons. But Punchard’s already had his moments.
“In the short track in Nove Mesto, on the second-last lap, Nino [Schurter] was on my wheel and I was able to drop him and bridge to the next group. That was really cool.”
And then, reality.
“In Val di Sole, I saw Nino, passed him on the first lap feeling good. Two laps later, I’m dying and he comes flying past me. I was like, ‘I’ve got a lot to learn.’”
The goal: World champs
Despite racing elite all season, Punchard will return to U23 for world championships this year.
“This is the big goal. The target of the season,” he says. “I haven’t raced any of the guys all year, so it’s a bit of an unknown where I’m at, where they’re at.”
His ranking puts him in a good start position. And yeah, of course, he’s gunning for the win.
Luck, hard work and hair plans
So is it luck, or did he work for all this?
“I definitely worked for it. You have to train your butt off. But you also have to be at the right place at the right time. And have the confidence to talk to people and put yourself out there.”
He’s done that. And the payoff’s real: an international contract, a national title and a spot at the world’s biggest race.
Oh, and watch for him on the start line.
“I’ve got some ideas for the hair for world champs,” he says. “It’ll be exciting.”