It was 23 months ago that 21-year-old Gage Hecht took his first elite men's win in cyclocross.

Now 23, he has improved in his final months with Aevolo before moving to Human Powered Health for the next two seasons, and is looking for a one-two punch at the Pan-American Cyclo-cross Championships on December 4 and the USA Cycling Cyclo-cross Nationals on December 4 and the USA Cycling Cyclo-cross Nationals on December 12, looking for a one-two punch.

"I'm a little nervous about how it's going to go. Of course, I've only won one race this year, so I want to see if I can win another," Hecht told Cycling News from his home in Colorado before traveling to Garland, Texas, for the Pan Ams. [Carmichael Training Systems coach Jim Lehman] is helping me to peak for the competition, not just to be in good shape all year long. Hopefully that will work out over the next couple of weekends. ......"

In cyclocross this season, Hecht has five podium finishes, including a win on the first day of the North Carolina Grand Prix on November 20. He finished in the top 10 at the World Cup in Fayetteville and was second in the New England Cyclocross Series, which featured four events.

Hecht, a three-time U23 national cyclocross champion, also won the U23 title at the last three Pan Am Championships. The event will be held for the second year in a row in Ontario, Canada, returning to the U.S. for the first time since 2016 after a one-year break for COVID-19. Racing will take place on Saturday in the U23 and Elite divisions on the established course used for the Resolution Cross Cup.

"I think it will be interesting. We haven't raced at the elite level yet in Pan Am. So it will be special to race with these athletes in a championship event that is not a national championship. It will be cool to race Kelly [Werner]. I'm looking forward to seeing if he can defend the defending champion," Hecht said of going head-to-head with the defending champion.

"It will be cool to race the Pan-Am in the U.S. for the first time in a couple of years, I ran [the Resolution Cross Cup] in Texas about three years ago. The course is a bit undulating, but generally flatter than most races. This year we are preparing for the All-Japan Championships and trying to get up to speed, so this is a good course for warming up for that."

On the road, Hecht has been racing with the Aevolo development team since 2017, winning the U23 National Time Trial crown in 2018 and a silver medal in 2019. He competed in the elite US Pro Road Championships this year, finishing 9th in the road race and 12th in the time trial, and his switch to cyclocross, where he finished 2nd overall at the Joe Martin Stage Race in August and 6th in the mountain class at A Travers les Hauts de France in early September was not ideal.

"To be honest, I haven't prepared much for cyclo-cross this year. The second half of the year was mostly on the road. So I rode to get a good run in there. I wanted to have a good early season, but I need to rely a little bit on my road fitness.

"So I'm a little unprepared for the 'cross early in the season. But I think my road fitness is carrying over pretty well. My big goal this year is to compete in the World Championships in the US. If I'm lucky, it's a great opportunity, one that may happen twice in my career. To be able to do that this year would be pretty cool."

"I want to keep wearing the national jersey and not have to change my kit. It would be great to be able to carry the stars and stripes for another year. COVID made it easy for me for two years. But now it's time to really stick to it, instead of just sitting on the couch and trying not to catch a cold.

Hecht didn't sit on the couch in 2021, as there was no racing in North America for a year due to a massive race cancellation caused by a coronavirus outbreak, before heading to Spain at the end of February to begin road training with his new team at Human Powered Health. said he is very happy to have great support from Evolo to close out his 'cross season at the World Championships in Fayetteville this winter.

"They are going to let me go to the World Championships. My mechanics have been helping me all the way and I plan to stay with them until the World Championships. This year the setup with Evolo has been great. Especially in the COVID year, I didn't have a chance to compete and a lot of people needed a slot and they helped me with that. And then to add 'Cross' on top of that was just amazing," Hecht praised his fifth and final year on the development team.

"But as soon as Worlds is over, I'm going to be moving to Europe and putting on the orange [for Human Powered Health], and I talked to the director, Jonas [Kearney], about a week ago, and he said that before I go to Spain, I need to get enough rest and recovery I will probably head to Spain at the end of February, and then go back to the U.S. I will probably head to Spain at the end of February, get some Euro time, start training on the road, get some base distance, and start racing in mid-March."

A big cyclocross trio in the U.S. is his focus for now, and he is keeping his eyes on the next destination, the Pan Am Championships deep in Texas.

"Pan Am and Worlds are bigger events, but I think most Americans have their sights set on the National Championships. It's the biggest race that most Americans think they can win. We have stepped up and placed better at the World Championships, but it is still out of reach. Of course, the Fayetteville World Championships will be held in the U.S., so I think we will put forth a bigger effort than we did at Nationals this year.