Katie Compton’s 2016 Disc-Brake Trek Boone

After a slow start to the 2015 cyclocross race season, Katie Compton’s fitness seems to have returned. The 11-time National Champion most recently finished fourth at the World Cup in Namur, Belgium, and second in Zolder, Belgium, over Christmas week. With Nationals this weekend, American cyclocross fans are waiting to see if she’ll take another win on her disc-equipped Trek Boone, or if one of the up-and-coming female racers in the US will unseat the queen of American ’cross.

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Looking closely at Compton’s Trek Boone, you can spot plenty of National Championship decals, some more obvious than others. The stars and red-and-blue “KFC” decals are indicators of her national champ status, while a Roman numeral decal on her fork tallies her 11 championship titles.

“This bike is just so fun to ride,” Compton says, “And it especially shines on twisty singletrack. It just puts a smile on my face each time I get on it.” Compton may not be known for her smiley countenance during races—she’s all business—but it’s good to know she’s having fun while doing it.

If you haven’t already heard the acronym "KFC" used in cyclocross, here’s the skinny: It stands for Katie F-ing Compton, in honor of her badass racing.

Cyclocross was quick to adapt internal routing over the past three years of bike development. The setup makes sense—lots of mud and the need to shoulder bikes for run-ups made external cabling messy and uncomfortable.

Compton’s longtime partner Shimano keeps her pedals as mud-free as possible in the mucky sport of cyclocross.

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Trek and Bontrager go hand-in-hand, so it’s no surprise that Compton’s handlebars and seat come from the Trek-owned Bontrager brand. And if you look closely at her shifters, you can see that her mechanic has added a bit of glue to the shifting surface, making it easier to catch a finger on for fast shifting mid-race.

This FMB Pro Supermud is handmade in France and stamped with KFC’s specially designed seal. The casing is cotton, which pros say offers a lower rolling resistance and a more supple feel. Plus, the neon green looks sweet with Compton’s light-blue paint scheme.

“Everything is Shimano,” Compton says of her bike. “I’m running a 46/36 crankset in the front.” Unlike many of the SRAM-sponsored pros who have switched to 1x drivetrains, Compton prefers the options that come from having two chainrings in the front.

Compton has said before that the Iso seatmast makes a difference damping vibrations over rutted, washboard-style courses, and Trek’s most distinctive feature has remained a key part of this year’s bike. The IsoSpeed provides seat tube-based suspension to tone down vibrations: It’s not a full-on rear suspension and only flexes a few milimeters, but Compton swears it makes the ride smoother.

     RELATED: Katie Compton's 2014 Trek Boone

“The disc bike has been really sweet to ride and I'm finally getting used to the power of the disc brakes and enjoying it for the more technical races,” Compton says. Disc brakes have really made their way into women’s racing this season, though more female ‘cross pros than male are still on cantilever brakes—arguably because women’s bikes (and team budgets) are sadly behind those of the male racers technologically. And even Compton admits that discs aren’t always the right choice: She maintains her cantilever bike as well and uses it on some courses.

A good bike mechanic can make or break your race, and lucky for Compton, she can trust her mechanic with anything: The position is held by her husband, Mark Legg-Compton. The two travel together for racing, and Legg-Compton is meticulous about keeping Katie’s bikes in perfect shape.