Kansas City, KS – 2007 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships Day 4: Elite Women and Elite Men
Best in the US, Best in the World?
Katie Compton focuses on National Championship jersey #4 at the 2007 National Championships in Kansas City. © Cyclocross Magazine
Katie Compton (Spike Shooter) returned to normal winning ways with her fourth national championship today in muddy and icy conditions at the 2007 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships. She had strong competition from a determined Rachel Lloyd (ProMan/Paradigm), who closed within 15 seconds on the last lap after Compton has a slight bobble with less than a half lap to go. Lloyd, from relatively warm NorCal, surprisingly loves the snow and ice, and the conditions allowed her technical mountain biking skills to propel her past all the favorites except Compton. From the gun, in quickly became apparent that Georgia Gould (Luna) was not having the type of day she had in her back-to-back wins at Portland’s USGP, and it soon became a two-woman race between Lloyd and Compton. Compton appeared to open the gaps on the smoother sections and pavement, while Lloyd drifted through corners and seemed to float over terrain that caused many women to dab or run their bikes. Kerry Barnholt (Tokyo Joe’s) and Maureen Bruno-Roy (Independent Fabrication / WheelWorks), both from states with similar weather conditions, excelled and finished fourth and fifth to round out the podium.
Notes:
- Conditions for the women’s race were difficult at best, with a slippery thin mud-cover over ice and rock-hard frozen dirt, with 4″ ruts lining the course. Women were seen swapping bikes as many as six times in the 45-minute race, and pit crews were competing just as hard for hose time.
Pit Crews Worked Just as Hard as Racers ©Cyclocross Magazine
- With Compton’s win, she ties Alison Dunlap’s record of four consecutive victories. Dunlap later went on to win a fifth two years later, but with a victory next year, Compton could set an all-time record.
- Most riders chose to tackle the tough conditions on tubulars. Compton rode Dugast Rhinos just over 20 psi. Gould chose to ride clinchers.
Elite Men Battle Slippery Conditions, Two-Way Traffic
Trebon leads the pack, Page and the rest of the field before colliding with a racer who veered into his path. ©Cyclocross Magazine
Tim Johnson (Cannondale/cyclocrossworld/Leer) survived the elite men’s race the best, making the least number of mistakes and avoiding some bad luck that plagued others. Ryan Trebon (Kona/YourKey Mortgage) took the early lead off the pavement, leading Jonathan Page (SunWeb/ProJob) and Jeremy Powers (cyclocrossworld) into the first off-road section. Page soon took over the lead, followed by Powers and a chasing Todd Wells (GT). The three riders bumped and battled on lap two, switching the lead four times within one lap. Powers later fell off the pace with a flat, and Johnson surged to join Page and Wells to form the final leading trio.
Meanwhile, Trebon, on lap two, was closing back in on the leading group but another rider a half lap down lost control on a parallel section of the course, crashed through the course tape into Trebon’s path, and the Kona rider flew over bars, hitting the deck hard and laying motionless for a few minutes.
Trebon finally rises from the head-on collision. ©Cyclocross Magazine
He would later get up under his own power, holding his arm gingerly against his body, causing fear it was either a rib or collarbone injury but Trebon appeared to be fine a few hours later.Up front, Johnson and Page took turns attacking each other, until a lap and a half to go, Page veered into the course tap, tangled his bars and going down, dropping his chain in the process. Not far from the pits, he ran his bike and got a change, but Johnson was gone for good. With a ten second lead in hand, Johnson remained mistake free for the next 12 minutes, and Page closed within 7 seconds, but couldn’t bring back Johnson. Following Page was Wells, Barry Wicks (Kona/YourKey Mortgage) and hard-chasing Troy Wells (Clif Bar).
Elite Men’s Podium of the 2007 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships in Kansas City. ©Cyclocross Magazine
