The 2016 SSCXWC men's championship finals drew quite a bit of attention with a living cyclocross legend Sven Nys coming out of retirement to have a go at adding a one-gear title to his collection of wins in nearly every top-level race.
Could defending champion Adam Craig hold off the former World Champion? The band wasn't needed to drum up excitement as the race was about to start.
The drum line whips up the crowd before the men's finals. 2016 SSCXWC Men's Finals. © M. Estes / Cyclocross Magazine
Photographer Mike Estes avoided the mud balls and stayed on his feet to shoot the SSCXWC men's race finals, and sent in the following photos for our readers' enjoyment. See our favorites and a full photo gallery of Estes' and a few others' work below.
With such soggy conditions, racers who opted or lower gears were happy. 2016 SSCXWC Men's Finals. © M. Estes / Cyclocross Magazine
You were right. 2016 SSCXWC consolation round. © M. Estes / Cyclocross Magazine
Craig in control, before a brief chain issue shrunk his lead. 2016 SSCXWC Men's Finals. © M. Estes / Cyclocross Magazine
"Sven, hope you saved something for Part 2 of our battle tonight." "What?" 2016 SSCXWC Men's Finals. © M. Estes / Cyclocross Magazine
The announcers stayed on top of things with their handy canoe. 2016 SSCXWC consolation round. © M. Estes / Cyclocross Magazine
Craig held off Nys to keep the title and tattoo that some theorized Nys didn't really want. Stephen Ettinger finished third.
See the full photo gallery from Mike Estes below. See the 2016 SSCXWC women's finals photo gallery here, our Day 1 Qualifiers photo gallery here, and stay tuned for a full report and results.
2016 SSCXWC Men's Finals Photo Gallery:
You were right. 2016 SSCXWC consolation round. © M. Estes / Cyclocross Magazine
