October 25, 2009 (Louisville, KY) – The word of the day in Louisville is supremacy. To the growing ranks of cyclocross fans in the Midwest, the fourth stop of the U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross served up a World Class clinic with Katerina Nash (Luna) and Tim Johnson (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com) as the instructors.
The women’s race saw Nash pound away for a repeat solo victory. The Czech rider used the American race to build momentum for a European campaign towards her bid to be World Champion in her native country in January. Behind her rode the ghosts of cyclocross past, present and future. Alison Dunlap, a six-time national champion and former World Champion on the mountain bike, earned the SRAM Most Aggressive Rider award for attacking a stellar chase group repeatedly to form a chase with herself and teammate, Georgia Gould. The one rider who would not stay down was Amy Dombroski (Richard Sachs/RGM Watches). The 22-year-old Vermont wunderkind recovered from another poor start to reach Dunlap. She rode with the legends until the final sprint, where she charged into a glue-like patch of mud to challenge Dunlap in the sprint for second. Although she nearly crashed, the risk paid off. She hit the pavement first and charged to the finish. After a bike throw, Dombroski claimed the silver.
The men’s race saw anything but a repeat of Saturday. After a frenetic start, Jeremy Powers (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com) led a fuel injected solo break early. Johnson pushed across to this teammate with a strong chase group still in contention.
In that chase all eyes went to the series leader Ryan Trebon (Kona) to provide the chase. But in the back stretch scrum Trebon crashed at speed. He lay on the ground for an extended period. He arose in pain, refused medical assistance, and remounted. Just as he started to pass riders, disaster struck again. His front wheel, apparently damaged in the first crash, collapsed in a turn. His second crash proved worse than the first. Having hit his head in both crashes, Trebon retired in the leader’s jersey.
Back on the front, Johnson dropped his teammate, Powers, and went solo, racking up a 40-second gap. Stranded, Powers got help in the form of Jamey Driscoll (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com). Driscoll, a diesel engine, served the perfect salvation to Powers, known for jet-fuel starts.
Farther back, the chase came from Nicholas Weighall (California Giant/Specialized), Chris Jones (Champion), Barry Wicks (Kona), and Jesse Anthony (Jamis). But the real driver of that group would be Geoff Kabush (Maxxis/Rocky Mountain). The Canadian national champion pressed repeatedly. His attacks would chip away at every rider, until he finally snapped loose.
Johnson, who opened the season with a separated shoulder, won with nearly a minute margin. Driscoll broke loose on the final lap to claim second. Powers held on for third, with Kabush fourth. For his constant attacks, Kabush received the SRAM Most Aggressive Rider award.
Top Ten Men:
1. Tim Johnson – Cannondale/CyclocrossWorld.com
2. Jamey Driscoll – Cannondale/CyclocrossWorld.com
3. Jeremey Powers – Cannondale/CyclocrossWorld.com
4. Geoff Kabush – Team Maxxis-Rocky Mountain
5. Christopher Jones – Team Champion System
6. Barry Wicks – KONA
7. Nicholas Weighall – California Giant Berry Farms / Specialized
8. Jesse Anthony – Team Jamis
9. Davide Frattini – Team Fuji
10. Mark LaLonde – Planet Bike
SRAM Most Aggressive Rider: Geoff Kabush
Top Ten Women:
1. Katerina Nash – LUNA
2. Amy Dombroski – Richard Sachs
3. Alison Dunlap – LUNA
4. Georgia Gould – LUNA
5. Alison Sydor – Team Maxxis – Rocky Mountain
6. Sue Butler – Cannondale/Monavie
7. Kari Studley- Velo Bella
8. Kristin Wentworth – Planet Bike
9. Meredith Miller – California Giant Berry Farm/ Specialized
10. Kailtlin Antonneau – Planet Bike
SRAM Most Aggressive Rider : Alison Dunlap
