September 29/05 1:25 am - Waterford Hills UCI Cyclo-Cross

Posted by Editoress on 09/29/05
 

Kinetic Systems / Tailwind Waterford Hills UCI Cyclo-Cross Waterford Hills Race Track - Waterford, Michigan
Courtesy Nathan Chown, Italpasta/ Fuji Canada

This past weekend I got the cross season rolling with a couple of UCI races around the Detroit area.

With the double weekend I expected a larger turnout then years past but I was a little more than surprised with the caliber of riders who showed up.

As I was sitting in the car getting my number pinned my partner in crime mentioned, " hey look there is a rider for Skittles." To which I replied " I know I can take the Skittles `cross team and also maybe the snickers team but that fellow is on Jelly Belly and is pretty good" Yes, Jeremy Powers had shown up along with the likes of Tyler Johnson and Jon Baker along with a handful of other top cross racers. It was going to be tough to get top ten.

The course was pretty flat and mainly grass with 2 pavement drags and a ton of 180's and a bit of off camber. The first day was bone dry and I got called to the start so positioning would not be too much of an issue. Off the start it was hectic as always and I ended up 5th wheel. There was a group of 15-20 for the first 2 laps then the selections were being made. At the 3/4 point I was in the lead group of 9. We had a good margin over any chasers and I felt pretty good. Alot of attacks would go but always got dragged back as J.Power rode a hard tempo on the front for most of the laps. With 2.5 laps to go I got off the group thanks to a fellow who felt he needed to take a corner really fast and then wiped out. I stayed up and got back on the group but again got gapped and never made it back . The lead 6 continued on with 2 more losing contact until finally J.powers took the win. I got nipped at the line and rolled in for 8th. (1.38 down)

The next day the course was modified a bit but essentially was the same. However this day the start was really hard and the pack of 35 or so riders was split very early. To further add to the selection there was a huge crash on the pavement section. Ben turner and Tyler johnson hit a the tarmac while in 3-4 spot and I was right behind them and barely got through, others were not so lucky. In the end we had a group of 10-12 at the start of lap 2. This was eventually down to 8 by mid race and that is when the rain hit. The last 2 laps were complete down pour and the course was super slick. I took the gamble that the rain would hold off and ran tires for dry conditions, So basically I was having a hard time maintaining contact and eventually came off with 1.5 laps to go. I then backed off for I just had no grip. I rode the last lap with another rider and this time I took the sprint and got 7th (45 secs down) Again J.power who was running a crazy 30 psi in his tubulars (he borrowed my pump that's how I know) took the win again. Also at the race was the california cross racer Brent Prenzlow who raced Lance last year at a cross race in So.Cal. He said it was pretty cool to line up against Lance and he held on for 10 mins.

Also in attendance in the women's race were Tara Ross ,who looked strong both days, finishing 2nd and Lesley Chown who had a 5th and 3rd and displayed some pretty good sprinting power. On the men's side Ontario's latest cross secret - Neil Ross had a 1st and 2nd in the always competitive Killer B race.

The races were well run and the course was awesome.

Saturday September 24th