Nash took a solid solo win on a beautiful night in Vegas. Photo: Brad Kaminski © VeloNews

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (VN) — Katerina Nash scored a repeat victory at Wednesday evening’s CrossVegas race here, riding solo for most of the race after joining Luna teammate Georgia Gould in an attack on the first lap.

Gould attacked first and opened a five-second lead before Nash was able to bridge up to her. The two worked together and expanded their lead to over 10 seconds in the next two laps.

Nash pulled away from Gould with three laps to go when Gould struggled “made a couple little mistakes,” as Gould said.

“I wasn’t feeling super strong anyway,” Gould said. “If I was having a good night I could have overcome those little mistakes.”

Nash rode smoothly, spinning a fast cadence as she bounced over the lumpy grass at the soccer complex, where thousands of fans, many of them in town for the Interbike trade show this week, crowded around the course.

“I always look forward to this race,” Nash, who has finished on the podium of every edition, told VeloNews afterwards.. “The spectators make this place .. it’s such a great setting and everyone seems to be enjoying themselves.”

Rain the last two days left the grassy course slicker than in prior editions and some riders struggled getting back on their bikes with wet shoes. The moisture did not seem to slow the riding much as a groove wore into the course in many sections as the race continued.

Nash expanded her gap to near 30 seconds with a lap to go.

While Nash is known for her technical skills, she also clearly has the power necessary to slog through the heavy grass in Vegas. “It’s a power course and I fit into that category,” she said.

Amy Dombroski (Crank Brothers) attacked a chase group with a half lap to go and took second for the second consecutive year. Kelli Emmett (Giant) was third, followed by Meredith Miller (Specialized) and Gould.

French national champion Caroline Mani, a front row starter, never seemed to hit her groove and fell back to finish in the top 30.

The men’s race was set to start at 9:30 p.m.

Elite Men

• 1. Jeremy Powers, Cannondale/cyclocrossworld.com, with 334 points
• 2. Timothy Johnson, Cannondale/cyclocrossworld.com, with 324 points
• 3. Todd Wells, Specialized, with 193 points
• 4. James Driscoll, Cannondale/cyclocrossworld.com, with 182 points
• 5. Geoff Kabush, Team Maxxis / Rocky Mount, with 181 points
• 6. Ryan Trebon, Kona, with 172 points
• 7. Tristan Schouten, Cyclocrossracing.com/blue/rolf, with 149 points
• 8. Christopher Jones, Rapha / Focus, with 122 points
• 9. Barry Wicks, Kona, with 78 points
• 10. Zach Mcdonald, Rapha / Focus, with 71 points
• 11. Jesse Anthony, California Giant / Specialized, with 70 points
• 12. Davide Frattini, Team Type 1, with 70 points
• 13. Brian Matter, Gear Grinder, with 65 points
• 14. Troy Wells, Team Clif Bar, with 59 points
• 15. Adam Craig, Giant, with 58 points
• 16. Christian Heule,, with 56 points
• 17. Jonathan Page, Planet Bike, with 44 points
• 18. Francis Mourey, Fdj, with 41 points
• 19. Daniel Summerhill, Team Holowesko Partners, with 30 points
• 20. Sean Babcock, Kona, with 29 points
• 21. Adam Mcgrath, Feedback Sports/van Dessel, with 24 points
• 22. Derrick St John, Garneau Club Chaussure-Olgivy, with 23 points
• 23. Luke Keough, Champion System P/b Keough Cycl, with 21 points
• 24. Luca Damiani, Kenda Pro Cycling, with 20 points
• 25. Matthew Pacocha, Hudz-Subaru, with 18 points
• 26. Alex Candelario, World Bicycle Relief, with 14 points
• 27. Nicholas Weighall,, with 14 points
• 28. Ryan Knapp, Bikereg.com, with 13 points
• 29. Mark Lalonde, Specialized, with 13 points
• 30. Chris Sheppard, Rocky Mountain/shimano/giro, with 10 points
• 31. Aaron Schooler, Team H&r Block, with 10 points
• 32. Braden Kappius,, with 10 points
• 33. Tim Van Nuffel,, with 10 points
• 34. Jeremy Ferguson, California Giant/specialized, with 8 points
• 35. Cody Kaiser, California Giant Berry Farms/sp, with 8 points
• 36. Valentin Scherz, Cyfac-Champion System P/b Revol, with 8 points
• 37. Mitch Hoke, Clif Bar Development Cyclo-Cros, with 4 points
• 38. Spencer Paxson,, with 4 points
• 39. Allen Krughoff,, with 4 points
• 40. Rene Birekenfeld, Stevens, with 2 points
• 41. Aaron Schooler, Team H&r Block, with 1 points
• 42. Justin Robinson, California Giant Berry Farms/sp, with 1 points

U23 Men

• 1. Luke Keough, Champion System P/b Keough, with 293 points
• 2. Jeremy Ferguson, California Giant/specialized, with 252 points
• 3. Cody Kaiser, Team Spine, with 244 points
• 4. Zach Mcdonald, Rapha / Focus, with 220 points
• 5. Daniel Summerhill, Team Holowesko Partners, with 180 points
• 6. David Hackworthy, Cyclocrossracing.com P/b Blue, with 144 points
• 7. Joseph Schmalz, Kccx/verge P/b Challenge Tires, with 137 points
• 8. Eric Emsky, Cyclocrossracing.com P/b Blue, with 103 points
• 9. Clayton Omer, Papa Johns’ Racing Team, with 95 points
• 10. Steve Fisher, Rad Racing Nw / Hagens Berman L, with 77 points
• 11. Robin Eckmann, Hot Tubes Development Cycling T, with 61 points
• 12. Will Ross,, with 52 points
• 13. Skyler Trujillo, Black Sheep Jr. Cycling, with 51 points
• 14. Valentin Scherz, Cyfac-Champion System P/b Revol, with 50 points
• 15. Jack Hinkens,, with 49 points
• 16. Chris Hurst,, with 44 points
• 17. Zachary Edwards, Drt Racing, with 44 points
• 18. Josh Johnson, Drt Racing, with 42 points
• 19. Logan Vonbokel, Kccx/verge P/b Challenge Tires, with 23 points
• 20. Connor Mccutcheon, Rebound Spl / Bear Valley Bikes, with 22 points
• 21. Christopher Bogedin, Ccsh – Rgf Pb Felt Bicycles Eli, with 18 points
• 22. Caley Fretz,, with 17 points
• 23. Jared Stafford, Bikesports Racing, with 17 points
• 24. David Block, Boulder Cycle Sport, with 15 points
• 25. Andrew Bennett, Team Redline, with 14 points
• 26. Daniel Gerow, Wolverines/acfstores.com, with 13 points
• 27. Alex Howes,, with 12 points

Masters 35+

• 1. Mark Legg Compton, Cody Racing, with 258 points
• 2. Michael Wissink, Specialized, with 191 points
• 3. William Elliston, Van Dessel Factory Team, with 190 points
• 4. Eirik Schulz, Specialized/river City Bicycles, with 181 points
• 5. Richard Feldman, Dc (durance Cycleworks), with 171 points
• 6. Mark Savery, Midwest Wheelmaster, with 125 points
• 7. Peter Webber, Unattached, with 100 points
• 8. Shadd Smith, Kccx/verge Presented By Challen, with 95 points
• 9. Brian Conant, The Pony Shop, with 86 points
• 10. Jerry Long, Coeur D ‘alene Velo Racers, with 83 points
• 11. Shannon Skerritt, Unattached, with 80 points
• 12. Jeff Weinert, Wolverine Sports Club, with 80 points
• 13. Ward Baker, Justin’s / Titus Mountain Bike, with 74 points
• 14. Grant Berry, Rocky Mtn Chocolate Factory, with 70 points
• 15. Chris Snyder, Bicycleattorney.com, with 52 points
• 16. Russell Stevenson, Seattle Super Squadra, with 50 points
• 17. Michael Robson, Unattached, with 49 points
• 18. Maurice Gamanho, Unattached, with 46 points
• 19. Andrew Messer, Drt Racing, with 37 points
• 20. Douglas Reid, Step Down Racing, with 35 points
• 21. Craig Faulkner, Synergy, with 33 points
• 22. Kevin Klug, The Pony Shop, with 32 points
• 23. Kevin Koen, with 31 points
• 24. Jon Cariveau, Moots Racing, with 27 points
• 25. Donald Myrah, Safeway/bicycles Plus/purered C, with 24 points
• 26. Brian Hludzinski, Unattached, with 22 points
• 27. Ariel Brown, Bay101/hrs/rock Lobster, with 22 points
• 28. David Peters, Brazen Dropouts, with 22 points
• 29. Edmund (ned) Overend, Specialized, with 21 points
• 30. Murray Swanson, Peninsula Velo Cycling Club, with 20 points
• 31. Scott Bradway, Unattached, with 20 points
• 32. Matt Tillinghast, Midwest Wheelmaster, with 17 points
• 33. Bart Bowen, Rebound Sports Performance Lab, with 15 points
• 34. Benjamin Thompson, Unattached, with 14 points
• 35. Louis Kuhn, The Pony Shop, with 14 points
• 36. Jay Moncel, Wolverine Sports Club, with 14 points
• 37. Normon Thibault, Frontrunners, with 13 points
• 38. Nate Woodman, Monkey Wrench, with 13 points
• 39. Joe Curtes, with 13 points
• 40. Kenny Wehn, Colavita Racing, with 12 points
• 41. Bo Pitkin, Unattached, with 12 points
• 42. Garett Heitman, with 11 points
• 43. Christopher Smith, Hup United, with 9 points
• 44. Matthew Scott, Fiets Met Slagroom, with 8 points
• 45. Mark Wisner, Boulder Cycle Sport, with 7 points
• 46. Eric Sondag, with 7 points
• 47. Patrick Weddell, Team Metro P/b Greenville Cycli, with 7 points
• 48. Joel Wilson, Unattached, with 5 points
• 49. Kristopher Holden, Unattached, with 5 points
• 50. Micael Gaertner, Coeur D ‘alene Velo Racers (cda, with 5 points
• 51. Mathew Ankney, with 5 points
• 52. Michael Carroll, Durango Wheel Club, with 5 points
• 53. Steven Stefko, Velo-One, with 5 points
• 54. William Stolte, Unattached, with 4 points
• 55. Charles Coyle, with 4 points
• 56. Eric Anderson, Nuvo/cultural Trail, with 4 points
• 57. Jeff Curtes, Embrocation/the Vanilla Worksho, with 4 points
• 58. Frederick Rose, Bikereg.com, with 3 points
• 59. David Hejduk, 360 Racing, with 2 points
• 60. Bill Marshall, Kccx/verge P/b Challenge Tires, with 2 points
• 61. James Christian McCarthy, Unattached, with 2 points

Masters 45+

• 1. Michael McShane, Bob’s Red Mill, with 281 points
• 2. Thomas Price, Kccx/verge P/b Challenge Tires, with 257 points
• 3. Tim Butler, with 254 points
• 4. Troy Krause, Midwest Wheelmaster, with 151 points
• 5. Daniel Casper, Grandstay Hotels, with 120 points
• 6. Jimmy Bruner, Inland Construction / Back To D, with 96 points
• 7. John Mccaffrey, Bicycleattorney.com, with 90 points
• 8. Waldek Stepniowski, Mtb Pro Team: Luna Pro Team, with 90 points
• 9. Jonathan Card, Team Card/cane Creek, with 90 points
• 10. Wayne Simon, Verdigris Cycling, with 67 points
• 11. Richard Cramer, Bicycleattorney.com, with 66 points
• 12. Rod Yoder, Natural Grocers P/b Xp Companie, with 56 points
• 13. Jeff Hall, Green Mountain Sports Velo, with 50 points
• 14. Gregory Ferguson, Fisher Midwest Road Team, with 50 points
• 15. Michael Hogan, Justin’s / Titus Mountain Bike, with 50 points
• 16. Jeffrey Welch, Fiets Maan Racing, with 43 points
• 17. Karl Kiester, Cody Racing Team,inc., with 42 points
• 18. Andy Lucas, 360 Racing, with 41 points
• 19. Scott Arrigoni, with 40 points
• 20. Thomas Feix, Peninsula Velo/pomodoro, with 39 points
• 21. Gary Thacker, with 38 points
• 22. John Iltis, Barbacoa-Midoule, with 33 points
• 23. Keith Lucas, Schellers Racing Team, with 33 points
• 24. Robert Meighan, California Giant Berry Farms/sp, with 30 points
• 25. Kirk Olson, High Peaks Masters, with 29 points
• 26. Darron Cheek, High Country Racing Team, with 27 points
• 27. Steve Mcnamee, Le Scomparse Cycling Team, with 26 points
• 28. Todd Rosier, Portland Velo, with 24 points
• 29. Lance Fagerberg, Papa John’s Racing Team, with 23 points
• 30. John Mansell, Boulder Cycle Sport, with 22 points
• 31. Paul Mckinney, Curt Goodrich Racing Team, with 19 points
• 32. Edwin Rambuski, Unattached, with 18 points
• 33. David Karman, Hagens-Berman Llp Cycling, with 17 points
• 34. Jeff Standish, Therapeutic Associates Cycling/, with 17 points
• 35. Todd Gillihan, Team Skin, with 17 points
• 36. Christopher Van Tilburg, Mountain View Cycles, with 15 points
• 37. Michael Hills, with 15 points
• 38. Scott Hackett, with 14 points
• 39. Harold Stephenson, Boulder Cycle Sport, with 14 points
• 40. Craig Fitzgerald, The Woodlands Cycling Club, with 14 points
• 41. Christando Lombardo, Verdigris Cycling, with 14 points
• 42. Jon Suyko, The Pony Shop, with 13 points
• 43. Christopher Berge, Magnus, with 11 points
• 44. Craig Hofer, Green Mountain Sports Racing, with 10 points
• 45. Randy Iddings, Redline, with 10 points
• 46. Roy Colven, Union Bay Cycling/bikesale.com, with 8 points
• 47. Christian Zauner, Verdigris Cycling, with 7 points
• 48. Dave Tricamo, Team Dfl, with 6 points
• 49. R Brook Watts, Cody Racing Team,inc., with 6 points
• 50. John Wilson, Pacific Power Blue Sky, with 5 points
• 51. Art Schwadron, with 5 points
• 52. Tim James, Foxtrot-Echelon Racing, with 5 points
• 53. Michael Phillips, G.s. Circo Azzurro, with 5 points
• 54. William Teasdale, Cross Propz Racing, with 5 points
• 55. Greg Talbert, Scott-Mavic Usa, with 4 points
• 56. Peter Wellsman, Pro City Racing, with 4 points
• 57. Rocky Crocker, Unattached, with 4 points
• 58. Greg Gorrell, Feedback Sports, with 4 points
• 59. Mark Mcgeen, Team Mack Racing Assoc. Ltd, with 4 points
• 60. David Lowe, Human Zoom, with 3 points
• 61. Stephen Songer, 360 Racing, with 3 points
• 62. John Thompson, Spbrc Grand Performance, with 3 points
• 63. Justin Bannerman, Allegro Cyclery, with 2 points
• 64. Newt Cole, Ritte Van Vlaanderen, with 2 points
• 65. Jeffrey Craft, Team Lake Effect, with 2 points
• 66. Mark Wolowiec, Flying Rhino Cycling Club, with 2 points
• 67. Joe Burtoni, with 1 points
• 68. Mathew Baroli, Wolverines/acf, with 1 points
• 69. Brian Dunn, Cody Racing Team,inc., with 1 points

Elite Women

• 1. Georgia Gould, Luna Pro Team, with 328 points
• 2. Meredith Miller, California Giant/specialized, with 225 points
• 3. Katerina Nash, Luna Pro Team, with 190 points
• 4. Katherine Compton, Planet Bike, with 190 points
• 5. Katherine Sherwin, Hudz Subaru, with 150 points
• 6. Amy Dombroski, Luna Pro Team, with 146 points
• 7. Kaitlin Antonneau, Cannondale/cyclocrossworld.com, with 121 points
• 8. Susan Butler, Hudz Subaru, with 114 points
• 9. Maureen Bruno Roy, Mm Racing P/b Seven Cycles, with 97 points
• 10. Teal Stetson-lee, California Giant/specialized, with 87 points
• 11. Laura Van Gilder, Mellow Mushroom, with 86 points
• 12. Nicole Duke, The Gear Movement, with 72 points
• 13. Natasha Elliott, Garneau Club Chaussure-Olgivy, with 70 points
• 14. Pepper Harlton, Juventus Cycling Club, with 61 points
• 15. Amanda Carey, Kenda/felt, with 56 points
• 16. Ashley James, Team Kenda, with 55 points
• 17. Alice Pennington, S&m, with 46 points
• 18. Wendy Simms, Ridley – Fsa, with 40 points
• 19. Linnea Koons, Embrocation Cycling Journal, with 40 points
• 20. Katy Curtis, Bow Cycle/cyclemeisters, with 40 points
• 21. Amanda Miller, Hudz Subaru, with 40 points
• 22. Sally Annis, Crossresults.com P/b Jra Cycles, with 33 points
• 23. Andrea Smith, Ladiesfirst Racing, with 33 points
• 24. Barbara Howe, Ibis And The Danger Twins, with 31 points
• 25. Devon Haskell, Bh Usa, with 31 points
• 26. Linda Sone, Planet Bike, with 30 points
• 27. Lisa Strong, Natural Grocers P/b Xp Companie, with 19 points
• 28. Kimberly Flynn, Grace Law-Trek P/b Vantaggio, with 19 points
• 29. Robin Williams, Mercy-Specialized, with 17 points
• 30. Carrie Cash Wootten, Team Vera Bradley Foundation, with 16 points
• 31. Jennifer Maxwell, Van Dessel Factory Team P/b Ste, with 14 points
• 32. Holly Klug, Pony Shoop, with 10 points
• 33. Nicole Borem, Drt Racing, with 9 points
• 34. Lisa Curry,, with 8 points
• 35. Corey Coogan Cisek,, with 6 points
• 36. Anne Schwartz, Flying Rhino Cycling Club, with 6 points
• 37. Marne Smiley, Scott/ Ollett Coaching, with 6 points
• 38. Shannon Gibson,, with 4 points
• 39. Lisa Hudson, Feedback Sports, with 4 points
• 40. Coryn Rivera, Peanut Butter & Co.twenty12, with 3 points
• 41. Wendy Williams, River City Bicycles, with 3 points
• 42. Kristal Boni,, with 3 points
• 43. Melanie Long,, with 3 points
• 44. Megan Taylor,, with 2 points
• 45. Meghan Korol,, with 2 points
• 46. Kari Studley, Velo Bella, with 1 points
• 47. Erin Silliman, Fruit 66/artemis, with 1 points

Junior Men 17-18

• 1. Yannick Eckmann, Hot Tubes Development Cycling, with 400 points
• 2. Jeffrey Bahnson, Van Dessel Factory Team, with 240 points
• 3. Bjorn Fox, Clif Bar Development Cyclocross, with 176 points
• 4. Luke Haley, Red Zone Cycling, with 154 points
• 5. Gunnar Bergey, C3 Athletes Serving Athletes, with 142 points
• 6. Andrew Dillman, Red Zone Cycling, with 124 points
• 7. Sam Okeefe, C3 – Athletes Serving Athletes, with 117 points
• 8. Cypress Gorry, Web-Op, with 104 points
• 9. Zane Godby, Clif Bar Development Cyclocross, with 84 points
• 10. Kolby Preble, Clif Bar Development Cyclocross, with 69 points
• 11. Mitchell Bogardus, Unattached, with 64 points
• 12. Tyler Coplea, with 58 points
• 13. Gage Rodriguez, Expo Racing, with 49 points
• 14. Christopher Osborne, Nova Cycle Sports Foundation In, with 43 points
• 15. Zachary Semian, Team Alliance Environmental, with 42 points
• 16. Matthew Phillips, Haymarket/seavs, with 34 points
• 17. Luke Woodard, with 34 points
• 18. Samuel Dobrozsi, Qcw Lionhearts, with 29 points
• 19. Cameron Rex, Skc Racing, with 29 points
• 20. Jeremiah Dyer, with 28 points
• 21. Nathan Labecki, Unattached, with 26 points
• 22. Hagens Berman Fette J.d., with 22 points
• 23. Evan Renwick, First Rate Mortgage, with 19 points
• 24. Andy Su, with 16 points
• 25. Julian Meier, Cyfac-Champion System P/b Revol, with 10 points
• 26. Jeffrey Perrin, with 9 points
• 27. Cole Sprague, Bend Memorial Clinic Total Care, with 8 points
• 28. Mark Vanbergen, with 7 points
• 29. Travis Monroe, Vertical Earth, with 6 points

Johnson is in for the win.

Georgia Gould (Luna) turned the tables Sunday in Broomfield, Colorado, grabbing the hole shot and riding to a solid solo victory in the Boulder Cup in Broomfield, Colorado.

Tim Johnson (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com) also rode alone to the finish, but the national cyclocross champion left his race-winning attack for later in the game, jumping mountain-bike champ Todd Wells (Specialized with four laps to go in the sixth round of the North American Cyclocross Trophy Series (NACT).

The new Boulder Cup course at the FlatIron Crossing Mall was more challenging than many riders expected. Long grass lay down to make a number of off-camber corners and straightaways extremely slick. Two would-be run-ups turned into sharp, rideable climbs, much to the chagrin of the promoters. Four downhill switchbacks over the slick grass at the center of the course tripped up a number of riders in both races before the steep, 50-foot ramp to the finish.

Gould was all business this Halloween

“There wasn’t sand or gravel, but the combination of the dry ground with the grass on top was like ice,” said Johnson. “Some of those off-camber sections it was sketchy just to stay upright.”

After doubting the technicality of the course earlier this week, Planet Bike’s Katie Compton — who would abandon on Sunday after hitting the deck in a series of slick downhill switchbacks on the third lap — called the track a pleasant surprise despite leaving the race battered after her second crash in as many days.

Gould goes, Compton crumbles

Gould, missing the cat ears and whiskers she wore last Halloween, jumped to the hole shot. She led Wendy Simms, Devon Haskell and Compton, the winner of Saturday’s Colorado Cross Classic, onto the grass for the first time and gapped her competitors on a tight uphill and off-camber 180-degree switchback that was slick with long grass.

The chasers pulled Gould in when she crashed in a shallow ditch leading into the pit two minutes into the race. She remounted and tagged onto the group and in a replay of Saturday’s race, Compton, Gould and Duke emerged as the three leaders midway through the opening lap.

“I just completely stuffed it there,” said Gould. “It was just like a funny thing — ‘Whoa, that’s a really pro move.’”

The Planet Bike and Luna riders dueled on the steep, 50-foot run-up leading to the finish of the first circuit, gapping Duke. When the leaders left the pavement again they had 10 seconds on the Hudz-Subaru chaser and the two-up battle was on.

“Georgia was riding much better than I was today,” said Compton. “She was putting me under pressure in the technical sections.”

Compton, who was concerned before the start about the aftereffects of Saturday’s hard crash, led Gould onto a 200-meter, 6-degree grass climb on the second lap. But in a reversal of the day before, it was Gould who attacked and put her rival into danger.

“I didn’t feel like I was riding much better than yesterday,” said Gould. “I didn’t want to go too hard too early and blow myself up. It’s such a hard course.”

Compton crumbles

When the pair arrived to the finish run-up for the second time Compton appeared to be struggling on her feet. A lap later Gould arrived to the run-up with a gap of 1:15 after her Planet Bike rival crashed in the slick grass downhill switchback at the center of the course.

Compton leaving the pit after a mishap somewhere along the switchbacks of death

“I was just being too conservative because I was worried about crashing,” said Compton.

Compton walked the run, her head down, and it was clear her race was over. She abandoned at the start-finish. Back at her car, Compton grimaced as she cleaned her new wounds, which lay over her abrasions from the day before, and debated whether to see the medic.

“I’m pretty sure (Georgia) would have beaten me anyway, she was just flying,” said Compton. “I just hate having to pull out.”

Both Millers, who rode through Duke on the second lap, passed Compton running and set out in a long pursuit of Gould. Amanda Miller (Hudz-Subaru) rolled away from Meredith Miller (Cal Giant-Specialized) on the backside of the course, and the latter grimaced as she crept up the run with Duke 10 seconds back.

She and Duke battled for two laps until Meredith Miller attacked on the long grass climb on the far end of the course, knowing she needed to avoid being dropped by the former downhill and dual slalom champ on the technical descent. When she got a gap, Meredith Miller put her head down and played it conservatively.

“I knew that I needed to put a good gap into her so that she wouldn’t catch me and drop me again,” she said. “I got a big enough gap that I could make a little mistake and she wouldn’t catch me.”

She made contact with the younger Miller soon after, and when Amanda Miller touched down she took advantage, riding into second with a half lap remaining.

“I crashed and couldn’t get my chain back on,” said the Hudz-Subaru rider. “I must have just taken them too fast — I hadn’t crashed any other laps.”

Duke, the surprise of the weekend, also passed Amanda Miller and landed on the podium for the second day in a row.

Gould’s solo ride was demonstrative; she led at one point by 90 seconds — a lifetime in ’cross.

“I just rode my own race,” said Gould. “I just tried to ride hard the whole time and it worked out well … I don’t know if I had the mojo corner riding today or what.”

Nearly an early end for Summerhill, Johnson

The men got off to a sketchy start when Danny Summerhill (Holowesko Partners) tried to move up the right side of the road 250 meters into the opening 400 meters of pavement and another rider squeezed him into the barriers.

“I got pushed into the barriers,” said Summerhill. “I got my knee on it and I’m amazed I didn’t crash.”

Johnson, who was on the young rider’s wheel, thought his race was about to end before it began. Fortunately, Summerhill kept his bike upright and the group rode onto the grass together for the first time.

“It scared the crap out of me,” said Johnson. “I was just hopeful they wouldn’t go ballistic at the front and I might have a chance to catch up and it worked out.”

On the opening lap, it was Wells, Summerhill and Jeremy Powers (Cannondale) who jumped away from the field. Johnson, teammate Jamey Driscoll and Geoff Kabush (Maxxis-Rocky Mountain) held tight in a five-rider chase group, the Cannondale riders unwilling to hunt down their teammate at the front of the race.

National champ closes the gap in the air

Crowds were three deep on the steep ramp leading to the finish straight. A full-sized barrier and a 10cm barrier sat at the base of the climb to take riders off their bikes, but the elite men would have none of it. Wells led Powers and Summerhill in the air over the barriers at the base of the would-be finish run-up for the third time. Five seconds back Johnson jumped away from the chase group and made contact with the leaders soon after.

“It’s always tough,” said Johnson. “You can never assume a race is going to go a certain way and I was hoping I would still have a chance to catch on, and once I did, it was up to me to try and win.”

Three minutes later, Johnson attacked the group in the pit before the long, low-angle grass climb on the far end of the course, and Powers fell off the pace when he struck a sprinkler head and flatted. Troy Wells (Clif Bar) and Driscoll rode through Powers as Wells drilled the pace on the front.

“I shredded the sidewall right off,” said Powers. “To try and close that back down, at altitude, just wasn’t going to happen.”

Summerhill, the U23 national champion, was on pace for a huge result, but flatted a lap later at the hand of the same sprinkler that took down Powers. The mishap happened for both riders at the farthest point on the course from the pits and a long, slow ride in landed them outside the top 10.

“I was so bummed,” said Summerhill. “I was just hoping people knew why I was sucking so bad all of a sudden.”

At the front of the race, Driscoll caught the two leaders, but when Johnson and Wells hopped onto the run-up in front of huge, costumed crowds, they rode away into a two-man dogfight.

“I don’t have the snap, so I can’t really ride other people’s races,” said Driscoll.

A champions’ duel

Wells led Johnson for three laps, the national ’cross champion glued tightly to the national cross-country mountain bike champ’s rear wheel through the technical descents and the long power sections.

“He wasn’t going to pull because Driscoll was coming up,” said Wells. “It was either neither one of us was going to pull and there would be three of us and they would just one-two me or I could just pull and try to keep Driscoll off and maybe Timmy J makes a mistake or something, but that didn’t happen.”

Just when it appeared the race would come down to the final ramp to the finish, Johnson attacked atop the ramp with four laps to go. He took a 20-second lead through the start/finish and aced the slick, downhill switchbacks at the heart of the course to push his gap to a half-minute.

“I took a chance to attack him as soon as we got onto the pavement and got a little bit of a gap,” said Johnson. “I felt like I was pretty equal through a lot of the technical stuff, so I thought once I was able to get a little bit of a gap I would be able to hold it. I went early enough so that if I had to attack him again later I’d still have time.”

“I couldn’t respond,” said Wells, who had spent more than five laps on the front. “I was pretty tired at that point.”

It was almost for naught when Johnson, who dismounted and ran the finish ramp to save his tight back after dispatching Wells, dropped his chain atop the run on the penultimate lap. Johnson reached over his red-white-and-blue top tube to reload the chain, losing 15 seconds of his lead. The steely veteran felt panic set in with his delay.

“I lost a huge part of my gap and really had to hit the gas,” said Johnson. “Todd’s no slouch. You never want to give him a second reason or a second wind to catch up.”

Wells jumps away from Driscoll

Behind the leader, Driscoll made ground on Wells, with Kabush locked into fourth after losing at least 10 places in the melee when Summerhill clipped the barrier early. When they came through for the bell, Driscoll and Wells were together, despite the former overshooting a tight, uphill switchback and tagging a course marker on the penultimate lap.

Knowing his rival would hop the barriers and escape to the finish, Driscoll upped the pace multiple times, but he has struggled with sharp accelerations this season and could not drop Wells.

“It would have been nice to really punch it into (the barriers) so that I’d have a little bit of a gap and the difference of running wouldn’t have been as big,” said Driscoll. “But I didn’t really have much gas left.”

For his part, Wells was content to sit on Driscoll’s wheel until he could attack at the barriers heading to the finish.

“When he caught me and I saw him running it, I was so happy,” said Wells. Sure enough, the Specialized rider opened the throttle at the base of the climb, flew over the yellow TRP blockades and left Driscoll to ride in for third.

Kabush rolled in for fourth to continue a streak of close podium calls this fall.

“It’s a little bit annoying to get fourth,” said Kabush. “Gaps opened up there in the first lap and I was seeing stars there in the end, pushing pretty hard trying to close them.”

Complete results

Quick results
Men

• 1. Tim Johnson, Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com, 1:00:47
• 2. Todd Wells, Specialized, 1:01:11
• 3. Jamey Driscoll, Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com, 1:01:15
• 4. Geoff Kabush, Maxxis-Rocky Mountain, 1:01:48
• 5. Adam Craig, Giant, 1:02:05

Women
• 1. Georgia Gould, Luna, 41:34
• 2. Meredith Miller, California Giant-Specialized, 43:50
• 3. Nicole Duke, Hudz-Subaru, 44:11
• 4. Amanda Miller, Hudz-Subaru, 44:24
• 5. Teal Stetson-Lee, California Giant-Specialized, 44:31

Powers outlasted Trebon

Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com did it to Ryan Trebon again on Sunday — but this time it was Jeremy Powers instead of Tim Johnson beating the big Kona rider into second place in Kentucky’s Derby City Cup, the final day of the second stop on the U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross circuit.

Georgia Gould repeated and improved upon her win Saturday. This time, instead of taking the lead halfway through the first lap, she took it from the start line and went wire to wire.

The weekend served as a successful test of the venue that will host the world championships in 2013. Sunday’s course was very similar to Saturday’s feature-packed design, but was a bit more American in style, with the addition of about a half-dozen new tight turns on the grass and in the woods. The variation had fewer dismounts — just two per lap for those who could ride the sandpit, instead of four per lap on Saturday.

In other conditions, the course might have produced a punchier, more tactical race, but the day’s record-tieing heat and gusty winds made for another brutal, dusty day of attrition.

Powers blows off the front

The wind had been strong all day in Louisville, but by the time the elite men took the course in Eva Bandman Park it had grown so powerful that it blew over the podium, and the racers left rooster tails of airborne dust in their wakes on the dry, serpentine course alongside the Ohio River.

Powers got clear early on, chased by Trebon, Johnson, Jesse Anthony (California Giant-Specialized), Danny Summerhill (Team Holowesko), Geoff Kabush (Maxxis-Rocky Mount) and Chris Jones (Rapha-Focus).

Trebon on the final lap

A determined Trebon dragged Jones and Johnson up to within four seconds of Powers going into the second lap. Powers bunny-hopped the barriers, but it gave him little advantage over the long-legged Kona rider, and soon it was a four-man group up front with Trebon driving the pace while Jones and Powers rode in his wake.

Still, the four steadily increased their lead ahead of a chase group formed containing Davide Frattini (Team Type 1), Todd Wells (Specialized), Valentin Scherz (Cyfac-Champion System), Tristan Schouten (Iscorp Cycling Team) and Summerhill.

Powers stayed glued to Trebon, with Jones on his wheel, but Johnson had slipped a few bike lengths back and was chewing on the stiff wind alone. Then Jones too lost contact as Trebon pushed the pace through the woods and up the climb, leaving the big Kona rider and Powers off the front alone.

Trebon did most of the work for several laps, saying later that he’d rather contend with one Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com rider than two. And each time through the pits in the middle laps Powers took a water bottle feed and choked down a few gulps while closing the gap back to Trebon.

“It was tough and sometimes I was wondering if it was the right decision (to take the feed),” Powers said.

With five to go, Powers attacked got a slight gap going into the flyover, but the lanky Trebon pulled him back on the stairs. Then Powers went again and charged through the sand pit, riding the whole way and coming away with a slim five-second lead starting the four-to-go lap.

It was about then that Trebon’s day went sideways and Powers’ decision to take the water feeds began to pay off.

“One lap I was OK and then the next lap I overheated,” Trebon said. “It just came on all of a sudden and I was at my limit. I started getting feeds but I had nothing. I just started to fall apart the last three laps. The last lap I was just done, I had nothing left in the legs, I was just like ‘please let’s get to the finish.’”

Powers’ decision to take the water hand-ups started to look better. “I guess the lesson is to stick with your plan,” he said.

Trebon may have been suffering, but he did not surrender, keeping Powers within 10 seconds with two laps remaining, then ceding another four seconds into the final lap and finally finished 22 seconds back.

Johnson, meanwhile, flatted his front tire with 1 1/2 laps to go and rode gingerly to the pits, away that a charging Todd Wells ad Schouten were not far behind. “I proved you can ride the run-up even with a flat,” he said with a wry grin.

Johnson finally rolled in 1:40 down on his teammate to claim the final spot on the podium.

“I went as hard as I could possibly go. I suffered,” said Powers. “The heat was terrible and everything hurt. I just put my head down and kept going. It was one of the hardest efforts I’ve done all year.”

Powers alone

Powers and Johnson are tied on USGP points but, as the most recent winner, Powers will wear the leader’s jersey at the next USGP, in Fort Collins, Colorado, in two weeks.

Johnson said he’s be happy if he and Powers continued to swap the jersey back and forth for the rest of the season. And he’ll be even happier if he is the last to pull it on, at the USGP finals in Portland in December.

“If we can keep in the family, then that’s definitely a win,” Johnson said. “But I’d like to win it, and so would he.”

Gould goes back to back

Unlike Johnson, Georgia Gould (Luna) reprised her victory from day 1 of the Derby City Cup on Sunday, quickly riding away from the field on the dusty, blustery circuit to take back-to-back wins in Louisville.

“I just got the hole shot and tried to ride my own race,” Gould said. “I got a better start today — I wanted to ride my own race. I saw the masters race where the guys all crashed on the first lap and I thought, ‘I want to take my own self out, not have anyone take me out.’ ”

The leader of the USGP series once again made it look easy. A long stretch of deep sand claimed victims on every lap, but Gould was not among them. She also was one of the few women able to ride the steep, loose Clif Shot climb.

Natasha Elliott (Garneau Club Chaussure-Ogilvy) was chasing with Nicole Duke (The Gear Movement), but never gained any ground on Gould, who just kept taking time.

As Gould drove along alone, Meredith Miller and Teal Stetson-Lee (California Giant Berry Farms) plus Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) bridged to Elliott and Duke. Miller and Van Gilder quickly became the riders to watch for second and third on the podium.

Gould leads over the barriers on the first lap.

With two laps to go Gould had an astounding 1:20 over Miller, who had the sprinter Van Gilder parked on her wheel. But when Van Gilder bobbled on a slight rise preceding the sand pit and lost contact, Miller stepped up the pace and soon was alone in second.

“I knew I had to drop Laura because she was going to out-sprint me,” Miller said.

Miller was 90 seconds behind going into the bell lap, with Van Gilder a further 15 seconds back. But the top step on the podium was spoken for — Gould took another dominating victory, raising both arms skyward.

Miller hung on for second with Van Gilder third — the 45 year old’s best career USGP result.

Gould rode a nearly perfect race while the chasers struggled.

A bottle and a bobble made all the difference in the men’s and women’s races at the Derby City Cup in Louisville, Kentucky, Saturday.

For the men, Tim Johnson said his last-minute decision to run a bottle cage and bottle in the dusty, 80-degree conditions may have given him the strength to hold off an on-form Ryan Trebon in the final third of the race.

And for the women, a first-lap bobble by Natasha Elliott in a sand pit gave a charging Georgia Gould a gap that grew to nearly two minutes at the finish.

Johnson’s and Gould’s hard-fought wins came at the edge of the Ohio River, at the city park that will welcome the cyclocross world championships in 2013.

Organizers were eager to test some routes and features ahead of the worlds (the venue also will host the 2012 masters world championships).

Natasha Elliott bobbles at the bottom of the Louisville Slugger, blocking Katie Antonneau while Nicole Duke slips past.

The course used for Saturday’s U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross got positive reviews from the top racers, who called it difficult but not gimmicky, relying mostly on natural features — including a natural dune that produced a rare downhill sand section. The course’s several short, steep climbs, long sand pits, the heat and the dust weighed heavily on racers in all categories. Most pros dismounted four times a lap (many non-pros dismounted much more) and few finished looking eager for more.

Gould of old

Georgia Gould’s ride Saturday was reminiscent of her dominating ways in 2007 (when she won four USGPs and the overall) and 2008 (when she won three USGPs).

The Luna Chix stalwart came into the weekend as one of three or four favorites. National champ Katie Compton is resting in Colorado while Amy Dombroski and Gould’s teammate Katerina Nash are racing in Europe. That put the pressure on Gould, Meredith Miller (Cal Giant-Specialized), Laura Van Gilder (C3-Athletes Serving Athletes) and Elliott (Garneau-Club Chaussures-Ogilvy).

Van Gilder got the holeshot, but Elliott took over early in the first lap, opening a huge gap.

Gould, who started conservatively, worked her way up to Elliott, with Meredith Miller in tow. They made contact just as they hit the course’s first sandpit. Elliott dropped into the pit too fast and flipped, while Gould chugged by. Miller was, by her own post-race concession, too close to Gould’s wheel, and when Gould jumped off her bike to run the second half of the sandpit, Miller bumped into her and fell. Others plowed into her.

“I got someone’s brake lever attached to my seatpost, and I couldn’t untangle that, and then my wheel wouldn’t turn because the brake cable had come off … “ Miller recounted. Concerned about the wheel and the brake, Miller lost more time when she took a fresh bike in the pit, and found herself back in 20th place or worse while still on the first lap.

Laura Van Gilder leads Katie Antonneau. The pair finished third and fourth.

Van Gilder also went down in the sandpit and when she realized she couldn’t shift to the small chainring, made the difficult decision to switch bikes a lap and a half later.

“That was a gamble, because the course was so fast through there that you lose a lot of time if you go into the pit. But I thought I needed the small ring to stay fresh,” she said.

Up front, Gould took the gap out of the sandpit and set off to make the best of it. She had a 17-second lead at the end of the first lap and her gap just kept growing as the national mountain bike champion negotiated the loose, dusty corners and steep climbs and drops with aplomb.

Elliott, Van Gilder and Kaitlin Antonneau (Cannondale-cyclocrossworld.com) chased desperately, and while Elliott was able to get a gap on the others and a clear shot at second, no one could make up any ground on Gould.

“It was little mistakes that caused the gaps that we had to close to Georgia,” Van Gilder said. “When you have someone who can ride really smoothly at the front — and we were pushing it so much that we were all making mistakes at the back — it’s hard. I think all of us made at least a couple mistakes … but that’s because we were all racing hard to get her. It wasn’t that we didn’t have the skill, we were just pushing it to the hilt.”

If Gould made any mistakes or bobbles on the tricky course, she couldn’t recall them afterward, and no one claimed to have seen them.

“I think I had a good race!” Gould told VeloNews afterward, then laughed at her own understatement. “I mean, yeah, I had a good race, I won, but I mean I rode cleanly, I didn’t have any problems.”

Besides the day’s win, Gould takes over the series lead from Compton.

Johnson accessorizes

A new UCI rule for this season allows water hand-ups at ‘cross races when the temperature is above 68 degrees, at the race officials’ discretion. The feeds are not allowed in the first two or the last two laps, however.

Johnson was unsure if the feeds would be allowed Saturday, and after seeing the red and dusty faces of the women finishers, he decided about ten minutes before the start to mount a bottle cage. He was the only rider in the men’s race with a bottle.

It's Kona and Cannondale as Trebon looks back to see Powers, Johnson and Wicks on his tail

Officials did allow hand-ups, and many riders made use of the rule. Powers said he took a bottle almost every lap they were allowed.

Trebon did not and later told VeloNews he thinks feeding is a bad idea for cyclocross because the hand-ups are dangerous.

“I don’t think it’s needed, it’s only an hour-long race,” he said.

In any case, Powers started strong and was soon joined at the front by Trebon, Johnson and Trebon’s teammate Barry Wicks. For a lap or so it looked like 2007 and 2008 again, with Kona’s Twin Towers battling the Cyclocrossworld.com team once again.

Wicks — one of the very few riders who could ride the dusty run-up, even on the hectic opening lap — faded in the third lap. Two laps later Powers fell off the pace, too, leaving Johnson and Trebon to trade blows as they have so many times in recent years.

Several times, each rider came through a technical section or turn with a small advantage, but neither could make it stick. Over the ‘Green Monster’ fly-over, Trebon pounded up the tall steps with his long legs, while Johnson took rapid-fire double steps as his mother and family friends cheered him on.

Johnson had noticed on the start line that Trebon started with file-tread tires, while almost everyone else in the pro field had regular knobbies (the other exception was Johnson’s teammate Jamey Driscoll). Johnson thought Trebon’s tires might give him trouble in the loose, rooty turns on the course’s lower section.

With five laps to go, Johnson attacked on a fast section past the pits, carried a tiny gap over the Green Monster and pushed it hard into the lower corners, where he thought Trebon might have a hard time.

But the effort gained only a few feet on Trebon, who felt his tire choice was no disadvantage. The next obstacle was the sand pit, where Trebon jumped off and started running while Johnson tried to ride the whole way. Johnson almost made it and those few feet he gained in the sand finally broke the elastic and gave Johnson his first real gap of the day.

Johnson fishtails down the Dune.

“It was not looking very promising for the first five laps,” Johnson said later. “Ryan went really fast, then he slowed down and then he went really fast again. And when he was going fast I didn’t think I was going to be able to hold it. And that’s the kind of doubt you want to try and avoid. It’s the self talk thing you have in a race, you’re like, ‘I don’t know if I can handle this, I don’t know if I can keep going.’ I just had to kind of get through it.

“The water bottle thing helped a lot, it really did. So when I did attack I felt like I had something and in a race like this when it’s so dry and so fast and so dusty, when you have a little bit extra it does pay off. “

From there the two time trialed to the finish. Johnson’s gap was never more than about 20 seconds, but he held it confidently. With his win he retained his USGP leader’s jersey and garnered a few more valuable UCI points that will improve his starting position the next time he races in Europe.

Behind the lead pair, Powers suffered through the middle part of the race and it looked like his podium spot was in jeopardy when he was caught by Todd Wells and Jesse Anthony. He rallied in the last couple laps, however, and managed to get away from Wells on the last lap to take third by a few seconds.

Powers has had a great start to his season, including a 20th place at the Aigle World Cup and wins at Gloucester, Cincinnati, and the first USGP race in Wisconsin. But the travel is starting to wear him down.

“It’s like every week I have 72 hours at home and then I get back on a plane. No excuses, I didn’t have very good legs today, it’s just starting to catch up. I really need to reset and then take a break and get back to some good four- or five-hour rides and some good intervals and take it from there,” he said.

The USGP will continue Sunday at the same venue but with a different course.

Elite women's podium, as seen on course: Gould, Compton and Butler.

It’s not often that all three riders on a cyclocross podium are pleased with the day’s result, but that was essentially the case Sunday afternoon in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, after Katie Compton won day two of the Planet Bike Cup on a solo attack.

With her second consecutive win, Compton (Planet Bike) took a firm lead in the Greenware U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross series, 100 points to 80 over Luna’s Georgia Gould, who again finished second.

“Today hurt a lot more than yesterday,” Compton said. “The course was more wide open, with less turns, which made it more of a fitness course than yesterday. Because of the time I took off (due to a knee injury), I preferred the turns, because I could fake it. I just followed Georgia and then accelerated and tried to keep her under pressure.”

However with Compton declaring that she will not pursue the series title — she’ll miss the USGP stops in Kentucky and Oregon to race in Europe — Gould moves into the virtual series lead by 20 points ahead of Sue Butler (Hudz Subaru), who finished third Sunday to better her fifth place finish Saturday. It was Butler’s first USGP podium finish since Portland in 2008 after a 2009 season spent battling exercise-induced asthma.

And given that Gould had a much-improved start Sunday and held Compton’s gap to within 15 seconds or less, the Luna rider was also pleased with her weekend’s performance.

“Today I felt a little better. I was actually having fun and suffering, rather than just suffering,” Gould said.

On a sunny afternoon, Compton waited a bit longer than usual to make her move. After a slower-than-usual start, the U.S. national champ worked up from about sixth place early in the opening lap to join Gould and Butler at the front.

“Before the race, Georgia recommended I try to not start so fast, and see if I might last longer at the end,” Butler said, referencing her hole-shot start Saturday that ultimately yielded a fifth-place finish. “So I took her advice and stuck right to her wheel for the first two laps instead.”

Compton patiently followed Gould for several laps, while Butler hung on to the back of the duo. The threesome quickly pulled away from a chase group containing Kathy Sherwin (Hudz Subaru), Meredith Miller (California Giant-Specialized), Amy Dombroski (Luna) and Mo Bruno Roy (Bob’s Red Mill).

With four and a half laps to go, Compton attacked. Gould was able to keep her in sight for a few laps, while Butler went backwards but recovered to occupy the space between Gould and the Miller-Dombroski-Bruno-Roy chase group.

Compton, wearing the USGP leader’s jersey and her stars-and-stripes U.S. champion’s shorts, settled into a 15-second lead over Gould, who fought to keep it close.

Compton wearing the Greenware USGP of Cyclocross leader's jersey at the start

“Georgia was definitely better today,” Compton said. “She’s only going to get faster from here.”

The gap fluctuated over the final laps, but Compton’s lead was never in jeopardy, while Gould and Butler also were well established in their positions.

Behind, however, the race for fourth was animated, as Miller and Sherwin traded places and fought for advantage. In the end it was Sherwin who was able to follow Miller into the last corner and take the sprint for fourth.

Race notes

• For her efforts Butler was awarded the SRAM Most Aggressive Rider award. Butler said her 2010-11 season goals include a top-15 result at a World Cup, a podium finish at the national championship and a top-10 finish at the world championships.
• After the race Compton was asked about her knee, which she said felt fine, adding, “I guess I can’t use that as an excuse anymore.”
• The women’s race saw a promising display of skill by several young riders, with four riders under age 24 in the top 12, including 20-year old Ashley James (Kenda), in seventh, 24-year-old Teal Stetson Lee (California Giant-Specialized), in ninth, and 18-year-old Kaitlin Antonneau (a new member of Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com), in 12th.

Brief results:

• 1. Katie Compton (Planet Bike)
• 2. Georgia Gould (Luna)
• 3. Sue Butler (Hudz Subaru)
• 4. Kathy Sherwin (Hudz Subaru)
• 5. Meredith Miller (Cal Giant-Specialized)
• Complete results

Katie Compton en route to another national championship last year in Bend, Oregon. Photo: Ben Ross (file)

With the 2010-11 cyclocross season upon us, VeloNews.com contacted several top elite riders to find out their race schedules and goals. Look for interviews with other top riders in the coming week from CrossVegas and the USGP Planet Bike Cup in Madison, Wisconsin.

Katie Compton, Planet Bike

Since taking her first national ’cross title in 2004, Compton has been the most dominant American cyclocross racer, man or woman, ever. In 2007 she took silver at the world championship, and last year she finished on the podium at five World Cup events, with two wins, and led the series until a recurring leg-cramp issue resurfaced. She’s since been diagnosed with hypothyroidism, a condition in which the thyroid gland does not make enough thyroid hormone; symptoms include fatigue and joint or muscle pain. That she has never won a USGP title is only due to her time split between Europe and the U.S., a trend that will repeat in 2010. Compton will race the USGPs in Wisconsin and Colorado before focusing on her European campaign. When she’s racing in the U.S., expect her to be at the front.

• On the leg-cramp issues that derailed the second half of her 2009-10 cyclocross season: “I’ve been taking medication for hypothyroidism. I had no energy, I was feeling so bad, for so long, and it came to a head at cyclocross worlds last year. I had the worst spring I’ve ever had, health-wise, and I finally figured out what was wrong with me. It’s taken a long time to figure out. If your thyroid gland is functioning well, it’s stimulating more hormones. If it’s not functioning well, it works hard but it’s not producing hormones. I’m taking thyroid replacement medicine, which regulates my metabolism and hormone levels. I’m feeling much better. I think I have been dealing with it for a long time, I’ve never felt so good. It’s like, ‘So this is what it feels like to feel good.’ I think the hypothyroidism had something to do with my leg cramps, because when I started taking the medicine, the leg pain went away. I’m not sure if it’s the solution, but it helps me from getting tired, and it’s keeping my energy levels steady.”

• On her race schedule: “Last year chasing the cyclocross World Cup kind of cracked me. I want to have a better worlds. I’ll do five of the eight World Cups plus worlds. I’ll race the USGPs that are in Madison and Colorado, as well as local Colorado races like the Boulder Cup. I’ll start with CrossVegas. I’ll take a trip to Europe for the first World Cup in Aigle, Switzerland. I’ll head back in November for round 3 (Koksijde, Belgium), and after nationals I’ll head to the Christmas World Cups (Kalmthout and Zolder.) I’m skipping round 2 (October 24, Plzen, Czech Republic) and round 7 (January 16, Pont-Château, France). My fourth trip to Europe will be for the final World Cup (January 23, Hoogerheide, The Netherlands) and worlds.

• On racing against Luna’s Katerina Nash, Georgia Gould and Amy Dombroski: “It’s tough, but it’s fair. They have a team, and they’ll attack me and use the team card when they can. But as strong as a team as they are, when they race, they all want to win the race. The way Katerina is riding, I’m counting on her to rise be the strongest Luna rider. It will be a fun battle between her and me. I like the fact that racing in the U.S., you go to the line against five girls that want to win the race, and they’ll do anything they can to win.”

Katerina Nash, Luna

This former Olympic cross-country skier and world-class mountain bike racer has come into her own on the cyclocross circuit over the past few seasons. She’s won the USGP overall the past two years, and abroad took a World Cup win in Roubaix and a fourth place at the 2010 world championship in her home country of the Czech Republic — despite several crashes on the icy course. At the 2009 USGP Nash finished second twice to Compton at the opening weekend and went on to win the next six events. She’ll be a force again at the USGP, but won’t likely contend for the series overall, as she’ll miss the Louisville weekend to compete at European World Cup events.

• On her race schedule: “I’m starting my season off at Starcrossed and the Rad Racing GP, then heading to CrossVegas. I won’t be racing the Madison USGP. That would be five days of racing in nine days, and I won’t be contesting the USGP overall since I’m going to Europe to race the World Cup in the Czech Republic (on October 24) and will miss the Louisville weekend. I’m sorry I won’t contest the USGP overall, but I’ve won it the last two years, so it’s time for (Luna teammate Georgia Gould) to step in.”

• On cyclocross taking on more importance for her over the past three seasons: “Last year I backed off mountain biking and wanted to do a full cyclocross season. I wasn’t at every World Cup, but I did enough to get UCI points for worlds. This year I raced a full mountain bike schedule; Luna is still a mountain bike team, that’s the priority for the team. But I’m starting to think about going to the world championships one more time, so I’ll go to Europe and try to get a few good results and UCI points for good start positions.”

• On becoming one of the best cyclocross racers in the world last year: “Over the years I’ve kept saying, ‘This is new to me, I haven’t done much racing.’ But I know I’ve done well in Europe, and now I do have expectations when I go over there, to be on the podium, or to win. I’m not going to Europe for a top-10 finish.”

• On her season goals: “I haven’t really picked a goal, especially with taking the USGP overall out of it, that was always a big focus. I’ll do two USGP weekends, and the focus will be making the podium and winning. I’m doing a few World Cups, I can’t do the whole series, so the World Cup overall is not a focus. I’ll just be picking up some good races along the way, and focus on going back to the world championships and getting a medal this time.”

• On just missing the podium at last year’s worlds in front of her family and friends: “I was very disappointed at the finish. Fourth and off the podium is always hard, especially because at one point I was very close to third and then I tumbled again. That race was very eventful for me, and I came to the finish line disappointed. But two days later, I realized that I’d put up a good fight. Things didn’t work out, but for having a crappy day, I was fourth, and that’s not too bad. I was racing at home, with my whole family cheering for me, and they didn’t care if I had a medal, they were happy just yelling and screaming for me. It was definitely the most memorable race I’ve ever had; it was something you don’t get to do but once in your career. It would have been great if it turned out better, in terms of results, but that race gave me positive energy, moving forward, to redeem myself this year. I’ll be at the World Cup in Plzen, and last year’s race is one of the reasons I’ll be going back.

Georgia Gould, Luna

Though she hasn’t landed that elusive national cyclocross title, racing on the fat-tire circuit Gould won the 2010 national cross-country and short-track titles and took second at a World Cup event. The USGP overall winner in 2007, Gould struggled with fatigue last year, but an extensive rest over the winter served her well and she recovered well, evidenced by her strong mountain bike season.

• On her 2010 mountain-bike racing season: “I’ve been really pleased. I was a little bit fresher this season, and I had my best season in a few years. I took a lot of time off this winter, more than I ever had in the past. It made the start of the season slower, but it paid off. The highlight was finishing second at the World Cup in Offenburg.

• On her race schedule: “I’m focusing on the USGP series and nationals, and have no plans to race European World Cups. My days of trying to everything 100 percent are done. I could probably do all the U.S. races and also try to fit in a European trip or two, but I don’t think I’d be maximizing my time. I might throw in a few other races here and there, some local stuff, but I’m not crisscrossing the country chasing UCI points.”

• On her season goals: “To win nationals and all the USGPs. I figure, why not?”

• On battling teammate Katerina Nash for USGP wins: “Having teammates in a race changes things, especially a teammate that’s similar in fitness. We’ve been riding together for a while, we know each other well, and we work well together. I want to beat everyone in the race, but if I can’t, I’d rather Katerina win than anyone else. I think Katerina and I have a really good relationship in that we are able to work together. We both want to win the race, and when it comes down to the end of the race, we both expect the other racer to go for the win. On any given day it could be Katerina or me, no one is giving anything away, but no one holds grudges. We’re not taking each other out, there’s no inside move on your teammate. I feel lucky to have a teammate where I can race my hardest and after the race, it’s like, ‘What do you want to make for dinner?’”

Meredith Miller, Cal Giant-Specialized

The top American finisher at the 2010 world ’cross championship, in 12th, this 2009 national road champion burst onto the national ’cross circuit last year, finishing second at the series finale in Portland en route to a silver medal at the national cyclocross championship. Entering only her third season of ’cross racing, Miller should give the Luna riders a fight from start to finish.

• On her race schedule: “I’ll kick the season off in Vegas, I’ll race all the USGPs, and beyond that I’ll try to find fun and exciting races I’ve never done. Racing in Providence last year was my only experience in the New England area, and I’d like to go back for Gloucester. Hopefully there will be a World Cup or two sprinkled in. I hope to make the worlds team again, and go back a few weeks before and prepare for worlds. I’d like to get more World Cup experience, the courses are so different, and if I want to do well at worlds, I need that experience, and to get a feel for the competition. I’m excited about the USGP series and to have one of the venues in my hometown of Fort Collins. I’d love to finish well in the USGP overall.

• On racing against Luna: “It’s tough, you don’t think of that many tactics in ’cross, but when you have Georgia, Katerina and Amy able to gang up on you, it makes it more difficult. I have a new teammate in Teal Stetson-Lee, who won collegiate nationals. She comes with high regard from Ned Overend and Mike Engleman, and I’m excited to see what she can do. Maybe the two of us can give them a run for their money, instead of the other way around. It’s going to be a battle out there. There are a lot of women amped up for this ’cross season.”

• On her goal for nationals: “Let’s just say I don’t want to go backwards from that second-place finish.”

• On racing in Madison, Wisconsin: “That’s where I went to college, and where I started cycling. I didn’t get to go to the Madison USGP last year, I was at road worlds, so I’m really excited to go back and race there.”

• On her goals for racing in Europe: “I’d like to go back and finish in the top 10 at worlds. Finishing 12th I was close to the top 10. It’s all a build up for 2013 worlds in Louisville; I’m really focused excited to do the first-ever ’cross worlds in the U.S. To be part of the team going to worlds in the U.S. would be an honor. So my goal is to keep improving every year, and by 2013 worlds to try to get into the top five.”

Amy Dombroski, Luna

A breakthrough 2009 ’cross season earned this 23-year old a spot on the Luna squad. Though she didn’t win any USGP events, last year her consistent results, including three second-place finishes, landed her second in the series battle. Like Nash, Dombroski will skip the Louisville weekend to race in Europe.

• On her 2010 mountain-bike racing season: “I had a frustrating season. By nationals I was burned out and needing a break. I decided to skip the Windham World Cup and worlds. I just never got into the swing of things. I had some random health issues and was playing catch-up with my physical ability. I was never feeling good, and just had one frustrating race after another. It got hard to motivate for training hard when nothing was going right.”

• On racing on a strong cyclocross team like Luna for the first time: “I’m excited to have teammates at the races this year. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out. There are some strong riders out there; every year someone comes up, riders like Meredith Miller, Mo Bruno-Roy, or Sue Butler. There’s always someone in the mix. It’s not like Luna is guaranteed to sweep the podium.”

• On her 2009 cyclocross season highlight: “I hadn’t planned on going to worlds. I was going to end the season right after nationals, but my season went well, I had more fun than ever, and the night before nationals I booked my flight to Europe, leaving the day after nationals. It was very last minute. My best race was the Hoogerheide World Cup, where I finished in ninth place. It was one of my better races. It was exciting to do well in Europe, and it put a nice end to the season.”

• On her season goals: “I’m heading to Europe for the first World Cups, and I’m excited about those, but I won’t be at the Louisville USGP. I really like racing in Europe. I had a great time, it was a great learning experience. If you can go over for the first two World Cups, it helps with your start position the rest of season. So I’ll do those World Cups, then race in the U.S. through nationals, then go back to Europe for more UCI races, then race the final two World Cups, all trying to set myself up for a better start position and more experience before worlds.”

Katie Compton swept the Cincinnati festival in 2009

Organizers of October’s Cincinnati UCI3 Cyclocross Festival say the race will offer the largest women’s prize list of any cyclocross race in the world: $10,000.

The total prize list for the Oct. 8-11 event is $30,000.

All three races of the UCI3 Festival will pay prize money according to the formula devised by current U.S. Mountain Bike XC Women’s Champion Georgia Gould, where the top three women’s finishers are paid according to the UCI men’s minimum standard.

The weekend includes three men’s races, as well: two UCI category 2 events and one cat.1 race.

The UCI3 Festival, is in its third year and takes place at three venues near Cincinnati. More information at CxFestival.com.

Dombroski’s surge through a tight U-turn opened a small gap on Georgia Gould (Luna), with whom she had battled for the entire 45-minute race. She held the gap — no bigger than a few bike lengths — to the line.

Dombroski doubled up in Southampton. Photo: Karl Ockert

“I led into the U-turn and sprinted out of it as hard as I could,” said Dombroski (Schlamm p/b Clement & Primus Mootry). “My original plan was to try and get a gap on her earlier. Georgia and I were swapping attacks right and left. ”

The win came a day after Dombroski battled with Kelli Emmett (Giant) on the same course — organizers ran Sunday’s race in the opposite direction — and won.

Dombroski and Gould traded blows for the lion’s share of the women’s race after the Luna rider surged into the lead from the gun. On the opening lap the two distanced themselves from chasers Kelli Emmett (Giant), Laura Van Gilder and Mary McConneloug (Kenda-Seven-NoTubes). Dombroski tried to shake the Luna rider on the flats, while Gould tried her hand on the course’s five steep uphills.

“I didn’t have the extra oomph to ever make it stick today — Amy would always close it down on the flats,” Gould said. “ I kept telling myself to race smart and then I took the final corner really wide.”

Behind the two, Emmett attacked to hold onto third, with Van Gilder and McConneloug rounding out the podium.

For Dombroski, who had struggled through the opening months of the season, the winning weekend is a major confidence booster heading into the U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross finals December 4-5 in Portland, Oregon, and the USA Cycling national cyclocross championships December 10-13 in Bend, Oregon. A three-time U23 national champion, she will jump into the elite ranks for the 2009 nationals.

“My coach and I timed it well this year, and I feel like I still have some room to get faster,” Dombroski said.

Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com dominates again

It was a near repeat of Saturday’s men’s race in Southampton, as Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com teammates Tim Johnson, Jeremy Powers and Jamey Driscoll again swept the podium. Johnson took his sixth NACT victory of the year, which like Saturday’s win, came after catching and then dropping his teammate Powers.

Johnson caught Powers at the race’s midpoint, and the two spent five laps battling with each other before Johnson pulled free.

Powers follows Johnson on Sunday. Photo: Karl Ockert

“We were smashing each other as best as we could — just because we’re teammates doesn’t mean we’re going to go easy,” Johnson said. “It was constant. It was like a team time trial or a training ride with a teammate where you’re putting each other on the limit and squeezing a little bit more.”

Powers sprang to his advantage on the second lap, after an early group formed containing the three Cannondale riders, Ryan Trebon (Kona-FSA) and 19-year-old Swiss rider Valentin Schertz (Pro Cycles-Scott). Trebon set an early fast tempo to try to pull Powers back. But after two laps, the Kona-FSA rider pulled aside to let his companions do the work.

That’s when Johnson put in his dig. Within a lap, Johnson bridged up to his teammate and assumed the front of the race. Behind the two, Driscoll also attacked and gained a gap, while a resurgent Adam Craig rebounded from a bad start to ride into fourth.

Powers battled with Johnson, surging and slowing over the 1.7-mile course. Then, on a small incline on the course’s backside, Johnson put in an acceleration that shed his teammate.

Ssked if he questioned his teammate’s decision to chase him down and then drop him, Powers said no.

“It’s fair game. What am I going to do? Teammate or not, it’s how it rolls,” Powers said. “We wouldn’t pull punches on anyone. After an hour we’re both flogged. We can see it in each other’s face.”

Powers was quick to label Johnson the fastest man in American cyclocross right now, but when asked if he agreed, Johnson said no.

“I would never make that call,” said Johnson, who won the 2007 national title.

Agreeing with Johnson was Trebon, the reigning national champion, who hopes to defend his stars-and-stripes jersey next month in his hometown of Bend. Trebon admitted he was not on top form in Southampton, but said he will be firing on all cylinders come December.

“I don’t think I’ve lost any mojo — I’m not worried about (nationals),” Trebon said. “There’s still a lot of racing left this year.”

Trebon's back. Photo: Pat Malach

Ryan Trebon says he has the legs to beat the odds.

“’Cross is not rocket science,” the Kona-FSA rider told VeloNews this week. “If I have the legs I can beat them all. If I have a bad day they might win. That’s how it is.”

The chips are stacked against the reigning U.S. champion heading into this weekend’s third round of the U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross, held at Mercer County Park in West Windsor, New Jersey. Trebon missed the last three weeks of racing while recovering from a nasty crash at the second USGP weekend in Louisville, Kentucky, on October 25.

After winning the previous day’s event, Trebon crossed wheels early in the race and crashed hard on his head. After jumping back on his rig and chasing, Trebon said his front wheel, which was broken from the initial crash, buckled in a corner. He endo’d headfirst into a course-tape pole.

“I woke up the next day and was sore all over,” Trebon said. “I had headaches that whole week.”

While he was out, his rivals — Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com threesome of Jeremy Powers, Jamey Driscoll and Tim Johnson — took control of the domestic ’cross scene. Cannondale won both days of the Cycle-Smart weekend in Northampton. The men in green took five of six available podium spots in the November 1-2 races in Boulder.

Those wins, stacked atop Cannondale’s previous victories at CrossVegas and in Cincinnati and Toronto, marked a power shift in domestic cyclocross. Powers and Driscoll are tied atop USA Cycling’s rankings, Driscoll is in the white leader’s jersey for the USGP and Johnson is in the red leader’s jersey for the North American Cyclocross Trophy series.

Cannondale is up, Kona-FSA is down

Johnson, the 2007 U.S. champion, said he couldn’t be more pleased.

“I remember a few years when (Trebon) and an equally strong (Kona teammate) Barry Wicks used to beat up on me,” said Johnson, who missed much of the early season due to a shoulder separation. “I know what it’s like to be on the receiving end.”

Credit Cannondale’s dominance to strong legs and teamwork. Johnson, Powers and Driscoll are not afraid to use power in numbers to overwhelm the opposition. Powers is the fast starter and sprinter. Johnson is the technical maestro and tactician. Driscoll starts slower but has the intuition to attack at the right time.

“It just so happens that all of us have been riding really well lately,” Johnson said. “We can race a full-speed race or a tactical race. We have a lot of range, and that gives all of us more confidence.”

Trebon said he isn’t shaking in his cleats. He and Wicks are coming into the weekend firing on all cylinders, he said. The last time he finished a race against the Cannondale team, which was day 1 in Kentucky, he won.

“I get frustrated with them sometimes — it’s that lame East Coast stuff,” Trebon said. “But if I have the fitness I know I have a pretty good shot.”

And Trebon won’t be alone in trying to take on the Cannondale train. Geoff Kabush (Maxxis-Rocky Mountain) is back, having missed two weekends due to illness. Todd Wells (Specialized) is also making his return to the cyclocross scene. Wells missed the first half of the season while recovering from a cyst that required surgery.

The pro men’s race starts at 3:00 p.m. The pro women go off at 1:45.

Nash leads the charge

Leading the charge in the women’s race will be Luna’s Katerina Nash, who won both USGP rounds in Louisville and currently leads the series.

Nash is heading back to the United States after racing the third round of the UCI World Cup on November 8 in Nommay, France. American Katie Compton (Planet Bike) won that race. Compton will not be in New Jersey, and is instead staying in Europe until nationals.

Nash was in the hunt for the podium in Nommay, but lost the sprint for third and ended up fifth. Nash barley missed the podium in the previous weekend’s European Championships, held in Hoogstraden, Belgium.

Nash will be joined by her Luna teammates Georgia Gould and Alison Dunlap, who is coming off her victory at the Iceman Cometh mountain bike race in Michigan. That victory marked Dunlap’s first major mountain bike win since coming back from her retirement in 2005.