U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclcross first round results

RESULTS
U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross
Planet Bike Cup
Madison, Wisc.
Saturday, Sept. 26

ELITE WOMEN
1. Katie Compton (Spike Shooter)
2. Katerina Nash (Luna Pro team)
3. Georgia Gould (Luna Pro Team)
4. Amy Dombroski (Richard Sachs-RGM)
5. Alison Sydor (Rocky Mountain-Maxxis)
6. Sue Butler (MonaVie/Cannondale)
7. Deidre Winfield (C3-Athletes Serving Athletes)
8. Alison Dunlap (Luna Pro Team)
9. Devon Haskell (BH USA)
10. Kristin Wentworth (Planet Bike)
21. Erin Playman (Gentle Lovers)

ELITE MEN
1. Jeremy Powers (Cannondale/Cyclcrossworld.com)
2. Erwen Vervecken (Revor-Baboco-Champion Systems)
3. Jonathan Page (Planet Bike)
4. Ryan Trebon (Kona)
5. Geoff Kabush (Rocky Mountain-Maxxis)
6. Chris Jones (Champion System)
7. Jamey Driscoll (Cannondale/Cyclcrossworld.com)
8. Jesse Anthony (Jamis)
9. Andy Jacques-Maynes (Bissell)
10. Tim Van Nuffel (Rendement-Hypo Cycling)
19. Molly Cameron (Portland Bicycle Studio)
28. Shannon Skerritt (Vanilla Bicycles)
29. Kevin Hulick (Vanilla Bicycles)

Live coverage for USGP

If you're unlucky enough to find yourself in front of a computer this weekend, check out Cyclocross Magazine's online coverage of the U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross opening round in Madison, Wisconsin.

The live text updates start both Saturday and Sunday at 11:30 a.m.

Find out more HERE, or log onto cxmagazine.com at race time.

Lyne Lamoureux of Podium Insight is also keeping tabs on the races via her live Twitter updates @ http://twitter.com/podiuminsight

Oregon rider results from Cross Vegas

RESULTS
Cross Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Sept. 23, 2009

ELITE MEN
6. Ryan Trebon (Kona)
14. Carl Decker (Giant)
18. Adam Craig (Giant)
21. Molly Cameron (Portland Bicycle Studio)
30. Carson Miller (Land Rover-ORBEA)
69. David Yeater (River City Bicycles)
78. Aaron Tuckerman (Land Rover-ORBEA)

ELITE WOMEN
6. Sue Butler (MonaVie/Cannondale.com)
16. Wendy Williams (Hudz-Subaru)
18. Emily Van Meter (Hudz-Subaru)

Blind Date goes well; second date looks brighter

Approximately 300 competitors showed up for the first Blind Date at the Dairy cyclocross race at Alpenrose in southwest Portland Wednesday night.

The first race of the evening, Category C Men, B Women and Beginner Women packed well over 100 riders onto the course that wound around and through the Alpenrose Dairy headquarters/playground that features the velodrome, baseball fields and a mini-car racetrack. As daytime turned into evening and then into night, generator-powered lights illuminated the far corners of the course that the parking and ballfield lights couldn't reach. The darkness didn't seem to slow the racing as the elite racers took to the course.

BODE's Joshua Berry (pictured at left) quickly separated himself from the rest of the Men's A field and survived a crash to easily take the win in front of Ian Brown (Tonic) and Steven Hunter (Velo Shop). Veloforma's Alice Pennington cruised to a comfortable win in the Women's A race ahead of River City Bicycles' Bridget Brown and Gentle Lovers' Dawn Riddle.

Like most first dates, the evening wasn't without a few awkward moments. The last race of the evening was cut short when officials decided several dark spots on the course presented too much danger for riders. But promoters promised to have that hitch cleared up with more lights by next week. Overall, participants seemed to enjoy the weeknight chance to 'cross, and several raved about the course.

The four night Blind Date at the Dairy series runs Wednesday nights through Oct. 14.

Schedule
5:00 - Kiddie cross (no parents on course)
and Toddler Cross (parents may run along)
5:10 - Juniors (35 min.)
6:00 - Category C Men, B Women and Beginner Women (45 min.)
6:50 - Category B Men and Single Speed (45 min.)
7:45 - Category A Men and A Women (1 hour)

Register onsite up to 10 minutes prior to your race and preferably at least 30 minutes prior. Cost: Kids free, juniors $8, senior men and women $15.

Find more information HERE.

The Complete Cycling Action photo gallery for this race is now posted online HERE.

Butler and Trebon both sixth at Cross Vegas

RESULTS
Cross Vegas
Las Vegas, Sept. 23

Elite Women
1. Katie Compton
2. Katerina Nash
3. Georgia Gould
4. Kelli Emmett
5. Mary McConneloug
6. Sue Butler (Portland)
7. Helen Wyman
8. Alison Powers
9. Amy Dombroski
10. Laura Van Gilder

Elite Men
1. Jamey Driscoll
2. Chris Jones
3. Jonathan Page
4. Jeremy Powers
5. Erwin Vervecken
6. Ryan Trebon (Bend)
7. Todd Wells
8. Christian Heule
9. Ben Berden
10. Barry Wicks

OBRA riders snag podium spots at Star Crossed

While the contingent of Oregon elite riders were in the parking lot readying to kick off the North American Cyclocross Trophy at Star Crossed, an even greater number of OBRA riders was already making its presence felt in the amateur ranks.

Oregon riders took five of the top-10 spots in the Masters Women 35+ race. Heather Gunderson (Veloforma) finished second, with Verloce/Felt's Beth Burns following not far behind in fourth. Sorella Forte had a great showing up north, with Kim Reuter finishing fifth and Rhonda Morin in eighth. Vigninie Calme (Cyclepath) was ninth. Anne Linton (Sorella Forte) and Anne Leitheiser just missed the top 10, finishing 11th and 12th, respectively.

Oregon women dominated the podium in the Cat 3/4 event. Hammer Velo's Anna Vaughn took the top spot, followed Alalaea Berry in second and Lindsay Kandra in third. Bridgetown Velo's Margi Lifsey just missed the top 10, crossing the line 12th.

Veloce Felt's Michael Benno (pictured above) scored a third place spot in the hotly contested Masters Men Cat 1/2 30+ race. Team S&M's Bradway Scott finished close to the podium, finishing sixth. Of the 74 starters in the 30+ race, 14 DNF'd.

In the Singlespeed event won by Jason Williams, Cyclepath's Patrick Wilder finished third. Jacob Furniss (Revolver-Cascadia) was fourth. Ironcald Performance Wear's Bryan Voytilla rounded out the top 10.

Complete Star Crossed results for all categories are HERE.

Complete Rad Racing GP results for all categories are HERE.

Butler, Heule lead NACT after first weekend

When the dust from the first weekend of racing settled, the North American Cyclocross Trophy standings were quite a contrast to the previous year. Swiss champion Christian Heule leads Jonathan Page (Planet Bike) by 10 points with Andy Jacques-Maynes (Bissell) in third. Jeremy Powers’ (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com) second place finish ahead of Page at Star Crossed put him in fourth place, six points ahead of teammate Jamey Driscoll. National champion Ryan Trebon (Kona) is in 11th, after pulling out of Sunday’s race, and Tim Johnson (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com) is absent from the points all together.

The women’s standings have some semblance to 2008 with Sue Butler (MonaVie/Cannondale.com) leading Britain’s Helen Wyman by 15 points. Wyman’s flat on Sunday resulted in a fourth place finish and cost her some valuable NACT points. Alison Dunlap’s (Luna) first weekend back in the office put her in third place in the overall standings. Kari Studley (Velo Bella) and Wendy Williams (Hudz-Subaru) round out the top five.

The next race in the NACT series is the Grand Prix of Gloucester in Gloucester, Mass., Oct. 3. and 4. Powers, Dunlap, Trebon and Johnsen have all won at Gloucester, setting up a potential shake-up in the overall standings. For more complete standings and information, see http://www.nacyclocross.com. Follow us on Facebook and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/NACT

(Submitted by the North American Cyclocross Trophy Series).

Oregon's Elite 'crossers carve up Washington results at Star Crossed and Rad Racing GP

Oregon riders flooded the ranks the of the Elite men's and women's races at the big kick off to the national cyclocross season in Washington last weekend. Results of the women's race Saturday read like a who's who of Oregon cyclocross racing.

The big winner was Portland's Sue Butler, who walked away with the lead in the North American Cyclocorss Trophy series. The MonaVie/Cannondale.com rider kicked off her pro season in style with a second place finish Saturday night at Star Crossed in Redmond. Kona's new rider Helen Wyman, the current British national champion, won that race, but Butler stormed back Sunday to win the Rad Racing GP and take the overall NACT lead when Wyman finished fourth.

Beyond Butler's podium finish on Saturday, Oregon riders Emily Van Meter and Wendy Williams, riding this season for Hudz-Subaru, finished 6th and 7th, respectively. Megan Faris (River City) was 11th, Team S&M's Rhonda Mazza was 13th, Gentle Lovers Erin Playman was 18th, Serena Bishop (Sunnyside Sports) was 21st, and Audrey Brown (Team S&M) was 25th.

Butler climbed to the top podium spot on Sunday's Rad Racing GP course under sunny skies and bone-dry conditions in Lakewood. Riding away with Wyman after getting a gap on the "Knapp Time" run-up, an 80-meter ascent into Hell, Butler benefited from an untimely flat for her British breakaway companion.

"I heard her say 'I believe I've punctured,'" Butler said after the race. The MonaVie/Cannondale.com rider continued to pour on the pace and crossed the line with plenty of room to spare. Luna's Alison Dunlap, who finished third at Star Crossed, was second. Local rider Kari Studley finished third.

Williams, of Hudz-Subaru, finished sixth in a close two-up sprint. Oregon riders Alice Pennington (Veloforma), Mazza and Van Meter rounded out the top 10, taking 8th, 9th, and 10th, respectively. Faris was 12th, Bishop was 18th and Brown crossed the line 20th.

Portland's Molly Cameron (Portland Bicycle Studio) finished 12th Saturday night in the rain-soaked Elite Men's Star Crossed, won by Swiss national champ Christian Heule. Cameron and Bend's Chris Sheppard (Santa Cruz/Shimano/Wtb/Giro) avoided a first-lap crash that took out Bend resident and current national champ Ryan Trebon. Trebon toughed out his road rash and battled back for fourth. His Kona teammate Barry Wicks finished 14th. Team S&M's Sean Babcock, who went down in the same first-lap crash that took down Trebon -- caught fabulously on YouTube -- finished 16th. Shannon Skerritt (Trek-VW-Bikegallery) came in 19th, with the rest of the Oregon riders sprinkled liberally throughout the remaining spots.

Trebon's hard fall in Saturday's race caught up with him Sunday, when he dropped out of the race after finding himself unable to hold the leaders' pace. Jonathan Page and Heule went on to finish first and second in that race.

Sheppard was the top Oregon finisher Sunday, crossing the line 8th. Wicks was 9th. Babcock was 13th. Bend's Cody Peterson (Hutch's) finished 18th. Gentle Lovers' Mark Blackwelder was 33rd. Scotty Carlisle (Therapeutics Associates/Genr8) was 34th. Capitol Subaru Cycling's Brett Luelling was 36th. Vanilla Bicycles' Kevin Hulik crossed the line 38th. Ryan Weaver was 39th. Matt Fox of Sunnyside sports was 44th.

Complete Star Crossed results for all categories are HERE.

Complete Rad Racing GP results for all categories are HERE.

Monday means school's in session

The PDX School of 'Cross opens tonight at Portland International Raceway. With the cyclocross season officially started and revving toward top speed when the eight-week Cross Crusade begins Oct. 4, Portland 'crossers may be itching to add some tuning to their own skills, and there's no shortage of opportunities

Top Portland cyclocrossers Erik Tonkin, Molly Cameron and Sue Butler will be on hand with a host of others to guide various groups through challenges and lessons. When the clinics end and the last of the autumn twilight fades, the Night Race will give participants a chance to further hone their skills. Marked by small Knog lights, the PIR course will provide a fun, self-scored chance to race.

Registration for the PDX School of Cross (and the race) is $10.

More information HERE.

There's also still time to catch one of the Cyclocross Skills Clinics every Tuesday and Thursday through Oct. 1. Cameron, who scored a 12th place finish at the slippery Star Crossed pro race in Seattle, will lead the Tuesday night clinics with help from other races. Tina Brubaker hosts the women-only clinics on Thursday nights.

Find more information HERE.

Check out this School of 'Cross promotional video.

SCHOOL OF CROSS from Dave Christenson on Vimeo.

2009 Hood River Double Cross results

RESULTS
Hood River Double Cross
Sept. 19 & 20

SATURDAY

MEN A
1. Thompson, Ben 12
2. Brown, Ian (Tonic Fab) 12
3. Kneuven, Taylor (Johan Brunnel Cycling) 12
4. Hunter, Steven (Veloshop) 12
5. Plews, Evan (Capitol Subaru Cycling) 12
WOMEN A
1. Stoick, Brigett (River City Bicycles) 10
2. Wille, Kristin (Portland Velo) 9
SINGLESPEED
1. Redden, Andy (White Salmon) 7
2. Fabrizius, Erik (Veloshop) 7
3. Folts, Anderson (Veloshop) 7
4. Urban, Brad (Veloshop) 7
5. Murphy, Kyle (Team High School) 7

SUNDAY

MEN A
1. Kneuven, Taylor (Johan Brunnel cycling) 12
2. Thompson, Ben (Sunnyside Sports) 12
3. Brown, Ian (Tonic Fab) 12
4. Schmitt, Damian (Sunnyside Sports)12
5. Ryan, Kelly (Portland Bicycle Studio)12
WOMEN A
1. Akeroyd, Jen (Team Group Health) 11
2. Stoick, Brigett (River City Bicycles) 11
3. Wills, Heather (Veloforma)10
4. Schweitzer, Jennifer 10
SINGLESPEED
1. Rollert, Johnny (WebCyclery.com) 8
2. Redden, Andy (White Salmon) 8
3. Lemieux, Jason (No l./Ice)8
4. Olmstead, Adrian (HUP United)8
5. Dorfer, John (The Royal Family)8

Complete OBRA results are HERE.

Some slippin' and slidin' at Star Crossed

Was it slippery at Star Crossed? Judge for yourself ...



YouTube video by "sprklnld"