The burgeoning pro tour for the sport of cyclocross had a successful fall in the US: big crowds, thrilling finishes, the emergence of a superstar in the 195.5cm Ryan Trebon. But because of what most people consider good weather at several stops throughout the country, the US Gran Prix of Cyclocross, in its third year, headed into the last month's finale here lacking mud, one of the sport's most important elements.
Cyclocross is an off-road circuit race ridden on modified road bikes. Mud is a sort of founding principle, dating to the sodden winter ground on which European road racers first explored the new terrain in the early 1900s.
But as the rain turned sideways, heaping more moisture on an already soaked racecourse on Nov. 19, Brad Ross, the organizer for the Portland event, smiled broadly.
PHOTOS: AFP AND NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE
"This is what the sport is all about," he said. Not far away, the lower-level riders were carving up the course before the professionals raced. Some of their faces were sprayed with so much muck, they looked like coal miners.
"The pros are going to get what they came for," Ross said.
In cyclocross races, athletes ride laps around a course that is 1.5km to 3km long, powering over flat straightaways, grinding through bumps and soggy pits and portaging over obstacles. The Portland race also included two flights of stairs. Mud accentuates the pain and increases the difficulty.
"It creates a larger difference and spreads out the pack," said Trebon, the leader in the pre-race standings, as he peered out at the course from the trailer of his Kona team. Trebon grew up near Tacoma, Washington, and is based in Ventura, California.
His teammate Barry Wicks, in third place, added, "When it's a nice day, everyone can just hang around the front until the end."
Cyclocross in the muck also draws a different breed of spectator. On the Portland course, a small knoll rose up in the center, and at the top, a group called the Gentle Lovers, made up of amateur riders and friends, installed a wood-stove-fired hot tub. Wearing red Speedos with hearts on them and fueled by plenty of refreshments, the Gentle Lovers danced, slipped and swam to music from a nearby stereo.
The revelry rippled from there among several hundred other fans on the knoll. Such scenes are apparently more common at European competitions. "In Belgium, 'cross is like college football," Ross said.
The spectators on the knoll had the best view of the twisting course and a close-up of its toughest sections — two quick, steep climbs up the hill, which was so soupy that everybody but the pros had to dismount and carry their bikes. Every time a pack of riders came up the hill, a chorus of cowbells and yells arose.
"It's a total cult following here," said Matt Slavin, a local semipro rider who had taken the day off from racing and was wearing a pink wig. He added: "Every race, you want to vomit, you want to quit, your bike's not working, and then you come up a run-up and everyone's cheering and you get pepped up. As soon as you're done, you can't wait for the next race. It's kind of like a cruel drug — addictive."
In the last lap of the women's race, Lynn Bessette, the Gran Prix series leader and Canadian national champion, became caught on the boundary tape, which allowed Katerina Nash of Team Luna to win the race. But Bessette held on for second, good enough to win the series title.
The towering Trebon, 25, and Wicks then took the first row at the starting line for the men's race and quickly shot to the front. Back in the pack, one rider went down on the opening straightaway, a gravel road, and was thumped in the back by a succession of front wheels. He climbed back in the saddle and chased down the pack.
At the start of the second lap, Tim Johnson, who was second in the series rankings, passed Trebon. Johnson, a compact rider from Middleton, Massachusetts, seemed to accelerate through the slop.
"Johnson is a mudder," said Richard Fries, the announcer, standing on the knoll at the center of the course with a remote microphone.
Sure enough, as Trebon's white leader jersey turned deeper shades of brown, Johnson grew stronger and stretched his lead. Trebon had problems with his pedals, and the brake pad for his back wheel jammed at one point. He exchanged his bike for a clean one in the race's pit area several more times than Johnson.
Wicks endured three flat tires and fell way off the lead. "It's a lot of fun riding over rocks on US$500 rims," he said dryly.
When Johnson had powered his way to the finish, completing the seven laps in a little more than an hour, Trebon had slipped to fifth. Beyond that, Fries had trouble identifying finishers because they were covered in mud.
Trebon, however, retained his overall lead and won the series championship. He will represent the United States at the world championships in January in Belgium.
The winner of the US championships, scheduled for Dec. 15 to Dec. 17 in Providence, Rhode Island, will also earn a spot in the world championships.
Johnson collected US$600 for his winning ride, along with US$200 for being voted the day's most aggressive rider. He was hosed off before stepping on the winner's podium.
"The conditions just made everything worse today — all these hidden holes," he said, smiling through chattering teeth.
In Taiwan’s politics the party chair is an extremely influential position. Typically this person is the presumed presidential candidate or serving president. In the last presidential election, two of the three candidates were also leaders of their party. Only one party chair race had been planned for this year, but with the Jan. 1 resignation by the currently indicted Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) two parties are now in play. If a challenger to acting Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) appears we will examine that race in more depth. Currently their election is set for Feb. 15. EXTREMELY
Last week saw the appearance of another odious screed full of lies from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Ambassador to Australia, Xiao Qian (肖千), in the Financial Review, a major Australian paper. Xiao’s piece was presented without challenge or caveat. His “Seven truths on why Taiwan always will be China’s” presented a “greatest hits” of the litany of PRC falsehoods. This includes: Taiwan’s indigenous peoples were descended from the people of China 30,000 years ago; a “Chinese” imperial government administrated Taiwan in the 14th century; Koxinga, also known as Cheng Cheng-kung (鄭成功), “recovered” Taiwan for China; the Qing owned
Jan. 20 to Jan. 26 Taipei was in a jubilant, patriotic mood on the morning of Jan. 25, 1954. Flags hung outside shops and residences, people chanted anti-communist slogans and rousing music blared from loudspeakers. The occasion was the arrival of about 14,000 Chinese prisoners from the Korean War, who had elected to head to Taiwan instead of being repatriated to China. The majority landed in Keelung over three days and were paraded through the capital to great fanfare. Air Force planes dropped colorful flyers, one of which read, “You’re back, you’re finally back. You finally overcame the evil communist bandits and
They increasingly own everything from access to space to how we get news on Earth and now outgoing President Joe Biden warns America’s new breed of Donald Trump-allied oligarchs could gobble up US democracy itself. Biden used his farewell speech to the nation to deliver a shockingly dark message: that a nation which has always revered its entrepreneurs may now be at their mercy. “An oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms,” Biden said. He named no names, but his targets were clear: men like Elon Musk
RSS