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2007 US CYCLOCROSS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS--WICKS 4TH PLACE, TONKIN 9TH PLACE, TREBON HIT HARD WITH BAD LUCK Racers arrived in Kansas City, Missouri for the 2007 US National Cyclocross National Championships amidst one of the most severe ice storms in the past 40 years. Since all the riders expected adverse conditions and many of the other races so far this season have been on tough muddy or snowy tracks they were undeterred. On the course it proved to be very challenging with ice, snow and eventually mud. Kona-yourkey.com pre-race favorite and defending national champion Ryan Trebon was ready for the challenge. Since moving to Bend, Oregon he has had more time to ride in the cold and get acclimated to colder conditions. He along with teammates Barry Wicks and Erik Tonkin were ready to battle the course and the elements. The race started in typical fashion with all the favorites near or at the front. Trebon, Page, Wells and Powers were on the front group for the first lap when things started to spread out a bit. Trebon took a bike change with different tires and was able to make up some ground and by midway though lap three was sitting in third place 8 seconds off the lead when disaster struck. An errant rider on a two way section of the course crashed head on with Trebon taking him out of the race. “There was no way to avoid him. When you are riding full out it’s not like you expect a rider to come through the tape going the wrong direction on the course,” said Trebon. “I flew over my handlebars and landed on my back on some serious frozen ruts. It was like landing on baseball bats. I hit my head pretty hard too and was really dazed and my whole side is going to be pretty bruised up. It’s hard to be mad at the other guy who I think was bumped by another rider. I think he busted his elbow and he was so apologetic. But I’m really bummed not to have been able to battle it out to the end. I was feeling good. At least nothing is serious. I’m sore and I’ll be able to start training again right away and get ready for my time in Europe.” Teammate Erik Tonkin was less diplomatic. “Come on! This is US Nationals. Single course tape on a potentially dangerous section of the course is unacceptable. It’s too bad because otherwise the course was world class in a great venue.” On a more positive note Barry Wicks, who had a horrible start, was able to notch his best Nationals finish of his career with 4th place. With Trebon out of the race Wicks was able to ride for himself today. For many years he’s been a consummate teammate working towards a Trebon victory. “I felt ok out there today. It was definitely a really hard race and I wasn’t’ able to use some of my power with how slick it was. It’s great to be top five at nationals especially in these conditions so I’m pretty happy.” Wicks was not able to match the handling of the top three and after he lost contact he rode a smart race to hold his 4th place. Wicks for the first time in many years will be opting out on the trip to world Championships. He will now take a long deserved break before hitting the mountain bike season hard in 2008. Erik Tonkin also had a great ride but was beset by some flats that took him out of contention for the top five. “It was a bit of a heartbreaker for me. I’d ridden myself all the way up to 5th just behind Barry and was for the first time in ages going to be able to ride with him for the race. Then I flatted and lost like 16 places. Then I made it back to the chase group and flatted again and just ran out of real estate. I was having a great race in my kind of conditions….but hey that’s bike racing. I still love it,” said Tonkin. “But it sure would have been nice to be top five with Wicks. It’s been my dream to be able to finish with the guys I’ve helped bring up.” There were some ups and some downs this weekend of racing. Much like the season so far. The bar has been raised in US domestic cyclocross racing. Considering Tim Johnson (cyclocrossworld.com) a domestic rider took the win ahead of Jonathon Page, a pre-race favorite who has spent his season is Europe, it shows how far the sport has progressed. Next up for the Kona-yourkey.com team Ryan Trebon and Wendy Simms will head across the pond to continue the cyclocross season in Europe. Both of them will be looking to end the season on a high note at the World Cups and World Championships. Till next time, Marko
Photos courtesy of John Gibson Our Sponsors:
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