Signposts for the season from Boulder UCI cyclocross

Jeremy Powers, Allen Krughoff, and Tim Johnson on the signature Valmont Bike Park 5280 stairs

[updated 9/20/2014]

The two Boulder UCI races last weekend provided glimpses of what we might expect early in the cyclocross season and this weekend at Trek CXC Cup in Waterloo, Wisconsin.

Here’s a review of the top five from the US Open of Cyclocross on Saturday and the Boulder Cup on Sunday at Valmont Bike Park.

And the three best locals:

Jeremy Powers wins the 2014 Boulder Cup

The reign of Katie Compton and Jeremy Powers carries on

The US national champions represented their titles with power and grace.

Katie Compton takes her 94th UCI win at US Open of Cyclocross

Compton (Trek Cyclocross Collective) crossed the finish line first and alone at both Boulder races with a lead ranging from 18 to 45 seconds. She pulled away from the field in the first couple of laps.

“It feels really good because I haven’t quite done as much intensity yet, but the baseline’s good obviously,” Compton said about the back-to-back victories.

“I was riding well technically and just feeling faster and strong on the bike. So it’s a good sign for the season.” She’ll race at Trek CXC Cup, take a weekend off, contest Providence, rest the following weekend, and then head to Europe for the first World Cup in Valkenburg.

Powers (Aspire Racing) also won both races but waved goodbye to his rivals much later in the events. He seemed more under pressure on Saturday while trying to shake Raleigh-Clement’s Ben Berden. Powers edged out second place by a narrower margin of 8 to 20 seconds over the two days of racing.

Caroline Mani leads lap 1 at US Open of Cyclocross

Allen Krughoff and Caroline Mani spark lightning from their pedals

These former teammates got after it from the whistle and drove hard.

Allen Krughoff smooth in the sand at Boulder Reservoir

After Powers and Berden took the weekend hole shots, Krughoff (Noosa Pro Cyclocross Team) flew to the front and led the charge that quickly sorted out the leaders from the followers. On Sunday Boulder’s bike community ushered Krughoff to the second podium step with loud cheers. He says the victory he’s prepared for all summer is coming.

Mani took the US Open of Cyclocross hole shot, an honor that went to Crystal Anthony (Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) at the Boulder Cup. Both days the former French national champion spun out a pace that most couldn’t match and held it for up to two laps – an improvement over the past couple of years when she lost steam after the sprint out of the grid.

Georgia Gould: Look at my artisanal loaf! This contest’s been rigged!

Shawn Milne is a contender and Georgia Gould is back

This season Milne races in a Boulder Cycle Sport kit. He led the pack intermittently at CrossVegas and brought his confidence to Boulder. On Sunday at Valmont Bike Park he passed the Wells brothers and Jamey Driscoll (Raleigh Clement) in the final lap and finished fourth.

The Wells brothers can’t catch Shawn Milne in Valmont

Last year Gould (Luna Pro Team) raced CrossVegas and didn’t return to ‘cross until the Colorado state championships in December – which she won. She took the break she intended and rested, though she maintained her fitness and finished fifth at nationals in January.

This year Gould’s CrossVegas fizzled after an early crash. But at the Boulder Cup she rode in the group chasing Compton and came home for third place. She’s registered for Trek CXC Cup and fans hope she’ll tackle at least a partial season.

3rd yesterday in the Boulder Cup CX. Luckily, I have 5 days to do nothing but VO2 max intervals before next week’s @TrekCXCCup Watch out!

— Georgia Gould (@gouldgeorgia) September 15, 2014

Her competitive bite is as strong as ever. When she joined the post Boulder Cup bread bake-off shenanigans with Compton and local mom and fun-maker Katie Macarelli, she arrived armed with three different loaves of professional baker quality, gunning for the win.

2014 Boulder Cup elite men’s top five. Tim Johnson gives Jeremy Powers a squeeze.

Tim Johnson and Ben Berden still have tread left on their tires

Ben Berden raced to 10th at the Boulder Cup with a bloody forearm and knuckles

Age 37 and 39 respectively, Johnson (Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld.com) and Berden gave the younger guys in Colorado no slack.

Only Johnson could match the pace of Krughoff and Powers at Valmont, where Berden crashed hard on lap two. That incident left him with a sore neck and back. The day before the Belgian had forced Powers to work hard for his Saturday win.

Helen Wyman and Jonathan Page are great with kids

As the US Open of Cyclocross staff plucked up stakes and rolled up tape at the end of the day’s racing at the Boulder Reservoir, Page (XcelLED) and Wyman (Kona) led a group of juniors through a clinic organized by Naked Racing’s Emily Zinn.

Helen Wyman and Jonathan Page share pointers with juniors about riding in sand

Among other skills they demonstrated riding and running through sand and bike shouldering techniques. The kids couldn’t have been in more capable hands as both Page and Wyman spoke easily with them, offering advice and encouragement.

More in the mix

Driscoll feels he’s off to a slow start and aims to fight for the podium. Jake Wells (Stan’s NoTubes), another guy who factored in among the leaders at CrossVegas, is storming and scheduled to start in Gloucester.

Chloe Woodruff (Stan’s NoTubes) and Rachel Lloyd of Cal Giant delivered top six results at both Boulder races.

While Meredith Miller (Noosa Pro Cyclocross Team) struggled through a bad day on Saturday, she refound her mojo on Sunday for second place. “Even though it was a harder course, it suited me much better than yesterday,” Miller said at Valmont. “I just regrouped overnight, shook off the cobwebs, and was ready to come out strong today.”

Rachel Lloyd and Chloe Woodruff in the final lap at US Open of Cyclocross

For full results from the Boulder races, see the Bicycle Racing Association of Colorado website.

Boulder Cup Gallery