Kabush takes third national cyclocross title
Mical Dyck wins elite women's race
Mud, mistakes and crashes helped determine the outcome of the 2012 Daryl-Evans Canadian cyclocross championships in Surrey, B.C., Saturday. While the expected heavy rainstorm didn’t materialize, the rain did begin to fall steadily shortly before noon, turning what would be a blazing fast course in dry conditions into a sloppy sluice. By the time the elite women and junior men started, the course was already chopped up by the morning’s masters events, leaving some of the off-camber sections unrideable by all but the most skilled riders.
Junior Men
After a 40-minute battle, the junior men’s race came down to the final few hundred metres. A front group of three riders—Trevor Pearson (DEVO), Willem Boersna (Team Manitoba) and Peter Disera (Cycle Solutions/Angry Johnny’s CC)—quickly formed, and soon Pearson took control of the race, opening up a 10-second gap on the other two. But in the final lap, Disera surged to catch the leader. Pearson responded with an attack with 400 m to go but slid out on a corner, getting his bike caught in the course tape and allowing Disera past to take the win.
“That start was definitely more aggressive than I expected,” said Disera, who was sixth or seventh on the opening lap and had to fight his way through the field.
Elite Women
A combination of skill and fitness helped Mical Dyck (Stan’s No Tubes) win her first-ever elite women’s national title at the end of a race-long battle with five-time champion Wendy Simms (Kona).
Pepper Harlton (Juventus) got the hole shot on the uphill road start leading to the barriers, just 500 m into the race. She was followed by Simms, Dyck, Julie Lafrénière (xprezo-borsao) and 2011 champion Emily Batty (Subaru-Trek). But by halfway through the opening lap, Dyck hit the front with Simms and Harlton on her wheel. By the second lap, the leading trio had a 15-second gap on Batty and Natasha Elliott (The Cyclery). Soon, there were just two in front as Harlton fell off the pace.
“I made too many mistakes in the first few laps,” Harlton said.
Up front, Dyck pressed on. By the halfway point, she opened up a gap on Simms, who was solid technically but didn’t have the fitness to keep Dyck’s pace. Despite a few crashes, Dyck held on to win comfortably, with Simms second and Batty rounding out the podium after a late-race surge to pass Harlton.
“I was just focusing on my own race,” said Dyck, who opened her gap on one of the off-camber sections and never looked back, winning her first-ever national champion jersey in any discipline.
Under-23 Men
The clear favourite going into the under-23 men’s race was Evan McNeely (Specialized Canada), who won the title the last two years. He didn’t disappoint.
Another Evan—Evan Guthrie (Rocky Mountain Bicycles Factory Team)—got the hole shot, but McNeely hit the front quickly. When Jérémy Martin (Rocky Mountain Factory Team) broke his derailleur before the run-up, a small gap opened up.
“When you watched the women’s race, you could see the gaps open up quickly,” McNeely said. “So I wanted to force the pace.”
McNeely pressed on ahead and the race turned into a battle for second between Guthrie and Andrew l’Esperance (Norco Factory Team), with Guthrie taking silver by a handful of seconds.
With three under-23 titles already to his name, McNeely is still young enough to go for two more. But his focus now is getting ready for the Worlds in February. After next week’s Rhode Island USGP of Cyclocross event, he’ll take a week off in the warmth of Santa Lucia in the Caribbean.
Elite Men
Geoff Kabush (Scott-3 Rox Racing) had skipped the last two national cyclocross championships, leaving the field to veteran Chris Sheppard (Rocky Mountain Bicycles). But Kabush made up for lost time today by powering away to a dominant win to take his third national title. But it didn’t look too promising at the outset as Kabush languished in sixth place after washing out on an early corner.
“It was really slick,” he said. “Luckily nobody [up front] was throwing down.”
He quickly recovered, however. By the end of the first lap, a front group of seven had formed: Kabush, Sheppard, Derrick St. John (Stevens Racing powered by The Cyclery), Adam Morka (Trek Canada), Cameron Jette (Scott-3 Rox Racing), Andrew Watson (Norco Factory Team) and Craig Richey (Connected.com).
Kabush was feeling comfortable in the slick corners, pulling controlled two-wheel slides. He decided to put his head down and go for it. A 20-second gap opened quickly, and he set about extending it to give himself a buffer for mistakes.
“I found my rhythm and kept grabbing seconds where I could,” he said.
Despite a fall with two laps to go, he held on to win comfortably by more than a minute.
Behind, Sheppard and St. John split away from the rest. Sheppard eventually powered away for second place when St. John made a small mistake on an off-camber section. Sheppard ended up with silver and St. John held on for bronze ahead of Richey.
“My skills were horrible for the first two laps,” said Sheppard. “With Geoff’s horsepower, you can’t do that.”
Kabush and Sheppard will both be representing Canada at the world championships in Lousiville, Ky. in February. For Sheppard, who is 40, it will be his last race as he’s retiring after this season.
Other Categories
Of all the masters categories, the men’s masters 40-49 category produced the best race. Bob Welbourn was in tears after besting the 59-rider field in his first-ever appearance at a national championship. Clearly the strongest rider in the field, Welbourn punctured with three laps to go and dropped back to about 10th place as Marc Boudreau (Stevens Racing powered by The Cyclery) powered away in the lead. But Welbourn worked his way back through the field and caught Boudreau with less than 400 m to go to take an emotional victory. Welbourn is from Zimbabwe, but emigrated to Canada 15 years ago and soon became a citizen. He took up bike racing 12 years ago and has gradually turned into a respected racer in the North Vancouver area.
Results
Junior Men
| 1 Peter Disera, Barrie, Ont., Cycle Solutions/Angry Johnnys CC | 42:45:00 |
| 2 Trevor Pearson, Delta, B.C., Devo | 42:47:00 |
| 3 Willem Boersma, Portage la Prairie, Man., Team Manitoba | 42:48:00 |
| 4 Isaac Niles, Turner Valley, Alta., Team AB | 42:49:00 |
| 5 Neil Symington, Sussex, N.B., Outdoor Elements/Atlantic CC | 43:06:00 |
| 6 Jordan Duncan, Comox. B.C., Russ Hays powered by Accent Inn | 43:29:00 |
| 7 Edouard Tougas, Sainte-Martine, Que., Rocky Mountain-Forget Aubin | 43:33:00 |
| 8 William Elliott, Barrie, Ont., Team BTG/BCC/CDC | 43:47:00 |
| 9 Tyler Lee, St. Catharines, Ont., St. Catharines Cycling Club | 43:55:00 |
| 10 Connor Nevin, Etobicoke, Ont., Aquila/Racer Sportif/Mattamy Homes | 44:02:00 |
| 11 Max Toeldte, Boise, Idaho, Byrds | 44:40:00 |
| 12 Joel Taylor, Victoria, B.C.m Vac/Pro City | 45:55:00 |
| 13 Sean Germaine, Edmonton, Alta., Juventus | 46:31:00 |
| 14 Rhys Verner, Garibaldi Highlands, B.C., Team Squamish | 48:02:00 |
| 15 Carsten Lapointe, Vancouver, B.C., RTC | 49:21:00 |
| 16 Matthew Hardwick, New Westminster, B.C., Cove Bikes/CCN/Empire Racing | 49:53:00 |
| 17 Peter Whalen, Pitt Meadows, B.C., Local Ride | 53:01:00 |
| 18 Andrew Grant, Merville, B.C., Russ Hays/Pacific Cycling Centre | -3 Lap |
Elite Women
| 1 Mical Dyck, Victoria, B.C.m Stan’s No Tubes | 43:45:00 |
| 2 Wendy Simms, Nanaimo, B.C. | 44:17:00 |
| 3 Emily Batty, Brooklin, Ont., Subaru-Trek | 44:24:00 |
| 4 Pepper Harlton, Edmonton, Alta., Juventus CC | 44:36:00 |
| 5 Catharine Pendrel, Kamloops, B.C., Luna Pro Team | 44:59:00 |
| 6 Julie Lafreniere, Oxford Station, Ont., Xprezo-Borsao | 45:23:00 |
| 7 Sandra Walter, Coquitlam B.C., Local Ride/Dr. Vie Superfood+ | 45:41:00 |
| 8 Natasha Elliott, Gatineau, Que., The Cyclery | 45:51:00 |
| 9 Dawn Anderson, Victoria, B.C., Oak Bay Bikes | 46:18:00 |
| 10 Jean Ann Berkenpas, Maple Ridge, B.C., Secret Cycles/Xprezo | 46:58:00 |
| 11 Andrea Bunnin, Calgary, Alta., Deadgoat Racing | 47:14:00 |
| 12 Jamie Gilgen, Toronto, Ont. | 47:27:00 |
| 13 Maghalie Rochette, St-Jérôme, Que., Powerwatts-Fittime | 47:50:00 |
| 14 Chantell Widney, Edmonton, Alta., Team AB | 48:37:00 |
| 15 Stephanie Roorda, Vancouver, B.C., Local Ride/Dr. Vie Superfoods | 48:51:00 |
| 16 Joanie Caron, Rimouski, Que., Ride with Rendall | 49:10:00 |
| 17 Cynthia Young, North Vancouver, B.C., West Lion Cycling/Rapha | 49:12:00 |
| 18 Leah Guloien, Port Moody, B.C., Colavita ESPN-W | 49:48:00 |
| 19 Kelly Jones, North Vancouver, B.C. Steed Cycles | 50:59:00 |
| 20 Shantel Koenig, Edmonton, Alta., Team AB | 52:22:00 |
| 21 Emily Flynn, Winchester, Ont., Tommy and Lefebvre Cycling Club | 53:02:00 |
| 22 Heidi Manicke, Vancouver, B.C. | 53:56:00 |
| 23 Tarryn Côté, North Saanich, B.C., Pro CityRracing-VAC | -1 Lap |
| Marni Hambleton, Vancouver, B.C. | DNS |
| Sarah Coney, Coquitlam, B.C., Local Ride | DNF |
| Joanne (Joey) Luyckx, Vancouver, B.C., Atomic Racing | DNF |
Under-23 Men
| 1 Evan McNeely, Ottawa, Ont., Specialized Canada | 48:05:00 |
| 2 Evan Guthrie, Peachland, B.C., Rocky Mountain Bicycles Factory Team | 48:53:00 |
| 3 Andrew L’Esperance, Halifax, N.S., Norco Factory Team | 49:21:00 |
| 4 Michael van den Ham, Edmonton, Alta. | 51:06:00 |
| 5 Conor O’Brien, Ottawa, Ont., Stevens powered by The Cyclery | 51:12:00 |
| 6 Jérémy Martin, Boischatel, Que., Rocky Mountain Factory Team | 52:33:00 |
| 7 Felix Wilberg, Calgary, Alta., Cyclemeisters/Bowcycle | 52:54:00 |
| 8 Adam De Vos, Victoria, B.C., Trek Red Truck powered by Zed Wheels | 53:18:00 |
| 9 Connor Wilson, Camrose, Alta., Juventus Cyling Club | 54:32:00 |
| 10 Louis Dillon, Halfmoon Bay, B.C., Sunshine Coast Cycling | 55:18:00 |
| 11 Quinn Moberg, Squamish, B.C., Trek Red Truck | 55:49:00 |
| 12 Evan Wishloff, Sechelt, B.C., Pedalhead Racing Club | 58:34:00 |
| 13 Evan Carey, Victoria, B.C., Russ Hays/Pacific Cycling Centre | -1 Lap |
| 14 Henri De Boever, Victoria, B.C., Trek Red Truck Racing | -2 Laps |
Elite Men
| 1 Geoff Kabush, Courtenay, B.C., Scott-3 Rox Racing | 1:02:55 |
| 2 Chris Sheppard, Bend, Ore., Rocky Mountain Bicycles | 1:04:24 |
| 3 Derrick St. John, Gatineau, Que., Stevens powered by The Cyclery | 1:04:43 |
| 4 Craig Richey, Victoria, B.C. | 1:04:55 |
| 5 Aaron Schooler, Edmonton, Alta., Norco Bicycles – SRI Importing | 1:05:06 |
| 6 Cameron Jette, Toronto, Ont., Scott – 3 Rox Racing | 1:05:23 |
| 7 Andrew Watson, Barrie, Ont., Norco Factory Team | 1:05:27 |
| 8 Tyler Trace, Victoria, B.C., Trek Red Truck | 1:06:14 |
| 9 Kevin Noiles, Vancouver, B.C., Sundays Best Racing | 1:06:15 |
| 10 Andrew Pinfold, North Vancouver, B.C., H&R Block | 1:06:39 |
| 11 Mark McConnell, Calgary Alta., Team AB | 1:06:44 |
| 12 Kevin Calhoun, North Vancouver, B.C., Rocky Mountain | 1:06:49 |
| 13 Adam Morka, Ajax, Ont., Trek Canada | 1:07:44 |
| 14 Thomas Skinner, Victoria, B.C., Norco/Oak Bay Bikes | 1:08:33 |
| 15 Cody Canning, Sherwood Park., Alta., Trek RedTruck Racing powered by Mosaic | 1:09:01 |
| 16 Mike Garrigan, St. Clements, B.C. | 1:10:14 |
| 17 Kelly Guest, Victoria, B.C., Straight Up Cycles | 1:10:59 |
| 18 Sven Sturm, North Vancouver, B.C., Trek RedTruck Racing powered by Mosaic | 1:11:25 |
| 19 Raphael Lalumiere, Victoria, B.C., Russ Hays/Accent Inns | 1:11:28 |
| 20 Pascal Wehr, North Vancouver, B.C., Cannondale | -1 Lap |
| 21 Mike Berkenpas, Maple Ridge, B.C., Secret Cycles | -1 Lap |
| 22 Jesse Reams, Watson Lake, B.C., Trek Red Truck Racing | -1 Lap |
| 23 Kelly Servinski, Squamish, B.C., Scott Bikes | -1 Lap |
| 24 Wai-Ben Wong, Vancouver, B.C., Glotman Simpson Cycling | -1 Lap |
| 25 Cyrus Kangarloo, Vancouver, B.C., Speed Theory | -1 Lap |
| 26 Brett Wakefield, Vancouver, B.C., Local Ride Racing | -1 Lap |
| 27 Sherwood Plant, Edmonton, Alta., Independant | -1 Lap |
| 28 Richard Machhein, Port Coquitlam, B.C., Local Ride Racing | -1 Lap |
| 29 Matt Hornland, Vancouver, B.C., Mighty Riders | -3 Laps |
| Drew MacKenzie, Victoria, B.C., Condo Group/Marin/Shimano | DNF |
| David Gagnon, Montreal, Que., Powerwatts-Fittime | DNF |
| Brandon Thomson, Vancouver, B.C., Speed Theory | DNF |
| Nicholas Berry, Vancouver, B.C., Mighty Riders | DNF |
| Ted Martin, Vancouver, B.C., Triple Crown Racing | DNS |
| Jordan Maynard, Vancouver, B.C. | DNS |
