Helen Wyman (Kona) took victory at the Jingle Cross opener in Iowa City on Friday night. The Briton won the women's C2 race ahead of Elle Anderson (Elle Anderson Racing) and Emma White (Cannondale).
Downpours all week in Iowa created some of the most challenging conditions the racers have ever faced. The thick mud wreaked havoc with the bikes, and the pits were forced to have clean machines ready every half lap of the race. Sections of the course that are normally rideable turned into very long stretches of running. Women without support in the pits were forced to abandon.
Wyman took the hole-shot and then rode wire to wire. While her bike handling is always solid, she particularly looked good tonight when on foot. Anderson turned in some of the fastest lap times of the night as she slowing reeled in the massive lead that Wyman had develop. In the end she had cut the gap to 16 seconds and settled for second place.
White started brilliantly in second place but had a small mid-race letdown and finished in third place.
Wyman had warmed up when the racecourse was configured for Saturday’s World Cup and was surprised when she suddenly faced a new hill on the Friday course. When she saw it she remarked to herself “Oh, Damn” as the hill “went on for ages”.
Wyman’s race was not without challenges. Twice she suffered dropped chain issues due to the thick mud, but she was able to make on course repairs to keep going.
Elle Anderson weighed in on the race, “It was a really, really challenging race. I just feel that the mud was about as sticky as it gets. It was definitely a shock to the system to see how much running there was per lap.”
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Anderson added, “It’s really funny. There hasn’t been mud in my life since last February. It was a reawaking and all that muscle memory of how to ride in the mud…it all came back pretty fast.”
The Elite Women who have UCI points will compete in the Inaugural Jingle Cross World Cup on Saturday. Wyman is hoping for similar conditions to tonight. She remarked, “I think it would be absolutely fantastic. This, to me, is an amazing race”
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