Lance Haidet (Donnelly Cycling) won the first UCI C1 cyclo-cross race of his career in RenoCross, attacking out of a leading group with Jamey Driscoll (Pivot Maxxis) and then leaving Driscoll behind to seal the victory. Bjorn Selander (Donkey Label) was third.
"First 'Cross win of the year. First C1 win ever. It feels awesome, I'm quite happy," Haidet said, adding that he is aiming to put in some good performances in the upcoming World Cups in Iowa and Wisconsin and then "Just try to hold the form through Pan Ams and through Nationals."
Haidet and Driscoll made a late move to leave behind a group of 10 riders who separated themselves from the bunch early in the race. The relatively high altitide in Reno turned the race into one of attrition, with riders putting in attacks then dropping back on the slow, windy sections.
"All day, it would get strung out when guys would go hard on the front, and then the slow grass and the headwind would just neutralize it. It was sort of a yo-yo all day," Haidet explained.
"When everyone would swarm, it would definitely get stressful, the fight for position was pretty gnarly sometimes. There were a couple of rubbing of wheels, and I think a couple of guys went down which is a bummer."
The crash came with three laps to go when Allen Krughoff tangled with Anthony Clark, causing Driscoll to lose contact briefly, then having to chase back on.
Driscoll sensed that with now only six riders in the lead group, riders were starting to struggle and he made his move with one lap to go.
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"I took the lead a little early but I didn't start going full gas until maybe after the barriers, because I figured that people were less poppy, and if I was suffering, everyone else was also," Driscoll said. "Lance was the only one to stick to my wheel, he was in good position to have the legs and lungs to do it."
Haidet had picked his section of the course early in the race, and when it came to the section he felt best on toward the end of the lap, he made his move.
"I knew that I was riding the last section of the course pretty well, gave it from there to the finish and had just enough. It was good," Haidet said.
Behind, Selander, who had to chase back on after a first-lap crash, missed the winning move but managed to distance the rest of the group to take third.
"Those guys were riding really strong," Selander said of Haidet and Driscoll. "I almost made contact with them right before the finish on the backs tretch, but when you're going full gap and altitude is little, not affecting me too much but it definitely affected a little bit. And then I just held on to the finish.
"I'm happy. I haven't podiumed for a long time. Stoked, really stoked."
