Fahringer takes Supercross Cup Day 2 win

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Rebecca Fahringer (Kona Maxxis Shimano) charged away from the elite women's field of 23 riders to claim her first ProCX win of the 2018 season on day two of the Rockland County Supercross Cup in Stony Point, New York, on Sunday.

Extremely muddy conditions from snowmelt were on hand for a second day of racing, held for the third consecutive year at Rockland Community College, located an hour from New York City in the southern-most county of the Empire State on the west side of the Hudson River.

After a heartbreaking runner's-up finish on day one of the Supercross Cup, Fahringer predicted a battle for the win on day two.

"Coming into today, I think everyone was a bit, like, 'Oh crap – we're out here doing this again," said Fahringer with a laugh. "It was pretty chilly, and the mud was thicker, with more running. My heart wasn't in it, but as soon as the gun goes off, that's when you start to really find it. I wasn't quite sure after a bad start if it was going to happen for me, but I just kept trudging through."

Fahringer would make her winning move on the second lap of the five-lap race. She would grab a 15-second advantage on that lap, and never let go of the lead.

"I passed Ruby [West] and she was breathing pretty hard," said Fahringer, who's ranked second overall in the ProCX standings, "and I said, 'This is going to be my day.' I just tried to ride smoothly and hope that she didn't charge forward like she did yesterday [Saturday]."

West would eventually finish more than four minutes back for second place. The Specialized-Tenspeed Hero rider, who won the women's elite race on Saturday, said she felt the fatigue of her winning effort from the day before.

"The course was run backwards today. I think there was a little more running. The mud was thicker today. Yesterday was like big puddles of water, and thin mud," the 19-year-old Canadian said. "Today was just thick mud, and with the running, your legs were getting heavy. I think the wear from yesterday had accumulated."

West said she simply couldn't respond when Fahringer put her under pressure on lap two.

"I think she literally just went around me and rode away. I had less than nothing to offer today; my legs were totally empty from yesterday. I just did as much as I could, but Rebecca was so strong, and she was gone. I was focused on trying to stay upright and move forward as fast as possible, even though that wasn't very fast. I did what I could, and I'm happy with second today. It’s been a good weekend," West said.

The Supercross Cup would prove to be a breakout ride for Jane Rossi (Rhode Island School of Design) as she secured her first ProCX podium of the year. Rossi finished 4:08 seconds behind Fahringer to take third place. Canadian Magdeleine Vallieres (Quebecor-Stingray), who was third on Saturday, finished four seconds behind Rossi for fourth on Sunday.

"It's been a learning curve this season, learning how to do starts. I'm still trying to figure it out," said Rossi. "Every first lap has been a struggle. It was a lot of fighting to get back today. You can make up a lot of spots with just one short manoeuvre. The last couple of laps it was just about staying really smooth and trying not to make any mistakes and no mechanicals. So, that was huge."

Fahringer planned to continue her season at the NBX Gran Prix of Cyclocross after Thanksgiving. She will then compete at the USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships in Louisville, Kentucky, which will be held December 11-16.

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