Katerina Nash takes the win (Image credit: Mitch Clinton)
The final races of the US Gran Prix of Cyclo-cross took place in Portland, Oregon last weekend, with the Pacific Northwest first offering unusual sunshine on Saturday before yielding to its normal soggy conditions on Sunday. Luna's Katerina Nash showed she can excel in any conditions by taking back to back wins and securing the overall USGP series title.
Nash's teammate Georgia Gould took second both days and tied Nash on points for the series but was awarded second place on finishing places. "When you look at the points we're pretty much tied, so I think we both won today," said Nash at the post-race press conference, eliciting 'awwws' from the assembled crowd.
In the men's races, Tim Johnson took an unexpected victory on Saturday after being laid up with an injured knee for two weeks. Johnson and his Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com teammate Jeremy Powers tag-teamed Kona's Ryan Trebon, but it was only a late-race error which saw Trebon stumble that opened the door for Johnson's win.
"It's definitely something I didn't expect," Johnson said of his victory. "When I crashed in New Jersey, I was able to get back up and win that race but I couldn't even start the next day. Then I had ten days off the bike and I was worried that that was going to be the end of my season. I just tried to take care of it and do a couple days of training. So it's a huge surprise to even be in the top three, let alone to win here."
The next day saw the skies open up and turn the course into a morass of soupy muck. Trebon was able to solo away from GT's Todd Wells and Johnson to take the win. The result moved him up into second behind Johnson for the series title, while Wells secured third place overall.
See Cyclingnews' full coverage of the USGP Portland Cup from Saturday and Sunday.
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