Sidney McGill, Luke Walter win UCI cyclocross openers in US, while road season winds down with Alex Volstad and Lucas Bourgoyne tops at Bucks County Classic

USA's Lucas Bourgoyne (Cadence Cyclery p/b Encore Wire) and Canadian Alexandra Volstad (EF Education-Oatly) won the elite races Sunday at Bucks County Classic in Doylestown, Pennsylvania.

The 19-year-old Canadian was eighth on September 6 at the Maryland Cycling Classic Women. The next day, she outsprinted the women who have dominated the US criterium scene this season to win three hours north of Baltimore. Defending champion Marlies Mejías (Virginia's Blue Ridge TWENTY28) took second, Cassidy Hickey (CCB p/b Levine Law Group) was third and Holly Breck (L39ION of Los Angeles) was one spot off the podium.

Volstad was supported Sunday by her EF teammate and fellow Canadian Alison Jackson, who finished second at the Maryland Cycling Classic Women and was sixth in Doylestown.

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Bourgoyne, the USPro criterium elite champion, scored the victory ahead of Cole Davis (Project Echelon Racing) Nick Moulai (Good Guys Racing NYC), and Alvaro Jose Hodeg Chagui (Team Medellín EPM) in fourth.

Like Volstad, Cole also competed at the Maryland Cycling Classic in Baltimore the day prior. He was the top finisher for Project Echelon Racing in 21st position on Saturday.

US Cyclocross champion Eric Brunner, who did not finish in Maryland but completed Buck County Classic in 17th, opted to compete on the road for Project Echelon Racing the first weekend of September over the cyclocross races in Montana.

Rob Britton completes 2,400km ride to raise awareness for mental health

If you thought 563 kilometres across Kansas in 17 hours, 49 minutes, hours or 1,045km through Colombia in 73-plus hours would be enough for Rob Britton, think again. Two months after winning Unbound Gravel XL, the former road pro turned privateer completed his biggest effort yet, 2,400km in nine days. He called it his 'Big Ride Home'.

The personal challenge, not a race, saw Britton ride from his residence in Victoria, British Columbia to his hometown of Regina, Saskatchewan, for the longest ride of his life - crossing the western Rocky Mountains and endless prairies over three provinces, with some mud, temperatures ranging from 4°C to 40°C , plenty of farm animals for company and a rogue porcupine in the mix.

Why? To raise awareness and funding for the WIRTH Hats Counselling Fund, a nonprofit he has supported since 2020. In 2022, he donated half of his prize money from the 2022 Life Time Grand Prix overall finish to the organisation, which provides free, virtual mental health resources to people worldwide, not just Canada, who cannot afford treatment.

"Cycling is a sport that is predominantly independent, and you spend hours suffering alone during training. I think it’s easy to fall into the trap that you have to keep trying to solve other issues on your own as well," Britton told Cyclingnews about his passion for this cause.

"Not all teams are at the level where they have sports psychologists available to all their riders. And again a lot of those doors close the moment you leave the sport."

He posted daily updates to his Instagram page on his geographical progress, as well as fundraising progress, as he was just shy of his $9,000 goal and was accepting donations through mid-September.

"It’s one of the biggest and most meaningful rides I’ve ever done," Britton said on his Instagram. "Every dollar helps make therapy more accessible, and every donation meant the world to me out there."

Sidney McGill and Luke Walter win first UCI cyclocross races of 2025-2026 season in North America

The 2025-2026 UCI cyclocross season began September 6 with a weekend of C2 elite races at Thunder Cross in Montana, with Sidney McGill (Lastig Offroad Racing) and Luke Walter (Pure Energy Drink-Haro Bikes) taking the opening contests.

McGill, last year's Pan-American Cyclocross champion, had a dominant ride to finish 1:04 ahead of Anna Megale (Competitive Edge) and another 23 seconds to 20-year-old Kaya Musgrave, last year's bronze medalist for U23 women at Pan-Ams.

The Canadian then went two-for-two on the second day of racing, this time nearly a minute ahead of Musgrave and 34 more seconds ahead of Megale.

Walter, just 19 years old, sprinted ahead of Caleb Swartz for an eight-second margin of victory, with Tobin Ortenblad third, another five seconds back. The same riders comprised the top four on Sunday, with Swartz sprinting ahead of Walter for the victory.

USCX series begins September 13-14 in Roanoke, Virginia

US cyclocross elite men's champion and last year's USCX men's titlist Andrew Strohmeyer (CXD Trek Bikes) is expected to start both days of the Trek US Cyclocross Series (USCX) to begin the four-weekend collection of events this weekend in Roanoke, Virginia.

Last year Strohmeyer won both UCI days of racing at Virginia's Blue Ridge GO Cross CX. His main rival in Roanoke will again be Kerry Werner, Jr, who was runner-up at the C1/C2 doubleheader.

Manon Bakker (Crelan-Corendon), second overall in the USCX, and Sidney McGill, third overall in the series, will return on the elite women's side. Two-time series winner Caroline Mani and 2023-2024 women's winner Maghalie Rochette will also be start in Roanoke.

This is the fifth year for USCX, providing points across four established cyclocross events in the US, each offering a UCI C1 Saturday and UCI C2 Sunday.

“All of us are elated that Trek Bicycles has joined forces with us again, both as title sponsor and as the host of our final event at their headquarters in Waterloo, Wisconsin,” said Scott Page, series director & Rochester Cyclocross cirector.

The USCX opener returns to Fallon Park for GO Cross, with a new sand pit and "10 awkwardly-spaced railroad ties designed to punish tired legs", according to organisers.

There are no live streams for the eight races on the calendar from USCX, but fans can follow the progress of the series via social media reels and stories posted by athletes, organisers told Cyclingnews.

USCX 2025 schedule

• September 13–14 – Virginia's Blue Ridge Go Cross CX, Roanoke, Virginia
• September 19–21 – Rochester Cyclocross, Rochester, New York
• September 27–28 – Charm City Cross, Baltimore, Maryland
• October 3–5 – Trek CX Cup, Waterloo, Wisconsin (Series Finale)