Ryan Trebon (Kona-YourKey) (Image credit: Mitch Clinton)
Defending US Cyclo-cross champion Ryan Trebon was knocked out of contention in the Elite Men's race on Sunday – quite literally. The lanky Portland, Oregon, resident crashed head-on into another rider and was rendered unconscious, ending up the day in the hospital instead of on the podium.
Trebon was chasing leader Jonathan Page (Sunweb ProJob) and second-placed Todd Wells (GT), and ahead of eventual winner Tim Johnson (Leer/Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com) with five-and-a-half laps to go when he collided with another rider from well back in the peloton. The rider broke through the barrier tape on a portion of the course where it doubled back on itself. "He hit me head-on and I landed on the ice on my back, shoulder and arm," Trebon said. "It hurt like hell. I’m not too happy right now."
Johnson took over Trebon's title of US Champion, coming from behind to catch Page, who led the race until two laps to go. Johnson caught and passed the Belgian resident, who had suffered a mechanical and had to run 50 metres to the pits to take a new bike. The pair battled the icy, muddy course and each other in an exciting two man duel which saw just seconds separating the pair until Johnson finally pulled away on the final lap to take the win. Wells took the final podium spot in third.
In the Elite Women's race, Katie Compton (Spike Shooter) overcame a relatively poor start, recovering to take the lead mid-way through the first lap and never relinquishing first place. She was chased by Luna's Georgia Gould and Rachel Lloyd (Proman/Paradigm) – both of her pre-race picks for riders to watch. Gould was overtaken by Lloyd on lap two, and the three stayed in the same order until the finish. The win marked Compton's fourth consecutive US cyclo-cross championship victory.
