Wyman kicks off 'cross season on top in Vermont

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Helen Wyman (Kona) kicked off her 2013 cyclo-cross season with a wire-to-wire victory in the New England Verge Series opener. Maghalie Rochette (Cyclocrossworld.com) provided some surprising competition for a couple laps before settling into an unchallenged second place performance. Crystal Anthony (Optum Pro Cycling p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) was strong as expected and nailed down third place. Mo Bruno-Roy (Bob’s Red Milll p/b Seven Cycles) held off a hard charging Natasha Elliot (Rare Vos Racing) for fourth place. Elliot finished fifth.

Retired champion Lyne Bessette (Cyclocrossworld.com) made an appearance today in preparation for the Cross Vegas race next week. She started from the back row and quickly passed most of the Elite Women and settled for a sixth place finish.

The weather at the Catamount Family Center was a huge factor in today’s racing. The area had been pounded by rain for two days, which saw early morning racers dealing with slippery mud and grass. Nearly the entire track was mowed grass, which was quite boggy in areas where water could collect.

However, by mid-morning the skies began to clear and the course slowly started to dry out. By race time it was in much better condition. There were still a couple mud pits but the grassy sections became faster. Due to long lap times the women only raced four laps and finished several minutes under the 40-minute plan.

Helen Wyman took took the hole shot and looked back only briefly. She said, “I thought I would just go from the gun and see what happens. The young Canadian rider, Maghalie Rochette, was behind me and I thought it was Lyne Bessette. I said “Oh no…I know how good she is!”

Wyman continued, “I just kept riding as hard as I could and I seemed to crack her a little bit. The gap got to a decent size and I knew I could hold it.”

The Elite women’s race was sponsored by ENGVT, who offered cash to match the payout for the men’s fields this weekend. “World class female athletes deserve the same payout as their male counterparts,” said Jerry Chabot of ENGVT. “I think the US is leading the way in women’s cross and we are seeing an influx of top women racers as a result. I would love to see the US ’Cross circuit become the dominant circuit for Elite women.”

Helen Wyman seemed to appreciative, “It’s a really tough course and it’s important to race really hard because ENGVT put up equal prize money.”

The Elite Women will compete in day two of the Green Mountain Cyclocross Weekend on Sunday. Blue skies are expected so the track is likely to become even faster.

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