Powers dominates Kona rivals

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Jeremy Powers (CyclocrossWorld/Cannondale) won the Cyclo Stampede, the opener of this year’s Cincinnati UCI3 Cyclocross Festival, by a wide margin but it was mother nature that provided the real talking point. Off-camber straights and gravity combined with wet conditions to challenge the riders more than their rivals would.

Ryan Trebon (Kona) pronounced the soggy, slippery course to be “burly” and said the one portion of asphalt golf cart path was “terrifying” before the men’s race commenced. That very portion of the course would have a big outcome on the finish of the race.

A lead trio of Powers and Kona team-mates Trebon and Barry Wicks pulled away from the field soon after the start. Danish National Champion Joachim Parbo (CCV Leopard Cycles) meanwhile began a battle with Mark Lalonde (Planet Bike) that would last most of the race.

“It was the kind of race where you just waited for somebody to make a mistake,” said Powers.

Trebon led Powers across the line three laps in, while Wicks had been gapped by about 10 bike lengths. Not long after, on a grass-to-pavement transition, Trebon flatted his front tire and had to run over half a lap. Powers never looked back and Wicks was never able to close the gap. Behind them, Parbo used his immense experience to gut-out a third place.

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