Anthony doubles up at Really Rad 'cross festival

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Crystal Anthony (Liv Cycling) made it two out of two with her win on day 2 of the 2018 Really Rad Festival of Cyclocross in Falmouth, Massachusetts, USA, on Sunday.

The elite women's race started with clear skies and light winds, unlike the blustery conditions on Saturday. Anthony vaulted early to the front of the 27-rider field with Arley Kemmerer (Fearless Femme Racing), and the two rode together for most of the race.

"We wanted to work together because it was a really fast race, so it benefited us to take turns," said Anthony, who rode away to her third ProCX win of the season. "And then Arley had to get off on the stairs [on the back section of the course], so I got a gap there. That's when I decided to go for it."

Anthony, who currently lives in California, would cross the line in her home state after six laps just 10 seconds ahead of second-place Kemmerer. The duo finished in the same order the day before. On Sunday, Kemmerer said it was about working together and taking turns to extend their lead.

"We were hanging out with each other because it was too long and too much pedalling to not do it [lead] with somebody else. And we knew there was a group of five people, at one point, behind us," said Kemmerer.

The duo remained together until late in the race, even running the barriers side by side. They had a 40-second lead with two laps to go over the field. Then Anthony seized an opportunity on the bell lap and attacked.

"I think we were evenly matched power-wise for the whole course," said Kemmerer. "We kept it pretty fast the whole time. I wouldn't say we sat up much. It probably was a little bit of waiting for somebody to make a mistake, and it was me that did it. That was it."

The comeback ride of the day came from Cassie Maximenko (Van Dessel Factory Team). After having mechanical trouble from the the start, Maximenko had to fight her way back throughout the six laps to a three-rider chase group, made up of Anna Megale, Danielle Arman (Tenspeed Hero) and Regina Legge (Trek Cyclocross Collective).

"So right off the start, my bike just wasn't shifting great. I noticed it especially after we went through the sand the first time. I was, like, shifting and nothing was happening. So I lost some spots because I couldn't shift up to a harder gear," explained Maximenko.

This put her back well outside of the top 10, and she wouldn't reconnect with the chasers until the final half lap of racing.

"With two laps to go, I could see the group that was fighting for third in front of me. I was, like, 'Oh man, they are really far head.' I finally caught on to the group maybe halfway through the last lap," said Maximenko, who was fifth on Saturday.

"Then we started battling with each other. If I hit the pavement first, I knew I could out-sprint them. So I just got in the drops, head down, shifted through the gears and managed to get it."

With Anthony and Kemmerer taking the top two spots, Maximenko completed the top three, one second ahead of Megale, two seconds ahead of Arman, and three seconds ahead of Legge.

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