Butler dominant at Cross Crusade opener
Sue Butler (River City Bicycles-Ridley) left a strong impression on the local women’s field on Sunday, opening a gap early on and holding it all the way to a solo victory in front of a boisterous home crowd. The Portland-based pro racer took the coveted win at the iconic Alpenrose Dairy, which hosts the season-opener of the Cross Crusade, one of the nation’s largest cyclocross series.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqmBxKmkDs4[/youtube]
Mild temperatures and overcast skies took a turn half-way through the Elite Men’s and Women’s race with the sudden appearance of rain, turning the off-camber sections of the course into sodden clumps of churned grass and slick mud. However, the transitional stretches of the course, which saw grass give way to asphalt, caused the most havoc. After opening a good lead early on, two-time US cyclocross national champion, Ryan Trebon, hit the deck hard while navigating a slippery bit of asphalt. His rivals took the opportunity to push their advantage as Trebon recovered, but difficult course conditions prevented him from regaining contact with the leaders late in the race.
The Elite Women’s podium was a clean sweep by riders in Castelli’s Lycra CX Suit. The Elite Men’s field also saw Castelli-equipped riders holding strong positions, with six of the top 10 representing the scorpion.
Elite Women
- Sue Butler (River City Bicycles-Ridley)
- Alice Pennington (Femmes S&M)
- Serena Bishop Gordon (Silverado Gallery-Sunnyside Sports)
- Heather Clark (Bend Memorial Clinic Total Care)
- Brenna Lopez-Otero (Bend Memorial Clinic Total Care)
- Megan Chinburg (Corsa Concepts)
- Brigette Brown (River City Bicycles)
- Brooke McDermid (Bicycleattorney.com)
- Wendy Williams (River City Bicycles)
- Tina Brubaker (Vanilla)
Elite Men
- Sean Babcock (Kona)
- Aaron Tuckerman (Corsa Concepts)
- Chris Sheppard (Rocky Mountain Bicycles)
- Donald Reeb (Cyclocrossracing.com)
- Shannon Skerritt (Corsa Concepts)
- Ryan Trebon (LTS-Felt)
- Molly Cameron (MetaFilter)
- Brennan Wodtli (Hutch’s Bend)
- Eric Sheagley (Veloce Racing)
- Brett Luelling (Portland Bicycle Studio)
Castelli CX suits feature cross-specific tailoring designed to enhance range-of-motion dynamics unique to the demanding discipline of cyclocross. Choose our LYCRA® suit with 3/4 sleeves for mild temperatures or go with the thermal long-sleeve suit for the coldest of conditions. For more information click here.
