Compton, again, for weekend sweep at Trek CXC Cup
As she so often does when racing on home soil, the UCI World Cup series champion powered away from the rest of the field to finish alone
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U.S. national cyclocross champion Katie Compton (Trek Factory Racing) made it a weekend sweep at the Trek CXC Cup Sunday in Waterloo, Wisconsin.
As she so often does when racing on home soil, the UCI World Cup series champion powered away from the rest of the field to finish alone.
Behind Compton were the same two riders on the podium as on Saturday, yet in reverse positions, with Caroline Mani (Raleigh-Clement) taking second, and Georgia Gould (Luna) in third.
Even after a night of rainfall, the course was exceptionally dry and dusty, slippery even on the easiest of corners. Wind also played a major factor, with gusts up to 40mph.
Compton attacked Mani halfway through the 45-minute race, on a steep climb that Mani was unable to ride. From there, Compton held her gap to the line, winning by 23 seconds.
“It was a little bit tighter today, it was super fast, and I think there are a few less twists and turns [than Saturday],” Compton told VeloNews. “And it was so windy. I definitely had a better start today, and I tried to wait, but then I saw a spot to attack, and Caroline was right there.”
Mani said she was satisfied to have finished as close as she did to the World Cup champion.
“[Compton] was riding the climb. I don’t have the gear for that. I made the choice to run a single-ring today, a 40-28, and I’m not capable of riding that,” Mani told VeloNews. “I made that choice, maybe it was a mistake, but she is stronger than me, so even if I would have been able to ride the climb with her, I think she would have eventually attacked me somewhere else. She’s stronger, but it was good to be able to follow her for a couple of laps. I’m satisfied with that.”
Compton said the course’s slick conditions were much different than on Saturday, which made for a change in cornering tactics.
“The apexes of the turns were slick today,” Compton said. “I tired to cross the apexes, rather than use them. It was a bit tricky, and the lines were changing, even during the race. You had to think about each turn differently, on each lap.”
Gould said the key difference for her between Saturday and Sunday was her start, which she described as “crappy.”
“By the time I got through some traffic, I was just by myself,” Gould told VeloNews. “It was actually kind of boring. I was all prepared to be tactical, and maneuvering, and mostly it was just a time trial. I felt good, but the time gaps weren’t changing.”