October 11, 2009

Visit the team's new site at www.cannondale-cyclocrossworld.com to keep up with your favorite cyclocross stars.

Sweep: Move or push something with great force. This weekend, Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com acted as American Cyclocross' great force, rolling to the start line at five separate events, and walking away with five victories and two runner-up placings. You would be hard pressed to find any team in any discipline that has had as successful a weekend as Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com over the last three days.

Jeremy Powers got things started on Friday night at the Darkhorse Racing Cyclo-Stampede in Covington, Kentucky. Mud was the name of the game, and Jeremy displayed a perfect mix of bike handling and raw power, en route to taking the team's first win of the weekend. Despite flying solo, Powers' pace and grace were unmatched by any of his competition. Jeremy came into the weekend "I wanted to win at least one day,” but few, least of which Powers, expected what was in store in the next 48 hours.

Roger Williams Park in Providence, Rhode Island was the backdrop for another powerful display from the Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com squad, represented by Tim Johnson and Jamey Driscoll. From the gun, it was clear that Johnson had put his shoulder troubles behind him, as it was quickly apparent who was the strongest rider in Rhode Island. Tim was quick to grab a lead and extend it, while Jamey was focused on recovering from a slow start, and soon found himself trailing only his teammate. According to Driscoll, "I started a bit slower than I wanted to on Saturday, and Tim was clearly the faster on Saturday,” Jamey easily held off any challenge from behind, while Tim's lead never looked to be in any doubt. Tim loved the technical aspect of the course, designed by legendary course designer, Tom Stevens. "There's a big consequence for taking a corner wrong, but if you take a corner great, you gain an advantage right away." Tim took home his second consecutive win in the Verge New England Championship Cyclocross Series, while Jamey cemented the team's highly successful day by taking home second place.

Back in the Ohio Valley, Jeremy had moved on from his success in Kentucky for the green pastures of Middletown, Ohio and the Lionheart's International Cyclocross. The rain had held off in Ohio, and gave Jeremy another chance to showcase his outstanding form, some of the best in the country at the moment. Jeremy was buoyed by his win on the previous day and set about gapping the field again. Jeremy pulled out one of his trademark tricks to gap the rest of the field, and demoralize the competition: the vaunted bunny-hop. No barrier was too tall for Powers as he hopped his way to an increased gap with every passing lap. Before long, the nearest challenger had again wilted under Power's continued pressure, and Jeremy could repay the crowd's encouragement with a wheelie of thanks. Jeremy sealed his second win of the weekend and the team's third so far.

The whole team was riding high heading into Sunday, but despite the team's dominance, everyone was wary of the pressure that would be on their shoulders. Tim and Jamey were the first out of the gates, and come out of the gates they did. "I took it easy at the start and when Jamey caught up eventually, he attacked and I sat on Jones for a bit and then I dropped Jones and caught Jamey and he and I rode together for the rest of the race,” said Tim, who took turns attacking the field with Jamey, until the duo had established their unassailable gap. "We were out there cheering for each other, trying to go as fast as we possibly could. It was pretty fun, we were really hurting each other," said Johnson. According to Jamey, "Saturday I was focused on holding my gap to the guys who were chasing, but on Sunday I was up trying to go as fast as I could with Tim.” After establishing their lead, Tim and Jamey pushed each other faster and faster, until an untimely bobble from Jamey let Tim slip away for the victory. "My bobble was more putting a foot down, I think Richard [Freis] blew that up a little bit too much but it let Tim get away,” was Driscoll's take on the incident. Whatever the case, Tim and Jamey took to the top two steps of the podium for the second day in a row, and brought home win number four for the Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com team.

After wins in Covington and Middletown, Jeremy made his final move to Cincinnati, Ohio for the Bio Wheels/United Dairy Farmers Harbin Park International Cyclocross. After mishaps in the first two races of the weekend, Jeremy was met head on by one Ryan Trebon who was bent on vengeance. "Today he threw down after the rest yesterday, he was really punching it, he was kicking and screaming, he was taking shots all day, and I was feeling it.” Jeremy was fully up to the task, and before long, Jeremy and Trebon were all that was left at the front of the race. Jeremy and Trebon traded blows back and forth, but no one rider was able to exert himself before the finishing straight. Jeremy accelerated as the line drew near, and Trebon had no answer. Power, control and tenacity were the name of Jeremy's game on Sunday, as he took home his third win of the weekend, his fourth on the season, and the fifth straight victory for Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com. "I didn't expect to win all three, especially with Ryan not using up much energy on Friday and Saturday. He really showed up today, it was the Ryan that everyone knows, so it was awesome, the win is what we were shooting for.”

Next up, the boys head to Toronto to tackle the second round of the North American Cyclocross Trophy Series, days one and two of the Toronto International Cyclocross Weekend, on October 17th and 18th.

Thanks to all for making the season possible.