Wells competes at USGP opener in Wisconsin
Specialized Racing: XC MTB | September 26, 2011
Wells competes at USGP opener in Wisconsin
Specialized's Todd Wells raced the USGP of Cyclo-Cross season opener in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, on Saturday. After a rough start, Wells rode himself up into 16th place.
"I was sitting in fourth wheel just a few minutes into the race," said Wells,, who had some bad luck early on. "Then I had a mechanical on the first lap."
Much of the field passed Wells while he determined that he would need to visit the pits for assistance. "I couldn't fix it, so I scooted over to the pit and got a new bike and got going again. I was about two minutes down when I went through the start/finish the first time."
While some racers might have given up after misfortune so early in the race, Wells pushed onward, making the most of a chance to race against a top-notch field of 68 elite men.
"I had quite a bit of work to do, but I'd travelled all that way and wanted to get a good workout in," said Wells, who ended up in 16th at 3:03 after winner Ryan Trebon.
"I was passing a lot of people the rest of the race. I got to ride through the field, and there is always a bunch of crazy stuff happening back there." His effort was a sustained, steady one as he picked off racers one at a time. "It almost felt like I was out for a training ride."
Wells was pleased with the course and the caliber of the other racers in attendance. The reigning US Cyclo-cross National Champion described the competition as the strongest 'cross field yet to race in Wisconsin.
"The course was awesome - similar to in races there in the past. We got a little rain before the race, but the ground was dry. A few of the grass corners were slippery but in general traction was good."
It featured one barrier section and one technical section with three, one-meter-long spaced stairs immediately followed by a steep hill. Some rode the stairs and the climb while others dismounted and ran the section.
Wells competed on his Specialized CruX cyclo-cross bike with Terra mud tires. He went with the more aggressive tire choice because the course was so dry and hardpacked, that it was hard to get good traction otherwise.
Wells' next 'cross race will be the Irvine Spooky 'Cross in Irvine, California, on October 15-16.