Charm City CX
“Cyclocross is a huge team effort, and I knew I wasn’t going to be able to do this weekend alone. So I’m super thankful for STF for taking me in and helping me feel like I knew what I was doing. Learned a lot of new cross lingo and had a ton of fun with the team.”
Baltimore brought the heat this weekend as the summer has seemingly yet to exit stage left. The hot and dusty conditions made for a fast but challenging weekend of racing in the second weekend of the USCX series.
The Elite Mens racing saw Hyde, Schmalz and STFR adopted Trinity rider Christopher Blevins take on the heat. Like the hot conditions, it was a blistering start from from Hyde who got into a lead group early on, but also from Blevins who started at the back and catapulted himself into the mix within half a lap. After the excitement of the fast start it settle down into a chess match between the front group. Small attacks from the front were nullified and the lead changed hands a number of times. Baestaens continued his winning form and another chapter in the Werner Hyde battle was added as they finished up the podium places. Blevins showed the pack he was not just here to show his face but he was here to race, finishing in fourth place. He then confirmed this the next day by signing off his short stay with the STFR team with a podium. Hyde wasn’t able to keep his run of podiums going on the Sunday but came home with some important points to keep himself in the top 3 of the USCX series.
Raylyn Nuss was looking to continue her strong start to the season in the C1 race on Saturday. After another blistering start from the pack, Nuss found herself stuck way back in traffic on the first lap. In what is becoming a classic Nuss move this season, she was not stuck for long as she reeled in a rider at a time, moving back into the top five within a few laps. Hossinger pulled away for her first win of the season and Mani came home in second. Rochette struggled in the rising temperatures and slipped back to leave Nuss and Clouse to battle it out for third. Nuss certainly had the engine on the last lap but was left with too much to do and finished in fourth. Backing up that fourth with another fifth on the Sunday has exemplified how Nuss is one of, if not the, most consistent US riders at the moment, solidifying her fourth place in the USCX standings and she is far from peaking.
The team had another successful weekend in Charm City and loved having Blevins in the tent to add to the atmosphere. Next the team heads into the World Cup block with three World Cups in a week. It is going to be high drama, full of fun and we are excited to meet more fans during this epic US season.
Race Weekend Gallery
